A couple of posts ago, I talked about two bikes I had acquired. One of them was a 1973 Schwinn Varsity. It is an old-school Schwinn tank of a bike at 40 pounds or more. When I first got it I wasn't sure if I could get it fixed up without a lot of money and time.
A week later, it's running great. I had to replace both tires. I cleaned up the rear wheel, shined up the chrome a bit, and lubed the freewheel (which was just about seized up when I got it). I cleaned up the front cogs a bit too. There's still some rust here and there, but from a few feet away you just see shiny chrome. Here are a few pics; for more you can see a slideshow here.
Frankly, this bike is a little terrifying to ride. It is a spartan bike; nothing fancy here. The speed it generates feels primal and almost uncontrollable. I don't suppose it's as fast as my other bikes, but it sure feels like it, and then some.
I'm glad I saved it before it was crushed and recycled!
5 comments:
That looks good! The chrome shined up great.
That's fantastic! She really looks great.
Those shifters on the headset are funky, are they not? This was a cool find! It looks great! Those old Schwinns made in Chicago are made of the best/heaviest steel from Ohio--practically indestructable.
Cheers! Bruce
I'll say that cleaned up well! It's that live-steel feeling that you're getting, I bet. I get that even on my three-speeds, which certainly don't go very fast, but I seem to *feel* what speed there is more.
I had it out for a 42 mile ride yesterday. Very nice ride.
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