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Old Bike still OKAY?
I am thinking of getting back into biking. nothing too serious, maybe
25-50 miles on country roads in the relative flatlands of Chicago's Northern Suburbs and the rolling hills of Wisconsin. I have a 39 yr old Gitane Interclub that is in good shape. I think it weighs 27 lbs. Is this bike still viable for my needs or should I get something newer? |
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#2
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Old Bike still OKAY?
John Homan wrote:
snip old Gitane Interclub that is in good shape. I think it weighs 27 lbs. Is this bike still viable for my needs or should I get something newer? I would say yes, google search turned up this http://www.gitaneusa.com/models_4.asp Jack |
#3
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Old Bike still OKAY?
On 8/28/2011 1:34 PM, John Homan wrote:
I am thinking of getting back into biking. nothing too serious, maybe 25-50 miles on country roads in the relative flatlands of Chicago's Northern Suburbs and the rolling hills of Wisconsin. I have a 39 yr old Gitane Interclub that is in good shape. I think it weighs 27 lbs. Is this bike still viable for my needs or should I get something newer? The big thing is probably the wheels. Often older wheels aren't up to today's standards. The problem is mostly the spokes, assuming the rims are aluminum and have hooks for tire beads. If the wheels stay true and don't break spokes, then you're probably fine, otherwise you may want to tune them up or replace them. People's preferred posture on the bike can change over time. You may want the handlebars higher, for instance. Also bars were typically much narrower in those days, most prefer wider bars today. Rear sprocket clusters have gone from 5-6 to 10-11 today, and freewheels have been replaced by freehubs. Once you start down that upgrade path you may eventually have nothing original left but the frame and fork. That's not bad if you like the old ones, but it's probably more economical to buy a new bike at that point. Good quality old frames and forks often have surprisingly high resale value. Riding the bike you have for a while can help decide what you want to buy. |
#4
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Old Bike still OKAY?
It depends on the weather. The brakes for the last 7 years or so will stop the bike in wet weather where the older ones will not. I have a bike made of aluminum that cuts 10 minutes off a 1 hour trip, but I prefer the older steel bike if it is not going to rain, because I am more comfortable on it..
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#5
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Old Bike still OKAY?
On Mon, 29 Aug 2011 09:55:21 -0400, Peter Cole wrote:
On 8/28/2011 1:34 PM, John Homan wrote: I am thinking of getting back into biking. nothing too serious, maybe 25-50 miles on country roads in the relative flatlands of Chicago's Northern Suburbs and the rolling hills of Wisconsin. I have a 39 yr old Gitane Interclub that is in good shape. I think it weighs 27 lbs. Is this bike still viable for my needs or should I get something newer? The big thing is probably the wheels. Often older wheels aren't up to today's standards. The problem is mostly the spokes, assuming the rims are aluminum and have hooks for tire beads. If the wheels stay true and don't break spokes, then you're probably fine, otherwise you may want to tune them up or replace them. People's preferred posture on the bike can change over time. You may want the handlebars higher, for instance. Also bars were typically much narrower in those days, most prefer wider bars today. Rear sprocket clusters have gone from 5-6 to 10-11 today, and freewheels have been replaced by freehubs. Once you start down that upgrade path you may eventually have nothing original left but the frame and fork. That's not bad if you like the old ones, but it's probably more economical to buy a new bike at that point. Good quality old frames and forks often have surprisingly high resale value. Riding the bike you have for a while can help decide what you want to buy. My Schwinn is 23 years old and serves me just fine. It weighs 24 pounds. The wheels are an issue. I replaced mine a few months ago. Newer wheels will have a groove where the brake pads contact to indicate the wear level. My 23 year old wheels didn't have such an indicator and were dangerously thin at the time of replacement. It wouldn't be good to have a wheel failure during a panic stop. TFM® |
#6
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Old Bike still OKAY?
John Homan wrote:
I am thinking of getting back into biking. nothing too serious, maybe 25-50 miles on country roads in the relative flatlands of Chicago's Northern Suburbs and the rolling hills of Wisconsin. I have a 39 yr old Gitane Interclub that is in good shape. I think it weighs 27 lbs. Is this bike still viable for my needs or should I get something newer? If it's in good shape, it's probably fine for a little while. But there are several things to check before proclaiming it to be in good shape. Is the bike really low mileage (i.e. stored indoors most of the time)? If it's been either left out in the weather or ridden a lot, it may not be worth much. If it's clean and rust free, I'd still want to do a lot of overhaul and tuning. I'd replace tires, inner tubes and brake blocks. I'd pull all cables out and at least lube them, if not replace them. I'd check the chain for wear. (Measuring pin to pin, 12" of chain should not be more than 1/16" "stretched.") If the rims are steel, not aluminum (check with a magnet) I'd not ride in the rain, since steel rims have almost no braking friction when wet. Make sure rims are true, without wobbles. If they need truing, it may be very difficult, because spoke nipples may be frozen on the spokes. And really, all bearings (cranks, hubs, pedals, headset) need taken apart and lubricated, because the grease will have turned to wax. The chain will need cleaned and lubricated too. If you do all this on your own, it will probably take you several solid days of work. If you take it to a bike shop, the cost will probably be more than the bike is worth. Part of the problem is that the bike will have many French-measurement parts. Those are very non-standard, very hard to find, and make rehabilitating the bike much more difficult than it would otherwise be. In particular, if even the chain is worn, then the rear cogs will be worn, you won't be able to find a French threaded freewheel, and you'd have to get a new rear wheel. Unless you cannibalize some other old bike, that alone justifies the move to something more modern. That's my opinion, anyway. And I like old bikes! See http://www.sheldonbrown.com/velos.html for more information. -- - Frank Krygowski |
#7
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I don't know if I would do so much tuning if I just wanted to ride a bit on country roads... Of course, safety comes first, so you should definitely check the wheels and the brakes.
Where did you find the old bike? Was it yours? A family heirloom? 39yrs is pretty much :-) |
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