Another free bike - Oh, joy!

Tom Keats said:

I just want to say: 'Thank you' to all the impatient mechanical klutzes
and frobnicators out there. Keep 'em coming.

I'm so envious! :P

Here in Nashville, it's next to never that you'll have such luck...

Bikes are such simple machines to fix. I just turned a
pile of rusty ebay bits into a super cool neighborhood bike for my mother.
Everything repacked, all new cables, chain and rubber. Total cost: under
150 USD and a lot niftier than something brand new.

I'm in the market for something similar to slap some slicks and fenders
onto, but even the thrift stores are spare, usually only having worthless
bent *mart bikes. I did luck out with my delightful Viscount that's a
great sporty daily rider, finding it at a Salivation Army. 😄

If anybody in my part of the world wants to part with an old tourer, rigid
MTB, or decent three speed, let me know--I need a utility bike in a bad
way. 🙂

Sat, 2 Oct 2004 17:05:13 -0700, <[email hidden]>,

(Tom Keats) said:

It's such a pretty bike. Red up front, fading to black stays in
the back. And black-&-white lizard scales on the drive-side
chainstay (I dunno if it's paint or a decal; I haven't looked
that closely at it.) So I think I'l name it 'Diana', after the
live-rat-eating, femme fatale antagonist in the old TV sci-fi
series: 'V'. Besides, it's got V brakes.

Sounds like faster paint than the Scott I got. Good score!
--
zk

Sun, 03 Oct 2004 00:24:08 GMT,
<[email hidden]>,

maxo said:

I'm in the market for something similar to slap some slicks and fenders
onto, but even the thrift stores are spare, usually only having worthless
bent *mart bikes. I did luck out with my delightful Viscount that's a
great sporty daily rider, finding it at a Salivation Army. 😄

There were two like that at my local SallyAnn yesterday. $35 and $29.
Both good deals in fair shape. The wheels were passable.

I'm holding out for anything with a good SW hub for ~$30.
--
zk

In article <[email hidden]>,

Zoot Katz said:

Sun, 03 Oct 2004 00:24:08 GMT,
<[email hidden]>,

maxo said:

I'm in the market for something similar to slap some slicks and fenders
onto, but even the thrift stores are spare, usually only having worthless
bent *mart bikes. I did luck out with my delightful Viscount that's a
great sporty daily rider, finding it at a Salivation Army. 😄

There were two like that at my local SallyAnn yesterday. $35 and $29.
Both good deals in fair shape. The wheels were passable.

I'm holding out for anything with a good SW hub for ~$30.

What kind of a hub?

No seriously people: GARAGE SALES! DUMPSTERS! Tom knows where its at,
and Zoot does too. But Salvation Army? There's no hope.

My last score was a child's bike in working order but sans seat, a
Phillips (low-end Raleigh brand) lady's bike with a Sturmey-Archer AW
3-speed (the only part off the perfectly good bike that I wanted), and a
shedworn Motobecane with an all-french drivetrain, plus about 100
weirdly long (3' or so) spokes, all for $10.

http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine/wiredcola/pix/reunionride/DSC01131.jpg
http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine/wiredcola/pix/reunionride/DSC01136.jpg
http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine/wiredcola/pix/reunionride/DSC01135.jpg

Why yes, that is an Ideale 80 leather saddle in usable condition:

http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine/wiredcola/pix/reunionride/DSC01134.jpg

Garage sales!

PS: if anyone knows either the provenance or a reasonable use for these
high-wheeler-sized spokes, please tell me. All the nipples are in good
shape, but I suspect less than half of the spokes are reasonably
salvagable due to rust.

--
Ryan Cousineau, [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com
Verus de parvis; verus de magnis.

In article <[email hidden]>,

Zoot Katz said:

Sat, 2 Oct 2004 17:05:13 -0700, <[email hidden]>,

(Tom Keats) said:

It's such a pretty bike. Red up front, fading to black stays in
the back. And black-&-white lizard scales on the drive-side
chainstay (I dunno if it's paint or a decal; I haven't looked
that closely at it.) So I think I'l name it 'Diana', after the
live-rat-eating, femme fatale antagonist in the old TV sci-fi
series: 'V'. Besides, it's got V brakes.

Sounds like faster paint than the Scott I got. Good score!

Oooh, she's a beauty. The red is very garishly candy apple.
The black is flat, and almost more like grey. Overall, the
bike seems to weigh about half as much as Ol' Pig Iron. So
it would be twice as fast, once I get some slicks on 'er.

cheers,
Tom

--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

Sat, 02 Oct 2004 23:20:23 -0700,
<[email hidden]>, Ryan Cousineau

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'm holding out for anything with a good SW hub for ~$30.

What kind of a hub?

No seriously people: GARAGE SALES! DUMPSTERS! Tom knows where its at,
and Zoot does too. But Salvation Army? There's no hope.

My last score was a child's bike in working order but sans seat, a
Phillips (low-end Raleigh brand) lady's bike with a Sturmey-Archer AW
3-speed (the only part off the perfectly good bike that I wanted), and a
shedworn Motobecane with an all-french drivetrain, plus about 100
weirdly long (3' or so) spokes, all for $10.

That's the hub I meant. The other one's a brain fart.

Ten bucks for three bikes is a gimme. Good score!

Rarely do I find worthwhile bikes at garage sales. But I've not been
looking hard either. I don't really have room or need for another bike
but if one comes my way I'll not turn it down. I have seen Shimano and
other off brand 3-spds at the local Sally Ann and it's a charitable
cause.

Maybe lace up a steel patio table rim with those spokes.
--
zk

Quoted message said:

Rarely do I find worthwhile bikes at garage sales. But I've not been
looking hard either. I don't really have room or need for another bike
but if one comes my way I'll not turn it down.

I'll do the rounds of local places on the weekends, but I'm just
speculating. If I see a good deal I'll go for it but I'm not really
in the market for a bike right now.

Except that I'd like to replace my commuter with something in Ti,
that guy out in the West has that, I thought I'd ask him.

--

_______________________ALL AMIGA IN MY MIND_______________________
------------------"Buddy Holly, the Texas Elvis"------------------
__________306.350.357.38>>[email hidden]__________

"Zoot Katz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Sat, 02 Oct 2004 23:20:23 -0700,
<[email hidden]>, Ryan Cousineau
<[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

Rarely do I find worthwhile bikes at garage sales.

Last summer I was riding along, and saw a garage sale. Two beautiful Kleins
parked out front. I immediately stopped my bike and asked. Turns out they
were being ridden by other customers. Oh well.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
please substitute yahoo for mousepotato to reply
Home of the meditative cyclist:
http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm
Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/
See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

In article <[email hidden]>,

Zoot Katz said:

Sat, 02 Oct 2004 23:20:23 -0700,
<[email hidden]>, Ryan Cousineau

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'm holding out for anything with a good SW hub for ~$30.

What kind of a hub?

No seriously people: GARAGE SALES! DUMPSTERS! Tom knows where its at,
and Zoot does too. But Salvation Army? There's no hope.

My last score was a child's bike in working order but sans seat, a
Phillips (low-end Raleigh brand) lady's bike with a Sturmey-Archer AW
3-speed (the only part off the perfectly good bike that I wanted), and a
shedworn Motobecane with an all-french drivetrain, plus about 100
weirdly long (3' or so) spokes, all for $10.

That's the hub I meant. The other one's a brain fart.

Ten bucks for three bikes is a gimme. Good score!

Rarely do I find worthwhile bikes at garage sales. But I've not been
looking hard either. I don't really have room or need for another bike
but if one comes my way I'll not turn it down. I have seen Shimano and
other off brand 3-spds at the local Sally Ann and it's a charitable
cause.

The secret to garage sale shopping is much like that of couture clothing
hunting at thrift stores: patience. I probably buy something at less
than a tenth of the garage sales I check out. That's a lot of
unfulfilling stops. But here's my one good hint, passed on from my
friend Dave:

If you don't see any bikes around, ask if they have any. The three-bike
score was at a garage sale with no bikes. I asked the fatal question,
and the guy running the sale walks me around the barn to look at a
couple of bicycles (this may amaze you, but I actually left one bike
behind. No steel-wheeled ten-speeds, thanks), and then mentioned that
his son had an old Motobecane that hadn't been used in some time, so a
few minutes later that gets dragged out of the basement where it's been
sitting since the bike boom.

So all that, and they didn't even think any of these bikes were
desireable enough to put in the sale.

Quoted message said:

Maybe lace up a steel patio table rim with those spokes.

Um....

--
Ryan Cousineau, [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com
Verus de parvis; verus de magnis.

In article <[email hidden]>,

Claire Petersky said:

"Zoot Katz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Sat, 02 Oct 2004 23:20:23 -0700,
<[email hidden]>, Ryan Cousineau
<[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

Rarely do I find worthwhile bikes at garage sales.

Last summer I was riding along, and saw a garage sale. Two beautiful Kleins
parked out front. I immediately stopped my bike and asked. Turns out they
were being ridden by other customers. Oh well.

As I pointed out, you have to hit a lot of garage sales to get good
stuff. For me, the one that got away was that I for some reason dithered
over buying an old rigid kid-sized Marin for $10. It was sold shortly
after.

As for what I left behind, yesterday I saw your basic appalling garage
sale bicycle: lady-framed off-brand rigid "mountain bike" with 6-speed
SIS, steel rims (no!), and stamped steel caliper brakes (I think the
brand was Nev-R-Stop). I declined the asking price of $20 after
determining that I didn't really need another set of 6-speed shifters.

--
Ryan Cousineau, [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com
Verus de parvis; verus de magnis.

"Claire Petersky" wrote: (clip) Turns out they were being ridden by other
customers.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I go to a lot of flea markets, and I have learned that if a bike has a
jacket on the rack, held with bungee cord, a water bottle, gloves and a
helmet hanging from the handlebar, and a cyclometer displaying current data,
chances are it's not for sale.

Ryan Cousineau said:

and a
shedworn Motobecane with an all-french drivetrain

Nice find! I do love those curvaceous French forks.

😄

Ryan Cousineau said:

But Salvation Army? There's no hope.

The Drooling Brigade is often thin on bikes, but in Chicago, I always had
awesome luck with the Ark thrift stores.

Four years ago a found a red Ranger (made by Raleigh) with a three spring
Wright saddle (in perfect condition) for about ten bucks. The groovy
"rope script" decal on the chain guard was even intact.

I gave it to my buddy Tom for his fortieth and the sight of a sturdy
ex-marine tooling about on a kids bike (fit him well, he's shorter) with
no look of irony on his face was priceless.

😄

"Claire Petersky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

"Zoot Katz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Sat, 02 Oct 2004 23:20:23 -0700,
<[email hidden]>, Ryan Cousineau
<[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

Rarely do I find worthwhile bikes at garage sales.

Last summer I was riding along, and saw a garage sale. Two beautiful
Kleins parked out front. I immediately stopped my bike and asked.
Turns out they were being ridden by other customers. Oh well.

LOL!

--

A: Top-posters.
Q: What is the most annoying thing on Usenet?

Tom Keats noted in part:

<< commuterizable >>

<shudder>

If you've got an honest
trail bike, build it up as such and ride
some trails.

Robert

In article <[email hidden]>,

maxo said:

Tom Keats said:

I just want to say: 'Thank you' to all the impatient mechanical klutzes
and frobnicators out there. Keep 'em coming.

I'm so envious! :P

Here in Nashville, it's next to never that you'll have such luck...

I think you might be surprised. Spotting discarded bikes in
back lanes/alleys takes a little attunement, like finding
edible wild mushrooms. But once you find one, others suddenly
become noticable. Also, abandoned stolen bikes. Similarly, if
you adopt someone's giveaway bike, suddenly other people start
offering theirs to you, too. Before ya know it, you're up to
your neck in old bikes. But there /is/ a lot of cycling going
on here in Vancouver. I don't know how Nashville is in that regard.

Quoted message said:

Bikes are such simple machines to fix. I just turned a
pile of rusty ebay bits into a super cool neighborhood bike for my mother.
Everything repacked, all new cables, chain and rubber. Total cost: under
150 USD and a lot niftier than something brand new.

Excellent! I hope she derives much pleasure from her new old ride.
I guess old bikes never really die.

Quoted message said:

I'm in the market for something similar to slap some slicks and fenders
onto, but even the thrift stores are spare, usually only having worthless
bent *mart bikes. I did luck out with my delightful Viscount that's a
great sporty daily rider, finding it at a Salivation Army. 😄

If anybody in my part of the world wants to part with an old tourer, rigid
MTB, or decent three speed, let me know--I need a utility bike in a bad
way. 🙂

I think you'll luck in. Things seem to somehow work out in the end.

cheers,
Tom

--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

In article <[email hidden]>,

(R15757) said:

Tom Keats noted in part:

<< commuterizable >>

<shudder>

If you've got an honest
trail bike, build it up as such and ride
some trails.

BTDT. Then I got older, and I realized urban environs
have more appeal to me. I guess I'd rather just do a
bakery crawl, than do half-cartwheels on my bike down
some salmonberry infested single track.

I'm now on the lookout for another milk crate.

cheers,
Tom

--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

Tom Keats said:

I'm now on the lookout for another milk crate.

Going straight for the gut eh? LOL

OH NO HE'S MILK CRATING A TRAIL BIKE!!!

😄

I'm an urban cyclist as well, much more to see. Around here all the
wealthy riders or the ones with the flashiest gear, ride up and down a
tree lined boulevard in the tony part of town. Nothing to see but
McMansions. BO-ring. Me, I'd rather ride down some shadier city streets or
through our growing unofficial latin-American district. You find a lot
more cyclists there, though they're usually on *mart bikes (better than
in cars), people are more polite, and you can stop for a flan or a mango
paleta if exercise starts feeling too grim.

😄

I know I've boasted about this one B4...

About 3 years back I rescued a Norco Kodiak (similar to your Mountaineer,
Tom) off a midden pile during spring cleaning. I was looking at the time
for some lighter wheels for an old Schwinn that I re-built from a wreck +
parts that had been dumped behind our house in Ladner.

Driving up 84th, doing about 55kph at around midnight (home from work on the
3-11PM shift), I spotted this bike on top of the heap and noticed it had
alloy rims...

Let me just admire that last sentence...THAT is how you know how much of a
bicycle enthusiast you are: driving past at 55, in the dark, 10m + away and
you can STILL spot a set of alloy wheels...

Anyway TMALSS, the Norco became my primary ride, and the Schwinn had to wait
for new wheels until a friend of mine moved to a smaller place and could
only store 2 of his 3 bikes...

The Schwinn was sold off to an enterprising ticket scalper from
Montreal...Hi Harry!

The Norco was given away to a young Scout for a bike trip to Saltspring
Island last summer.

I'm currently riding a "hybrid" roadie that I built with bikes scored from
THIS years' spring cleanup...