A nice change of pace to trying to balance three project cars; the bike in question was my late Uncle's, sadly passed away in June. It hadn't been used in a while and was looking a little sorry for itself:
Tomas Henri (a Francais-ised version of my Uncle's name), as it has been christened, didn't need much; just a good degreasing, handlebar wrap and a seat. I'd been looking for a cheap bike to pop down the village local to The Bunker, but didn't want to bring my Avocet up from London.
One can of Gunk and a good jet wash later, the gear set was clean as a whistle and awaiting a new coat of lithium grease:
The lack of seat problem was easily cured by a Charge leather seat off eBay. Poor guy had the bike to go with it and used to take the seat off as the first seat got nicked. Then the bike went too...
The handlebars needed new tape, so I wanted to find a match for the seat. Brooks do some lovely perforated leather tape but its way out of the budget I wanted to spend. Luckily Velo Orange have a similar, cheaper tape with a more matte finish for a better grip. Nice wooden bungs for the tube ends too.
After much adjusting, polishing and more adjusting, this was the result. Rides a treat too:
It didn't need a great deal doing to it; the tyres aren't that old (2005), same with the brake cables. I wouldn't mind changing the wheels as the rims are a little pitted, but they'll do for now.
Tomas Henri (a Francais-ised version of my Uncle's name), as it has been christened, didn't need much; just a good degreasing, handlebar wrap and a seat. I'd been looking for a cheap bike to pop down the village local to The Bunker, but didn't want to bring my Avocet up from London.
One can of Gunk and a good jet wash later, the gear set was clean as a whistle and awaiting a new coat of lithium grease:
The lack of seat problem was easily cured by a Charge leather seat off eBay. Poor guy had the bike to go with it and used to take the seat off as the first seat got nicked. Then the bike went too...
The handlebars needed new tape, so I wanted to find a match for the seat. Brooks do some lovely perforated leather tape but its way out of the budget I wanted to spend. Luckily Velo Orange have a similar, cheaper tape with a more matte finish for a better grip. Nice wooden bungs for the tube ends too.
After much adjusting, polishing and more adjusting, this was the result. Rides a treat too:
It didn't need a great deal doing to it; the tyres aren't that old (2005), same with the brake cables. I wouldn't mind changing the wheels as the rims are a little pitted, but they'll do for now.
