KneesUp
Guru
I have recently bought a couple of 'classic' bikes, if 'classic' is the polite way of saying 'old' and 'old' means early 90s.
This thread though isn't about them, it's about a bike I found abandoned outside a supermarket. I noticed it unlocked on the Monday, and thought 'that's foolish'. I noticed it on unlocked on the Tuesday and thought 'that's brave.' I noticed unlocked on the Wednesday and thought 'that's stupid'. I noticed it unlocked on the Thursday and thought 'that's mine'
I rang the police and they took some details and told me to take it away - and if no-one claimed it in two weeks it was mine. I should point out here that it wasn't just there because someone shops at the same time as me, I'd seen it in the morning on the way to work, in the day when shopping and in the evening when I went home. It never moved.
So, the bike came home with me; in the back of the car actually, because on closer inspection the brakes didn't work and there is quite a steep hill on the way home. It's not legally mine until Thursday, but I've fettled it a little already, by which I mean I've tightened the headset and investigated the jammed front derallieur and immovable front cantilevers (and concluded that they are beyond saving) There are some other jobs that need doing, such as replacing the rear cassette, the chain and one of the chainrings: it seems the front derallieur has been seized for some time, or at least it hasn't been used which led it to be seized. The wheels themselves are slightly out of true, but saveable, and are on LX hubs that run smoothly.
What else? Well, the bike is a hybrid but has geometry that to me looks like it will work well with drops if I change the stem for one that has a little more rise, so I'm going to turn it into a rough-road bike that will be used for commuting and general hacking about the place duites, as well as hopefully one day being used as a tourer: it has bosses for racks front and rear, although the forks don't have the mounts for low-riders. It has twist-grip gear controls at the moment so I'm on the lookout for some bargain bar-end shifters.
No pictures as yet because, well, it isn't mine yet, and also because I didn't plan to start a thread, but I've got a few hours to kill and have enjoyed reading around the forum and thought I'd better add something back. I'll keep this updated if anyone is interested. The only picture I have to hand is of the front derallieur in a tub of Cola because I read that it can help clean things up, and that this is only partially an urban myth. I reasoned that at the moment I have a stuck-solid front mech, and the worst I can end up with is a stuck-solid mech that's a bit sticky.
Oh, and I'm going to paint it too. It's a steel frame and the paint has seen better days. In fact it's seen more paint - there are big chips on it, especially on top of one of the forks, where perhaps it's been leaned against a wall or something. In-keeping with the purchase price of zero, I'm going to do this by hand with Rustoleum paint. It may look awful, but it will at least cover all the metal. It may chip easily (the internet seems inconclusive on this) but if it does that will make it easy to take off and try something else. And as I have half a tin of rustoleum under the stairs anyway, I might as well try it.
So, there you go. Not much without pictures I suppose! Assuming no-one claims it before Thursday I'll strip it down this weekend if I get chance and put some pictures up.
This thread though isn't about them, it's about a bike I found abandoned outside a supermarket. I noticed it unlocked on the Monday, and thought 'that's foolish'. I noticed it on unlocked on the Tuesday and thought 'that's brave.' I noticed unlocked on the Wednesday and thought 'that's stupid'. I noticed it unlocked on the Thursday and thought 'that's mine'
I rang the police and they took some details and told me to take it away - and if no-one claimed it in two weeks it was mine. I should point out here that it wasn't just there because someone shops at the same time as me, I'd seen it in the morning on the way to work, in the day when shopping and in the evening when I went home. It never moved.
So, the bike came home with me; in the back of the car actually, because on closer inspection the brakes didn't work and there is quite a steep hill on the way home. It's not legally mine until Thursday, but I've fettled it a little already, by which I mean I've tightened the headset and investigated the jammed front derallieur and immovable front cantilevers (and concluded that they are beyond saving) There are some other jobs that need doing, such as replacing the rear cassette, the chain and one of the chainrings: it seems the front derallieur has been seized for some time, or at least it hasn't been used which led it to be seized. The wheels themselves are slightly out of true, but saveable, and are on LX hubs that run smoothly.
What else? Well, the bike is a hybrid but has geometry that to me looks like it will work well with drops if I change the stem for one that has a little more rise, so I'm going to turn it into a rough-road bike that will be used for commuting and general hacking about the place duites, as well as hopefully one day being used as a tourer: it has bosses for racks front and rear, although the forks don't have the mounts for low-riders. It has twist-grip gear controls at the moment so I'm on the lookout for some bargain bar-end shifters.
No pictures as yet because, well, it isn't mine yet, and also because I didn't plan to start a thread, but I've got a few hours to kill and have enjoyed reading around the forum and thought I'd better add something back. I'll keep this updated if anyone is interested. The only picture I have to hand is of the front derallieur in a tub of Cola because I read that it can help clean things up, and that this is only partially an urban myth. I reasoned that at the moment I have a stuck-solid front mech, and the worst I can end up with is a stuck-solid mech that's a bit sticky.
Oh, and I'm going to paint it too. It's a steel frame and the paint has seen better days. In fact it's seen more paint - there are big chips on it, especially on top of one of the forks, where perhaps it's been leaned against a wall or something. In-keeping with the purchase price of zero, I'm going to do this by hand with Rustoleum paint. It may look awful, but it will at least cover all the metal. It may chip easily (the internet seems inconclusive on this) but if it does that will make it easy to take off and try something else. And as I have half a tin of rustoleum under the stairs anyway, I might as well try it.
So, there you go. Not much without pictures I suppose! Assuming no-one claims it before Thursday I'll strip it down this weekend if I get chance and put some pictures up.
