A little back story....I was living down the Jersey Shore, pretty much across the street from the beach. Life was grand. But I was always a little jealous of people who had trikes down there--- especially the older ones. The land is completely flat, so a trike moves very smoothly. No hills to conquer. Anyway, one day about three years ago, I went to visit my parents. They lived about 50 miles north. I'm about a block away from there house when I see some guy wheeling out this trike to the curb. I slammed my brakes and pulled up to him. He told me he was giving the bike away, but only to someone who would use it and not sell it. I was elated. I told him where I lived and how I always wanted a trike. We shook hands and I had an awesome new bike. I couldn't wait for the summer to come.
Seven days later, Hurricane Sandy hit. Needless to say, the homes that were very close to the shore didn't fair too well. The place I lived was fairly heavily damaged and I had to move back in with my parents for a little while. I swore it would only be a few months. Well, I did move out of my parents' place, but I never did manage to make it back down the shore. That was three years ago. Well, I'm heading back in January! I can't wait. In the meantime, I figured it was time to keep my word to the very kind gentleman that gave me this beautiful machine. But here's the rub: I have no clue what I'm doing.
About the bike..... No clue what year it is, but I'd assume it's a 70's model. Maybe one of you can tell me. It clearly needs new tires. And brake lines. And brakes. As far as rust, there is some on the chrome, but it's not horrible by any means. Other than that. it seems to be in pretty good shape.
My idea was to slightly modernize it, while giving it a bad-... look. I was thinking of blacking the entire thing out, even if that means replacing the chrome parts, including the spokes. I also wanted to put some fatter tires on there and also maybe throw on some handlebars that are more like a beach cruiser. You know, the ones that are padded all over and very wide. Honestly, I'm not even sure if it's possible (at least easily) to put on new bars and fatter tires.
So, I'm looking for some advice. How should I start out? Feel free to throw in any creative ideas. I'm pretty handy and can figure out how to do most things, but I'm a baby when it comes to a project like this. What do you guys think?
Thank in advance!
