Winter Project - Wheelbuilding for Schwinn Three Speed Bikes

 

So far, this winter has been particularly mild. That being said, there remains the always-corrosive road salt on the roadways. So no riding... but there are plenty of winter, indoor projects to do.

This weekend I built a nice set of three speed Schwinn wheels: new-old stock Schwinn S6 rims and Torrington spokes, Sturmey Archer AW Alloy hub (1953) and Schwinn script front hub (new bearings in the front).

 

These new-old stock Torrington spokes are great. They capture the vintage look without pitting or rust. They're a spot-on spoke for these bikes. The length is 11-7/16 inches. Pattern is 36 spokes, cross 4 on both wheels. The pattern is copied from a set of original 1947 Schwinn three speed wheels I have on-hand.

 

I still have several more wheels to build. I bought-in heavy with these Torrington spokes (I bought enough to do probably 6 sets of wheels). I also bought-in heavy with S6 and similar rims (3 NOS pairs of S6 rims, plus 2 pairs of used S6, plus a set of pre-war Lobdell rims). And as always, lots of good old hubs on hand - Sturmey AW hubs from the 1940s and 50s and Schwinn script hubs with fresh bearings and grease. 

So the wheelbuilding will continue...

 

Sturmey Archer Shifters - Cleaning, the Easy Way

 

 

Older Sturmey Archer shifters, such as this "window" shifter from the 1950s can be disassembled and rebuilt.

Often, people will give up on, and discard, old shifters because they assume the shifters are junk and cannot be rebuilt. But you can rebuild these shifters by knocking out the pins, removing the guts, cleaning, and tightening the spring. I will discuss the rebuild process in detail another time.

This time, however, the shifter only needs a good cleaning. And even if the shifter does not seem to be working correctly, try starting with a good cleaning and see if it improves. Nothing special is required - just a little plastic tub and some WD-40, PB Blaster, Kroil or other penetrating cleaning oil. 

Place your shifter in the tub and liberally spray the innards with the penetrant. I use the straw on the WD-40 can and just spray the insides. Let the oil run out over the course of a few minutes. You should see dirty oil running out. Apply more WD-40 as needed until it starts to run out a bit cleaner. 

Next, take some Q-tips, pipe cleaners, or the corner of a rag, and reach into the innards of the shifter, scrubbing with the Q-tip/pip cleaner/rag corner. Keep scrubbing until all the old gunk is out. Apply fresh WD-40/Kroil/penetrant as needed and keep scrubbing. 

Dispose of the rag/Q-tips/pipe cleaners properly. CAUTION - they are flammable. 

When you're done, the inside of the shifter should be pretty clean and you should notice improved functioning. If the shifter still has issues, it may be time to consider disassembly and repair.

But try cleaning first - it's a non-invasive solution and you may find you don't have to disassemble anything.

A couple warnings: 

• Do NOT use acetone, paint thinner, or any other solvent that will strip paint. Many of the old shifters have thinly painted surfaces that will be damaged.
  
• Do NOT store used WD-40/penetrant rags/Q-tips/pipe cleaners in a pile or allow them near a heat source. They are flammable after use. DO - dispose of them properly.
• Do NOT aggressively polish the face plate - the paint on the surface is generally not all that thick. A light/gentle polishing is usually OK.
  

Sturmey Archer Quadrant Shifters - Making a Replacement Flat Spring

Sturmey Archer quadrant shifters are a defining characteristic of many of the older three speed bikes dating back to the 1910s-40s. The quadrant is one of the signature parts of these vintage bikes, often sitting prominently alongside the top tube of the frame.

 

Sometimes you get a quadrant shifter with a limp lever - one that won't "click into" the pegholes on the shifter body. This is often due to a weak or corroded flat spring inside the shifter. 

So why not make a new one? They are not hard to make with a little attention to detail...

(1) Start with with a large hose clamp from the hardware store. These clamps are made of a reasonably thick, springy metal. In this case, I have a stainless steel clamp. The width on many of these clamps is also fairly close to what you need for the spring. The first step is to clip the clamp so you have just a solid section of metal. Place the old spring atop the section of metal and trace the outline of the eyelet. The location of the eyelet will determine how you shape everything thereafter. Take the metal to the drillpress or use a hand drill to drill the eyelet in your metal.

(2) Now that you have the eyelet drilled, you can layout the shape of the spring on the hose clamp metal. I place the old spring over the metal and trace the outline of the spring using a fine Sharpie. You can also etch the line using a file tip. Either way, you want something durable so you can work the metal without having the outline rub off. If it begins to rub off, refresh your lines and continue working. When you trace the outline, make sure you make your outline extra long. The reason is that the spring will need a little bent tooth at the end to engage the shifter lever notch. Leaving a little extra length will ensure you have enough material when you go to make that tooth.

(3) Now that you have your outline, take some aviation shears and snip the metal down to a workable size. Don't go too close to the lines. Just get it roughed out so you can reasonably file or sand the metal down to the lines.

(4) Use a sander, grinding wheel, file, Dremel, or other tool to work the piece down to the correct size. It should still be somewhat long. Take the extra length and place it in a vise or pair of pliers. Bend the end on a 90-degree angle to make the tooth that will engage the shifter lever notch. Then sand/grind/file down the tooth until it is a size that will fit in the shifter notch. Periodically check your work against the original spring you are using as a model.

(5) During the course of work, the clamp metal may have flattened a little bit. Take a mandrel or the handle of a screw driver and carefully re-bend the metal. The old spring likely has also become somewhat flat with age. Your new part should have a bit more bend to it than the old one.

(6) De-burr and polish your new spring. You want the edges and the surfaces to be smooth and not sharp, that way it will move smoothly along the surface of the shifter when you install it.

Starting 2023

 

The year 2023 has arrived, hard to believe as that may be. Time to think about what I'd like to accomplish in the coming year...

There has been a somewhat unusual "mini riding" season here in southern New England for the past 10 days or so, with temperatures running a substantial 15-20 degrees (or even more) above normal. I have not been out riding because there is still some residual road salt around from when it was cold back in mid-December (the stuff lasts a long time on the roads here). But I have seen some people out riding because it is so unusually warm. Wish we had more daylight and less residual road salt...

The time has come to think about what I'd like to accomplish in 2023. These are not so much "resolutions" as they are some basic goals.

• First, the biggest goal is to complete another riding season safely and in one piece. This is the goal that goes unspoken usually, but is also the most important. I'd also like to average a solid 3 rides per week in once the season starts, weather permitting.
  

• Second, I would like to catch up on any leftover maintenance tasks from 2022. For example, I have a 1958 Raleigh Sports in need of brake adjustment, drive train cleaning, and overall clean up. I've gotten this work partially done but need to finish up cleaning the drive train and getting the brakes cleaned and adjusted. I've also got a rod brake roadster that could use a little help on the paint, and some basic cleaning to keep the surface rust away.

• Third, I aim to have one or two project bikes completed. I haven't decided whether these will be "builds" (an unrestored bike that needs a total going over), "rebuilds" (a partially done bike from another collector I finish), or just basic "set ups" (bike has been gone over by another enthusiast but needs finishing touches to make it fit me and my riding habits). But in any event, I'd like to focus on quality in 2022, looking mainly at only really nice condition or high-end three speed type bikes. I'm somewhat hurting for free space over the past year or so (accumulating bikes that I've rebuilt but never got around to selling), so quality over quantity is a "must". 

• Bonus item: I'd like to improve my paint mixing and matching skills even more. Matching vintage paint closely and getting it to fill-in with the rest of the finish is part science and part art form. I've gotten better over the years, but there is always room for improvement. A project from last fall where I had to match some subtly aged/faded white paint was a reminder that it can be very challenging, even after being in this hobby for 27 years...