2CB Shop Talk
April 23, 2021
Got another call yesterday for two bikes for two more homeless vets. I
have two prospects in the garage; one looks to be perfectly good except
somebody bent the right pedal crank so it hits the chainstay and won't
get past it. I need to figure out
how to straighten or find replacement. The other one seemed good after
I replaced the tires but when I test rode last week it would not hold
in low gear. I messed with it and determined the shifter was defective
- probably just worn - so it clicked into gears but then
drifted back. So I ordered new two-trigger shifters. They had arrived
but I'd not yet gotten back to working on bikes, with spring cleanup of
an acre of prairies and woodland to deal with and a new chipper to play
with.
So yesterday evening I put on the shifter; The
derailleur was stiff, so it was hard to shift despite new shifter and
cable but dosing it with Blaster (tm) and just working it a lot
loosened it and about 8 last night I got it to shift smoothly into all
7x3 gears. This morning I figured to test ride again, put on baskets,
and deliver to the MWSHV.
Yeah, right! Brakes were nonfunctional. They were a variant I'd not
seen before of an obsolete design. I messed around figuring out exactly
how they were supposed to work and why they didn't and after several
false starts at fixing them I just took
them off and installed parts stripped from newer models I had scrapped.
So along about 6 pm today I took that puppy on a test ride. Sweet!
Tomorrow I'll pressure wash it, add basket and luggage rack, and
deliver. It has parts from 5 different bicycles on it now. Three are
long gone to the boneyard; one just got designated for that fate today,
and one I just "borrowed" a brake cable from, which I'll replace when
its turn in the shop arrives. I'll add a photo after I add the
accessories tomorrow.
The new boneyard designee may be donating a pedal crank tomorrow!
If that goes well I may deliver both together. But as my wife would
remind me, nothing ever goes that well.
Friday. As
forecast, nothing ever goes as planned. The frame is an odd design at
the seat post; I could not figure a way to accommodate a rear basket or
rack. I did some garage cleanup/organization to see if I would stumble
on something suitable for a makeshift bracket., but
no luck. Did make some space in garage though, and found some things
I'd been missing. I put on a front basket; messed around with shifter
and brake lever positioning
with bar ends and basket. It was really cluttered, hardly find a place
for your
hands. I kept test riding and adjusting until I was happy with it; I
hope the vet who gets it is also. I added a kickstand and pressure
washed it. Here it is:.....
Delivered them both last Wed., Apr. 28. Here they are in my driveway
after pressure washing, final test rides, affixing SecondChasnceBikes
labels.
I loaded them up after taking these photos and delivered to the Midwest
Shelter for Homeless Vets. I don't get to meet the
recipients, which is fine to protect their privacy. I do enjoy showing
people their bike, making sure they understand shifting, making any
adjustments they need. It enhances the event for them and me and I
think it shows respect. I'm like the car salesman handing over the
keys to someone's new car. But, as I wrote above, the agencies are in
charge and opt to do it themselves. That's not gonna dissuade me from
giving more when they ask.
-finis
