OldRoads.com

This is an archive of Vintage Bicycle Information.
For current Discussions, go to our main site: OldRoads.com

If you are trying to determine the genealogy of your bicycle by it's features, go to our Vintage Bicycle Price Guide
which details bicycle features, wheel sizes, brake types, etc., as well as showing a price estimate for your old bicycle.

If you are trying to determine the make and model of your bicycle, go to our Vintage Bicycle Picture Database
which details bicycle features, wheel sizes, etc., as well as showing a price estimate for your vintage bicycle.

Archived: Restoration Tips





RESTORATION TIPS - PAINT:   KRATELOAD posted by: ROD on 8/1/2005 at 5:30:05 PM
Does anyone know how to restore pre-'67 Schwinn non-reflected crate pedals without damaging them? I have a pair of '63's(Corvette) & '64's(Starlet III). Thanx!





RESTORATION TIPS - PAINT:   Steel Wool posted by: Flavio Figliola on 7/28/2005 at 7:23:51 AM
I forgot to add, use a very fine steel wool along with this Lubricant Spray Grade of steel wool #0000





RESTORATION TIPS - PAINT:   Chrome parts(light suface rust restoration posted by: Flavio Figliola on 7/28/2005 at 7:00:59 AM
Well for anybody That Has bikes with light surface rust on the chrome parts Handle Bars, Pedal Cranks,Rims, Seat Posts etc. What Works really well is a All Purpose Lubricant Spray . I have sprayed entire Raligh Superbe with it and it didn,t harm anything on the bike because the Spray is fortied with a Silcone. this spray is Called CRC spray. You can get this spray at almost any Car Quest Auto Parts Store.





RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   "Antiques Roadshow FYI" Wednesday posted by: Vin - Menotomy Vintage Bicycles, Inc. on 7/19/2005 at 11:19:03 PM
July 20. Wednesday night at 8pm on PBS (WGBH, channel 2 in Boston).

Not sure about other markets, and only 90% sure it will be showing in Boston on Wednesday the 20th.

You'll see bikes from the 1930s to the 1960s. I'm not sure if we'll be on for 30 seconds or a couple minutes.

Vin - Menotomy Vintage Bicycles, Inc.
http://OldRoads.com





RESTORATION TIPS - WHEELS:   Huffy Daisy Daisy posted by: Jack on 7/19/2005 at 7:33:56 AM
Help --------- What are the correct Wheel & Tire size for a
Huffy Daisy Daisy circa 1960
My wife's father stored hers but lost the wheels
Thanks


   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - WHEELS:   Huffy Daisy Daisy posted by Bikesavage on 5/3/2006 at 4:37:21 AM
26" X 1.75" chrome rims and WW tires.




RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   fork problems posted by: Blue on 7/18/2005 at 2:38:52 PM
I have a late 50's lady's schwinn tornado and the bolt on the goose head of the fork has been cut off. I need to replace it but do not know how to remove it. I have another fork on the same size schwinn american from 1961. will it work for the tornado? but it also won't budge. PLEASE HELP. I would really like a working bike.





RESTORATION TIPS - PAINT:    posted by: Flavio Figliola on 7/15/2005 at 5:55:45 AM
hi, Yes I,m Not the much of bicycle restorer, but i have a friend that sells new and used bicycles here in jersey, he calls me up because i told i was looking for a old schwinn to restore and what do you know he had come across a old schwinn autocycle , so i said to my self, let me test my skill it was pains taking work the orignal finish was some what there.Due to the bike being possible stored out side for years. i had sand to where i left just enough orignal painted pinstripping on the frame and fork. i sanded until i had a smooth finish, then i taped off the front part of the frame. Since A lot of the older schwinns with the cantilever frames and the two tone paint on tank , frame, and front fork as well, for shcwinns as well as any other balloon tire bike with fine detail i personally recomend a fine line tape by 3M it really works well and it won,t stick like masking tape will,oh don,t forget the red oxide primer. i gave the frame and fork a good three heavy coats. final coats i had taken the frame to auto paint and supply shop so they could duplicate the paint that was needed after painting the frame and fork a dark carmine red which perfectly matches the oringnal finish, i took a very fine steel wool to smooth any roughness and then just cleaning the frame and fork with a damp towel or lint free cloth,and then two to three coats of a clear coat gloss lacquer let dry , and then sand clear coat with a fifteen hundred grit sand paper or two thousand grit sand paper becareful not to sand through the paint,again wipe frame, fork, with damp cloth let dry, then i use a red compound paste turtle wax preferably rub throughly on two new painted frame,fork, etc and then buff with a soft terry cloth towel, Well that's about enough restoration tips i have. Well Happy Restoring





RESTORATION TIPS - PAINT:   JC Higgins posted by: John Beast on 7/13/2005 at 1:23:25 AM
where can i get general info on jc higgins ladies bikes?

and can anybody indentify this bike, biue whith white lines through it looks like it might have benn a schwinn but has the jc higgins eblem painted on it balloon tires Thanks!!


   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - PAINT:   JC Higgins posted by kim on 7/13/2005 at 11:42:32 AM
There is a ton of information on JC Higgins bicycles in the archives here, including over a dozen pictures of them in the Picture Database. (For some reason they are in the database in 2 places as: "JC Higgins" and "J.C. Higgins" with periods after the J and C)




RESTORATION TIPS - PAINT:   Locaating pictures posted by: Bob on 7/9/2005 at 8:02:39 AM
Does anyone know where I can locate pictures of a middleweight Columbia Torpedo when new? From what everyone has told me this bike shhould be of the late '50s early '60s era but it has a serial number from 1947; so I'm not sure where to go for the "when it was new" pictures.





RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   1986 Raleigh Record posted by: Sam on 6/29/2005 at 8:24:16 PM
I just recently bought a perfectly preserved Raleigh Record from 1986. It only needs new tires. I paid $20.00 for it. Does anyone have any sort of information that they can pass along about this kind of bicycle? Thanks!


   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   1986 Raleigh Record posted by kim on 6/30/2005 at 11:41:48 AM
Nice find.
You'll find a lot of info on them under the Vintage Lightweight topic and in the archives here.




RESTORATION TIPS - PAINT:   Firestone Bike posted by: Matt on 6/26/2005 at 6:22:22 AM
The other day I bought what I thought was an awesome bike from a neighbor's garage sale for 15 dollars. It is made by firestone and still has the firestone "Speed Cushion" wheels. On the chain guard it says Kenwood. Does anybody have any info on this type of bike. I am also keyword "trying" to restore this bike. So far I have just taken stuff apart and started removing the rust from the chrome. The pains color is an awesome metallic blue and I want to keep it that color but there is pretty bad rusting on some parts. Should I just have them try to match the color and sandblast then repaint it, or is there an easier way to make it look better with out repainting it?


   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - PAINT:   Firestone Bike posted by Zee on 7/23/2005 at 2:17:45 AM
Hi! I'm a newbie at this, too, but found good tips at this site about surface rust. If you get a good chrome polish (I've been using Turtlewax) you can take off ALOT of surface rust using a copper (not metal) scratch pad or brush (I found a good detail brush at Wal-Mart for less than $1 in the auto dept., near the chrome cleaner, and it has a handle). The "Dobie" scrubber sponges in household items are great too! They're made for non-stick pans so they don't scratch; also $1 each.

You'd be really surprised how much you can take off with just the chrome cleaner and a rag. You might try that first, actually, because when I tried a bit with a rag on the painted surfaces of my Western Flyer a bit of the color came off on the rag. So "Dobie" careful! (sorry I couldn't resist lol)...

-Zee




RESTORATION TIPS - WHEELS:   AMF Hercules problems! posted by: MCZ on 6/24/2005 at 4:55:48 AM
hello. i stumbled onto my AMF and fell in love. although it needs restoration. the rim was shot. got flip flop hubs but the spacing was wrong (i swear i measured right) however the hub doesn't even fit- the part that is soposed to go in is too thick. Im in over my head do i got for the old parts or new? front hub is pretty badly bent and the bearings came out.


   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - WHEELS: AMF Hercules problems! posted by Ed Lang on 7/22/2005 at 3:14:55 AM
Your hercules needs to be filed wider. The drop outs are made for 3 speed SA axles. I had one that had an axle that was ground flat on one side to make clearance. This was original equipment on 10 speed gearing. Ed Lang




RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   tire posted by: clayton on 6/19/2005 at 4:16:09 PM
is there a 26 inch slick tire like the 20 & 16 inch slicks on the stingrays? if so does anyone know where i could pick a couple up?

email me please:folkordie@hotmail.com


   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   tire posted by taylor on 6/19/2005 at 9:36:14 PM
you can get 26 inch slick tires at 3Gbikes.com or www.streetlowrider.com




RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   handle grips posted by: phil fish on 6/17/2005 at 5:43:46 PM
how do you take the handle grips off a schwinn bike without damaging the grips? thanks much, what a great site!


   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   handle grips posted by kim on 6/20/2005 at 11:51:38 AM
I usually take a spoke or a thin blade screw driver and slide it between the handlebars and the grip. Then squirt some oil or water or wd40 next to the screwdriver so is dribbles deep along the inside of the grip.

   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - MISC: handle grips posted by Levon on 7/23/2005 at 8:14:40 PM
My friend's dad used to be a bicycle repair man and told us the best way to get grips off without damaging them. Most grips are made of some form of rubber or plastic and most lubricants (like WD40) are corrosive to these materials. He told us to use a few squirts of gas line antifreeze on the inside of the grip (like the person above me said). This is completly safe for any kind of rubber because the feul system in a car has rubber seals in it (and you'd probably want to kill a mechanic if he put something that eats rubber into your carburetor or fuel injection).

It also works as a type of glue for handle grips. If you put some on the inside of your grips it will slide right back on again then after about half an hour to an hour it will evaporate and make a seal between your handle bars and grips. If you ever need to take them off again just put another few drops into the inside of the grip and it loosens immediatly.

I've tried this and it worked like a charm. One bit of advice: make sure your grips are on straight before you let it set. We kinda forgot to do this and we can't move the grip unless we put more gas line antifreeze into it.

Happy riding/rebuilding/swearing at that one bolt that refuses to come out
Levon

   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   handle grips posted by cam on 1/28/2006 at 7:23:58 PM
hi first you have to get a really small scrow driver any kind and wedg it in there and work it around.wiel the scrow drivers still in there spray a littel dw40 in to the hand grip let it stay there for about 5 minites than with your hand try to tern the hand gerip around and slid it off.




RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   Busted Gears posted by: Josh Hicks on 6/11/2005 at 12:36:40 AM
My girlfriend has a vintage (somewhere b/t 1960-1970) Phillips 3-speed that is having a problem. Of the three speeds, only one still works (the middle speed). When she first bought the bike a year ago, all of the speeds worked fine. Now, however, when she shifts into either of the two speeds that don't work, the bike goes in "neutral." By "neutral," I mean nothing happens when you peddle -- it's like peddling backwards. This brings me to my question. Are the speeds busted or does it just need oil? And, if it only needs oil, can anyone recommend a certain kind? While trying to find answers to my questions on the internet, I've seen information about SA oil, basic motor oil, vegetable oil, kerosene, and so on. Can anyone help me help her help her bike? Thanks so much -- it will be a great surprise if I can fix her bike for her.


   RE:RESTORATION TIPS - MISC:   Busted Gears posted by John Metz on 6/12/2005 at 5:54:10 AM
It is likely a cable adjustment problem. These are nearly bullet proof units and rarely break! For adjustment procedure go to www.sheldonbrown.com and click on "old bikes" then scroll down to "English three speeds". If the
bike has sat idle for a long time it is posible that the old dried up or got stick and the shift pawls are stuck.
Normally you would use a fairly heavy old such as Phil Wood
or 30 weigh auto motor oil. Try the cable adjustment first
but if that doesn't work use a light oil and see if that frees thing up then use the regular oil shortly there after.
We have a 1986 Free Spirit with a Sturmey-Archer hub and it has been trouble free! Good luck!