huffy camaro ratstore walkaround video now added

[heartlandcruisers]

well since I am not going to full on restore this bike I am just going to make it work and make it safe.
so I have come up with the term ratstore( rat restore )
the work has begun by changing out the crank that was bent......boy was I wrong on this being an easy task.
it turned out the pedal had been welded in and I had to cut the end off with a blowtorch.
so after several cuts and choice words being said. I took it to my buddy's house where he made short work of it and cut the bad part off in under a minute.
off with the head.... I had no choice but to cut so here is the results.

the replacement crank arm is from a Schwinn it is a lil different but it works fine.

sprocket fits perfectly on the Schwinn crank arm.

needed to add a spacer but t works.

the installed result it looks pretty good imo

I also removed the dry rotted whitewall and put this tire on until I can find a suitable replacement for it.
at least they are both black walls now I don't know but I kind of like the black walls.

now to figure out what I did to make the light not work.im thinking its a wire that came loose somewhere but I will fix it
more updates soon.
Sean

 

[heartlandcruisers]

well after cranking out some old school Metallica (and justice for all to be exact ) I got the ambition to fiddle with this one and see if I can figure out why the tank light stopped working.
it appears the bulb is not touching the metal connector so I have taken it apart to see if I can fix it.
I am still amazed at how clean the insides of this tank light is I suspect it was rebuilt, but nonetheless it looks fantastic and with a lil cleaning and a repaint of the chrome will come back to it's original glory.
does anyone know if you just use rattle can chrome paint? or is there a technique to get the chrome look on the plastic?
I want to do it the correct way it was done n the 60's as I am trying to keep this bike era correct as much as possible.
I will have to check around and see about that one this is my first true restore without chopping ,slicing ,dicing ,hammering, and bolting on whatever fits, so im kinda nervous about ruining a classic. thank god for the internet and this site there is a boatload of info I am following.
anyways onto the pictures of the progress as of now.
this is where I think the problem is the connector isn't quite touching the bulb

as I said amazed at how clean the insides of this light is only a little rust that can clean up easily.


this is the only spot that looks bad im gonna try to clean it up and see how it looks.

my poor baby's hurt!!! even the head tube looks like brand new inside she will be fixed soon.

the casing is in excellent shape with the exception of the chrome worn off I will be repainting this part with chrome paint or whatever method is used for this process once I figure it out.

inside looks great just needs to be cleaned which is getting done today

once I get this light working again I will be moving onto the paint/decals and decide what I am going to do I might just make my own decals and have them made at a graphics shop I know it makes the bike non original and more my taste but since I plan on keeping it and not reselling it I am ok with that.
more updates soon
sean

 

[heartlandcruisers]

after cleaning and reassembling the light it is once again working!!!
I also put the other pedal on it but they are loose so I need o rebuild them
I believe they are what's called waffle pedals but unsure of the correct term.
I will post some pics once I get a chance to do so
more updates soon.
Sean

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Glad you got the light working! Looks good in there!

Luke.

 

[heartlandcruisers]

Thanks luke
I am glad as well this is the one feature thats keeping me from turning this into a klunker.
I actually had the chance to take this for a ride today
it definitely needs more work but it rides fairly decent.
the wheels need truing so the rides a lil wobbly.
it feels like the headset needs re greasing as steering is a tad tight.
but the new crank works great and I will be keeping it as it is.
the pedals are pretty shot as they kept making my feet slip off when I pedaled hard
but considering it's age and the fact it has been sitting outside for a while it is in pretty sound shape.
I get all kinds of people asking me if the tank light works and when I show them it does they ask if it is for sale.
sorry this ones not for sale I am keeping it lol.
more updates soon.
sean

 

[Tomburr]

Looks like it's coming along nicely.
If the steering is tight, you probably need to loosen the top bearing race of the headset.

 

[heartlandcruisers]

Looks like it's coming along nicely.
If the steering is tight, you probably need to loosen the top bearing race of the headset.

yeah that actually was the issue I readjusted the races and cleaned the headset now it turns as good as a 60's bike can

 

[heartlandcruisers]

well painted the headlight assembly and it looks worse then before im not sure what happened but I am going to use thinner and remove it and try again.

looks like a lot of fingerprints but I don't recall touching it

I shall try again but I guess I could live with it f i had to.
next step will be to get the seat cleaned and white again. going to try magic eraser on it and see if it works.
then off to frame and fork painting.
more updates soon.
sean

 

[heartlandcruisers]

got out again to enjoy the 57 degree weather(that's a heatwave compared to what it has been last week) and took some pictures
as much as I hate this city places like this remind me there is some good here.
so enough with the chattering already and here are the pictures.
enjoy
this the beginning of the bike trail in the far right top you can actually see my house that's how close I am to the bike trail.

more on the beginning of the bike trail

took a slight detour on the dirt road to take this I thought it looked kinda cool.

this bridge is out due to structure instability but I figured it was ok for me to go on it with my ride

I swear I can hear her saying enough with the picture's and ride me already

couldn't quite get here but I think I found a new cat fishing spot.

the end of the road good spot for another shot

this bike just looks lean n clean no matter where she is even in the middle of the road..

this is why I love rebuilding old bicycles these guys were once the kings of the trails and they have been replaced with cheap Chinese spinoffs.
so my tired legs prove this is all American steel for the most part.
even though its a lil heavy it is geared nicely for cruising it rides really great even though the wheels need truing still pretty smooth sailing.
more updates soon.
sean

 

[Bike Bum]

Cool looking cruiser.

 

[heartlandcruisers]

thanks bike bum.
yeah this ones definitely one of my favorites it cruises great and rides really smooth.
even in it's current condition, once i true the wheels and finish regreasing and cleaning everything she's going to be my best rider I got.
sean

 

[heartlandcruisers]

after researching these bikes I discovered this particular one did indeed have whitewalls so I will be swapping the tires with whitewalls eventually but for now the tires she has work so im going to keep them.

 

[heartlandcruisers]

well my lightbulbs arrived today.
both sides of the tank light are now working

the only gripe I have is the batteries are dying quickly might have to upgrade to a better brand ( dollar general special) but man am I relieved the both sides are working. more updates soon.
sean

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Light looks good!

Luke.

 

[heartlandcruisers]

wel I touched up the paint a little bit today on this one it looks really good but not perfect good enough for me though
my makeshift paint area

looks really good here the rest of it looks just as good not bad for a 97 cent rattlecan job

rear rack came out excellent

now on to the decals and this ones good to go probably going to pinstripe the original white stripes on the rack and have the Camaro logos made up custom for it
more updates soon
sean

 

[heartlandcruisers]

well with a little scrubbing some fast orange and a steel wool pad and toothbrush me and my girlfriend got the seat looking really good only a little discoloration on it just enough to give it character.

 

[heartlandcruisers]

well not a lot of progress on this one, but then again it doesn't need much so it ahs been parked in my bedroom for awhile.
however, when I removed the tire to try to true the wheels I not only made the wheel worse but not the back tire is flat.
so I am now going to be looking for new wheel set for this build
I would like to keep them era correct and prefer them clean and true.
we shall see what I come up with.
more updates soon.
Sean

 

[heartlandcruisers]

Well I stopped.by my local lbs and he says I have 2 options either true it for 20 bucks or replace the wheels for 40 so guess what I am.doing tomorrow im super stoked about this info
More updates tomorrow
Sean

 

[heartlandcruisers]

well good news is the wheel is in being trued the guy is charging me 20 bucks.
the bad news is the guy said because it is a steel wheel it won't be perfect but better then w hat I got.
I am ok with better then what I got so im ok with that.
so hopefully soon it will be done and I can get this ol gal back on the road again.
upon looking around the shop I saw these cool bikes hanging on his wall there were more but I figured I would take the 2 I really liked.
first up is a near mint Raleigh chopper 3 speed other then missing the rear fender this thing is close to cherry.
he told me he found it at the salvation army store for 15 bucks!!!!! why couldn't I have found a deal like that!!!! I told him if he sells it I will buy it off him.

second up he says it iss a sting ray but im thinking more fastback 5 speed

I also bought this sticker from him to show love for the small timey bike shops that still exist.

more updates once I get my wheel back.
sean

 

[restodave]

the only gripe I have is the batteries are dying quickly might have to upgrade to a better brand ( dollar general special) but man am I relieved the both sides are working. more updates soon.
sean

Upgrade the bulbs to LED. They are now selling direct replacement LED bulbs that are brighter and draw less current than conventional bulbs; your batteries will last a lot longer. I Googled "replacement LED flashlight bulb" and found all kinds. They are discusses at length on here too.