Hello everyone!
I've been trying to decide what to do with my road bike recently and I stumbled across this forum. What a great forum. So nice to be surrounded by people that share the same fondness for old, classic bikes.
So, why apologies? Well, I feel like I've betrayed my Road Ace somewhat.
Here's the story:
I bought the bike from a colleague for fifty quid back in 2001. He muttered something about 'moving to Australia, blah blah, Gerald O'Donovan blah blah, special bike, etc.' To my shame I thought not much of it, enjoyed seeing the 531c decal and the way it rode.
When I got the bike it had the original downtube shifters and BioPace chainrings. I've never got on with BioPace, so I changed them out for conventional ones.
I replaced the rear wheel and transmission with combined brake/shifters and retained the rear mech, which seemed to work fine.
The seatpost was seized, so I left it outside for a few hours on one night when it was -4C and then me and a burly mate brought the bike in, applied some heat to the seatpost and it freed up.
I've done a few short 20-40km rides on it, and one 70km ride which is probably best left in the mists of time. Suffice it to say that the concept of 'summer' here is a very broad one and I had a tough time.
So, here I am a few years later and I've just changed jobs. I'm able to cycle to work easily now and it's a lovely 14km bimble along the shore and through the city. I've used my '92 Trek 8000 (single speed now!) a few times, and this week I've used my hardtail MTB twice, so now it's time to dig out the Raleigh and see how she runs.
The bike rides fine now but the frame has some rusty spots, some of which would appear to be from stone chips. None of them look very serious.
...and to the moral dilemma...
I really like this bike and I'm attracted to its classic status and the whole 'spirit' of it. I hope to fettle it into a shape I can be proud of. The apology comes from the fact that I've neglected the bike by: not riding it enough, keeping it filthy, and not looking after it. I feel like I've disrespected the spirit of this fine machine and it's now time to atone.
...I'll strip the bike 'cos it's easy and it allows me to both treat the frame and thoroughly clean all the parts.
I have a half-decent aluminium headset that I'll fit. I have the right tools for removal and refitting, so I'm not worried about that.
I'm planning on thoroughly cleaning everything and polishing as many of the components as I can, since I think road bikes look best when they're gleaming.
I'm also planning on checking the tension in the spokes in the rear wheel, to make sure it's as tight as possible. The front wheel may get a look-in, too.
The main question is what to do re: the frame? I reckon I have three options:
1. Send it to Argos for a full respray and re-decal. I spoke to them and they quoted around 300 quid, which made me gasp.
2. Get it powder-coated locally, which would be strong, but solid colours only and no decals.
3. Just clean it, treat the rust, and make sure it doesn't get worse. Wear the rust with pride.
Of course option 1 would be lovely and give a concours bike, but I really can't afford it. Option 2 would be practical but I would feel I was betraying the spirit of the bike even more.
Option 3 is most appealing not only because it's cheapest, but also because it would preserve the decals and paint job, which while not spot-on to my taste, is authentic.
Which option should I take?
I've been trying to decide what to do with my road bike recently and I stumbled across this forum. What a great forum. So nice to be surrounded by people that share the same fondness for old, classic bikes.
So, why apologies? Well, I feel like I've betrayed my Road Ace somewhat.
Here's the story:
I bought the bike from a colleague for fifty quid back in 2001. He muttered something about 'moving to Australia, blah blah, Gerald O'Donovan blah blah, special bike, etc.' To my shame I thought not much of it, enjoyed seeing the 531c decal and the way it rode.
When I got the bike it had the original downtube shifters and BioPace chainrings. I've never got on with BioPace, so I changed them out for conventional ones.
I replaced the rear wheel and transmission with combined brake/shifters and retained the rear mech, which seemed to work fine.
The seatpost was seized, so I left it outside for a few hours on one night when it was -4C and then me and a burly mate brought the bike in, applied some heat to the seatpost and it freed up.
I've done a few short 20-40km rides on it, and one 70km ride which is probably best left in the mists of time. Suffice it to say that the concept of 'summer' here is a very broad one and I had a tough time.
So, here I am a few years later and I've just changed jobs. I'm able to cycle to work easily now and it's a lovely 14km bimble along the shore and through the city. I've used my '92 Trek 8000 (single speed now!) a few times, and this week I've used my hardtail MTB twice, so now it's time to dig out the Raleigh and see how she runs.
The bike rides fine now but the frame has some rusty spots, some of which would appear to be from stone chips. None of them look very serious.
...and to the moral dilemma...
I really like this bike and I'm attracted to its classic status and the whole 'spirit' of it. I hope to fettle it into a shape I can be proud of. The apology comes from the fact that I've neglected the bike by: not riding it enough, keeping it filthy, and not looking after it. I feel like I've disrespected the spirit of this fine machine and it's now time to atone.
...I'll strip the bike 'cos it's easy and it allows me to both treat the frame and thoroughly clean all the parts.
I have a half-decent aluminium headset that I'll fit. I have the right tools for removal and refitting, so I'm not worried about that.
I'm planning on thoroughly cleaning everything and polishing as many of the components as I can, since I think road bikes look best when they're gleaming.
I'm also planning on checking the tension in the spokes in the rear wheel, to make sure it's as tight as possible. The front wheel may get a look-in, too.
The main question is what to do re: the frame? I reckon I have three options:
1. Send it to Argos for a full respray and re-decal. I spoke to them and they quoted around 300 quid, which made me gasp.
2. Get it powder-coated locally, which would be strong, but solid colours only and no decals.
3. Just clean it, treat the rust, and make sure it doesn't get worse. Wear the rust with pride.
Of course option 1 would be lovely and give a concours bike, but I really can't afford it. Option 2 would be practical but I would feel I was betraying the spirit of the bike even more.
Option 3 is most appealing not only because it's cheapest, but also because it would preserve the decals and paint job, which while not spot-on to my taste, is authentic.
Which option should I take?
