Can I save the Junk Yard Dog.

[normski]

Hi All total newbie here, I found this site a few weeks ago and have been inspired by what you guys do. I stumbled across this old relic today It was about to be thrown in a skip and being the idiot that I am I decided to bring it home with me :roll: . Under all the muck dust and grime it claims to be a Halfords Ventura and it has a date stamp on the handlebar which says 07 / 81. It has a Brooks seat, Huret gears and weinmann brakes, the tyres are shot and basically its a shed (well to be totally honest if it were a shed it would have had a demolition notice served on it).

However, everything turns and moves as it should, nothing appears to have any adverse play in it and in a scrapheap challenge sort of way I have set myself the task of trying to get it road worthy / useable :shock:.

It's purely a fun project and the maximum budget is £40.00 I will only be using car cleaning / polishing gear that I already have, plenty of elbow grease and whatever I can beg, borrow, steal or get cheaply off here or ebay.

I have attached some photos and will update if and when I make any progress. Remember It only a fun project to cut my teeth on and see what can be done for next to nothing, I realise the best thing would be to return to the skip and put it out of its misery but lets see!

Cheers for now, I am near Chester if anyone has anything knocking around particulary tyres that might help to save the junkyard dog.

Normski.

 

[Dogbreath]

If you've gone this far and taken pictures and posted it on the web do it! Beats sitting in front of the TV and you'll enjoy the strip down and clean up...just wait till bike number 2! Mind you i do some polishing of bits in front of the tv

I just like getting old tired bikes and frames back on the road...is fun! Post pics and let us know how you get on.

 

[Piperdave]

Hi,

Interesting find that. Comes from a time when Halfords had a better image than now, and before the Apollo branding. I haven't seen many Halfords bike lately, so while it won't be worth much, it might still be a rarety. Most have, i feel, gone to the tip years ago.

A bit of TLC, and elbow grease, and it'll be an interesing pub bike.

Welcome to Retrobike, Normski


Dave

 

[willbowden]

Always worth saving an old bike mate.

I rode a Halfords Vitesse bike to Lands End when I was 13, 30 years ago this year so am doing it again on the Bianchi this summer to re-enact the event

A Vitesse came up on ebay a few weeks ago and I was very tempted.

Will

 

[Tel]

Looks save-able, just a little spit and polish from what I can see.

What size tyres do you need 27" or 700c?

 

[Spokesmann]

Worth saving. Most would have been worn out and skipped so these old machine are worth preserving for posterity. No great value, other than its a honest to goodness steel machine.

 

[normski]

Hi and thanks for the kind responses, spent some time on it today and got to say that I am very pleased so far. Washed it to within an inch of its life and it looks a hundred time better now all the grease and grime has been removed. I've not stripped down a bike before so started easy and removed what was left of the handlebar tape and binned that, disconnected and removed brake levers, handlebar and stem, I've polished these as they are ally, a couple of hours using a bench grinder fitted with polishing mops and compound and they're now shining like mirrors.

Disconnected front fork and spent another couple of hours trying to find and pick up the ball bearings that dropped out :roll: (obviously watched the wrong guide for that on you tube) still you live and learn! anyhow I think I retrieved them all, washed them and their cups in white spirit and reassembled / refitted with fresh grease. I've oiled the chain and that's now moving freely So cost so far is nil and an enjoyable day out in the spring sunshine. Not sure what size tyres I need ? originals are 26 x 1 1/4 so I am guessing this is what I need, ideally I could do with some new rims as the originals are chrome and are in a seriously bad way they run true and axles ? if thats the right word are fine but no amount of polishing is going to make the rims look nice :cry: . Think I'm gonna have to live with them as I don't think the budget will cover that. Have taken some more piccies but want to try and resize them as my first attempt wasn't too good any help on that front as to what size to use?
Hope to do a bit more tomorrow but my car windscreen washers have decided not to work so need to get those sorted first.
Regards Normski

 

[Prometheus]

Just a few words of warning. It's still not too late to turn back. Once you start on here and start browsing and seeing the wonder and beauty that is here to behold, you will be hooked I guarantee it. This will seriously affect your shed/garage space and more importantly your bank balance and to some extent your sanity........

You have been warned :twisted:

Assuming your going to ignore the above at your peril then best of luck with your first project

.

 

[Dogbreath]

Just a few words of warning. It's still not too late to turn back. Once you start on here and start browsing and seeing the wonder and beauty that is here to behold, you will be hooked I guarantee it. This will seriously affect your shed/garage space and more importantly your bank balance and to some extent your sanity........

You have been warned :twisted:

Assuming your going to ignore the above at your peril then best of luck with your first project

.

Just wait till he gets the new rubber and bar tape on...no skip will be safe in 50miles, then the ebay searches will start oh deary me

 

[normski]

Hi, some photos as promised,