Woof...what BS!
Yea, well...it sounded good.
With most projects, I have a finished product in mind, sometimes having to slightly alter it, should what I want to accomplish, not work. But there are some, that totally stray from what I originally planned. The wreck of a Schwinn Speedster 3 is just such a ride. It consumed my day yesterday, as I kept thinking "hey, this would be neat!" or "OK, that worked, let's try this!"
I did step away briefly, as the days repairs came in, and we picked up a real sweet ladies Schwinn that needed a rear end repack, and crank bearing replacement. Then it was back at it until close. She's another full repaint, and this time I went with "Stove Pipe Black" with a touch of white. I just have to wait until tomorrow to finish up, as I have the tires on order. I did finally find a use for all the old seat parts I have been clinging to these many years, as the springer seat in this one needed a whole new undercarriage. Yes, I quickly came to realize, not all springs are the same! ARRGH! Took about 45 minuets to work. Sure, I could have just slapped another seat on it, but why? Hate to throw away something that is otherwise perfectly good, and it sort of became a vendetta. I wasn't prepared to let it win! Also, even after all these years I'm still learning new tricks! This three speed has an older chain pull, and the appropriate cable is the one with the female end tension adjuster. The other end has the little end cap that wedges into the shifter. Trouble is, it was rusted straight through in the middle and snapped. I have NO more of those cables, and they are a bear to find. SO, with some tinkering, I made my own! I know, small feat, but I have always been quick to just discard those, and throw on another shifter altogether. But, desperation breeds creation, and I found if I took a standard shifter cable, snipped off the barrel, then took a ferrule and molded into a similar wedge with needle nose and a hammer (took three tries, SOFT metal) I had the perfect set up! SAH-WEET! No more tossing shifters! Plus, I get to use the black cable housing I wanted to. Most of the older shifters like this came with a antique white fluted one, and that would have thrown off the whole look of the bike. So, I'm going to put her altogether, then wait for the tires. Wish I could have it out today!
After that, I have my fingers crossed the Gods are looking out for me, and they send someone with more goodies. I have a couple little kiddo bikes I got in trade yesterday for the Pink 6 speed 20" we had, but those are going to take all of 15 minuets to do!
I really don't want to go back to sorting screws!!
And as a friendly side note, please don't kill the messenger. We had/have some serious rides right now. More higher end stuff then our usual compliment of "Cheapie Cheaps", but they are still sweet! Had several calls about two of them in particular yesterday, the Trek 7.3 and the Trek Navigator 300. Now, as much as I try and let folks who call or text know, that it is "First Come, First Serve" rule around here, some are (perhaps justifiably so, if they have a bit of a drive) perturbed if they come in and the bike they wanted to look at is gone. That happened about six times yesterday, sadly. Most were understanding, but a couple of folks were slightly miffed. Things is, if someone calls me at 9am in the morning, asking if something is still here, it is a little unreasonable, that when you come in seven hours later, only to find that it has sold, to get upset about it. We will hold something for someone, if they give us their credit card over the phone, then it's yours, but...if it's just to "look at it", you take your chances just like everyone else. Hate to sound harsh, but it's only fair for everyone.
OKEY DOKEY! I'm off like a prom dress!
See ya soon!
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| "PRETTY, PRETTIES!" SCHWINN LADIES 26" CRUISER! ONLY $90.00!! |
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