Decrepit Old Fool

It’s one of those gorgeous Illinois Spring days – 65 degrees, blue sky, light breeze, and I have a bucket full of salvaged bike parts, and a 5-speed Schwinn bicycle rescued from the neighbor’s trash.  This is a good way to spend Sunday morning, though I do wish the Methodist church nearly a mile away would tone down their PA system.  If I can hear the “bells” then they must really be loud, and 19th-century revival hymns aren’t exactly great music.

The bucket provided most of the necessary parts – even the seat – though I did use new tires, pedals, and cables.  This morning I re-packed the wheel bearings, replaced a broken spoke, trued up the wheels, and just generally tidied up.

It’s worth the effort because it is a quality machine.  I would far prefer it to any brand-new $150 bike from Wal-Mart.  It is a big bike with a chromoly frame straight and true, so it’s fairly light and handles great.  Another hour’s work or so and it’ll be ready to find a new home where it can spend several more years doing what bicycles were invented to do.