This build is a bike for my wife. I bought an old Fuji off CL for the Nexus 3 speed to go on my Hawthorne. The idea was to put my one speed on the Fuji and flip it, keeping my total cost down.
The Fuji I bought had the wrong wheel, it shoulda been a 7 speed w cluster and it also had Sugino 52 tooth cranks, wrong for that bike. But the Nexus was what I wanted, it is like new, shifter and everything works perfect.
Then I found out the Fuji had a recall on it. After 2 trips to the city, I picked up replacement frame and forks, w chain guard too! I had to provide the old frame to them. So, off came the brakes and everything. The bike shop changed out the forks, no new headset, and they changed the cranks, no new bearings or anything. There would have been a lot of problems if I wanted it back like new. First, the shop wasn't going to change out the frame, just the crank bearings and headset, because they were on the old frame and they earlier said they would. If I wanted everything done by them, it would have been a couple hundred bucks, and it wouldn't have worked that way either.
The new frame wasn't made for a derailleur, wrong dropouts. No bosses for brakes either, so it couldn't be a replacement for that bike. They would have noticed that as they started to work on it.
I know why, they don't make that frame anymore, the later Saratoga bikes are all one speed or 3 speed. Fuji should just change out the bike for people who don't have the means to do a bunch of work on it.
However, my one speed wheel now went right in and I removed the brakes and cables and put it all together. I was going to hunt for a 6 or 7 speed wheel and hook up a derailleur and shifter, but not needed now. This worked out great!
My wife will most probably need a 44 or 46 tooth chain wheel, I'll see if I can get one for the Sugino crankset. Then I can mount the chain guard. The seatpost won't go any lower so I'll have to get or make a shorter one. I left the old plastic fenders off and it turned out great. I told my wife they use real gold in the paint.
The Fuji I bought had the wrong wheel, it shoulda been a 7 speed w cluster and it also had Sugino 52 tooth cranks, wrong for that bike. But the Nexus was what I wanted, it is like new, shifter and everything works perfect.
Then I found out the Fuji had a recall on it. After 2 trips to the city, I picked up replacement frame and forks, w chain guard too! I had to provide the old frame to them. So, off came the brakes and everything. The bike shop changed out the forks, no new headset, and they changed the cranks, no new bearings or anything. There would have been a lot of problems if I wanted it back like new. First, the shop wasn't going to change out the frame, just the crank bearings and headset, because they were on the old frame and they earlier said they would. If I wanted everything done by them, it would have been a couple hundred bucks, and it wouldn't have worked that way either.
The new frame wasn't made for a derailleur, wrong dropouts. No bosses for brakes either, so it couldn't be a replacement for that bike. They would have noticed that as they started to work on it.
I know why, they don't make that frame anymore, the later Saratoga bikes are all one speed or 3 speed. Fuji should just change out the bike for people who don't have the means to do a bunch of work on it.
However, my one speed wheel now went right in and I removed the brakes and cables and put it all together. I was going to hunt for a 6 or 7 speed wheel and hook up a derailleur and shifter, but not needed now. This worked out great!
My wife will most probably need a 44 or 46 tooth chain wheel, I'll see if I can get one for the Sugino crankset. Then I can mount the chain guard. The seatpost won't go any lower so I'll have to get or make a shorter one. I left the old plastic fenders off and it turned out great. I told my wife they use real gold in the paint.
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