Ratsurrection

[bmxerpete]

Well, nothing like waiting till the last minute to enter a bike. I think I did this last time too...
My entry is a '70 something (I think) Schwinn Racer. It's still wearing it's original finish which I am not going to defile with new paint.



Step one is tearing everything down, right?



The Amazing Exploding Bicycle!

Now comes the fun part- picking parts. I'm building this one using only what I have on hand. I'm not going to buy anything new, not only because that goes against the Rat Principle, but also (mainly) because I'm broke.

Which cranks- new school or old school?



I have a nice old school Tange bottom bracket set that will be used.



I also have an old set of Femco alloy 26 x 1.75 rims that will be perfect...after we scrub off the black spray paint that's all over them.



This is the best part...



Stay tuned as we ratsurrect this one from the dead.

[CCR]

nice dissection

ps, i like the "new" school crankset myself

[sensor]

didnt they pass child labor laws in the 20's?
j/k great start and glad to have you in this too! and good to see the youve got a helper!

[bmxerpete]

I believe they did pass the Child Labor Law in the 20's, but my kids don't know that.

[chimichanga]

I like that exploding bicycle!

[bmxerpete]

Found a little time to work on it, and found a few parts. I scrounged up a cool old stem, but the bottom inch or so is broken. I'm pretty sure I can fix it with a hacksaw and a file though.



Here's the broken part...



I found the perfect set of handlebars, the only problem is they were on my kid's mountain bike. I don't think he'll mind.



And lastly I found an ancient set of road bike pedals I forgot I had. They were really, really rusty, so I hit them with steel wool. About halfway through I realized that I should have left them rusty for the ratty factor. After spending many years working in the auto restoration business I guess it's a hard habit to break.



Once again, after scrolling through the other builds I am amazed at the creativity you guys have. There are some really cool bikes coming together.
We'll get after it tomorrow and see what else we can get done.

[GTCOMA]

I like where this is headed. I'm leaning toward the new school cranks. You should put some old cruiser bars on your sons bike.

[aka_locojoe]

You should put some old cruiser bars on your sons bike.

I was thinking of a photo of him on it with a stick through the gooseneck.

Great photo of your son.

[bmxerpete]

OK...finally had a little time to work on it, and now we're getting the rain bands and a few gusts from hurricane Gustav. That sure made taking pictures a lot of fun. I think the wind blew the bike over about 4 or 5 times.
I was digging thru my bike parts and found a set of cranks I had set aside for a bmx build...



170mm Suntour Superbe Pros with a 45 tooth Suntour sprocket.

Next I put on a suede Cycle Pro seat from an old Ross Professional road bike. It's sitting on the original Schwinn seatpost and held in place with a red Team Cycle bmx seatpost clamp.



The Mongoose MTB bars got flipped and put into the freshly repaired (a la hacksaw and file) SR road bike stem, and capped off with the original Schwinn grips.



I was trying to decide if I shoud rob the whitewall tires off my wife's cruiser when I remembered the slick tires I used to run on my moutain bike.



They're 26 X 1.50 IRC Metros...smooooth rollin'.



And that's it- probably one of the easiest bike builds I've ever done, and so far one of my favorites. The bike rides smooth, it looks like it's from the 1920's, and with the 45 - 18 gearing it hauls butt. A couple of my neighbors asked me if it was an antique bike, and I just had to smile. The neighbor that gave me the bike can't believe it's the same bike.
As soon as the weather clears up I'm going riding. Then I have to get ready for Hannah...

[GTCOMA]

looks good. i like the seat.