Winding Down 2022, Into 2023

It's surprising how quickly time moved this year. The riding season here ended a few weeks ago and now we are into the winter. For the time being there is no riding here, just indoor repairs and cleaning on some of the bikes. So I may as well leave a few year-end remarks.

 

Old Bike Market

I think 2022 was generally a "buyer's market" kind of year, assuming one had the spare money to actually buy anything. Inflation and a somewhat weak economy in the US and UK pushed some sellers to sell bikes for less real value that might have otherwise been had for the items. Parts from the UK were among the cheapest ever because, even as weak as the dollar was, the pound was even weaker.  If you had the money (and certainly not everyone did), there were some good bargains if you looked for them. 

This year also confirmed that despite all the talk in 2020 and 21 about COVID leading to a boom in outdoor activities like bicycling, hiking, etc., there was no lasting "boom" for vintage bikes. Whatever bump prices had in 2020 certainly was erased by inflation and a weaker market in 2022. 

The outlook for 2023 is also iffy. Inflation is still relatively high and the economy is relatively weak. There are quite a few experts predicting a recession in 2023. Such a combination of factors might allow for those who do have the money to make some relatively good deals in 2023. But don't buy vintage bikes in 2023 expecting it to be your retirement fund...

 

Safety and Riding

I do not think that road safety has substantially improved since 2020. Perhaps it has degraded a bit, but certainly not improved. Much has been said about COVID causing increased car traffic, faster drivers, more aggressive driving, etc. The number of pedestrian and bicyclist injuries and deaths in my state have remained stubbornly high, despite us now being over two years since COVID. Ride carefully and use an LED safety light when in doubt.

Interactions between bicyclists and cars here also are not much better. This year, at one point, a lunatic driving a beat up sedan yelled at me about using the road, and how bicyclists were causing the roads to close. I don't know what he was talking about, but he slowed down and yelled at me about some political business about road closures due to bicycles. None of it made sense. I also observed a bicyclist who "took the lane" and was tailgated, given the horn, and berated by a car full of college-aged students. They were pissed off that he was in the lane and they turned into real jerks.

Unfortunately, I do not foresee an immediate improvement for 2023. Traffic will probably remain relatively heavy, drivers will still be driving large SUVs, vans, trucks, and the like, and infrastructure is improved only slowly. If bike trails are expanding in your area, it's always a good time to try them to get away from the cars and trucks.

My Plans

I will be back at it as usual in 2023. I have a couple bikes to sell so my garage will not be so cluttered, and who knows if I get sucked into buying bikes because I happen to see something I think I have to own. But for now, the plan is to slightly downsize once I figure out which bikes are not being ridden enough to justify keeping them.

I am hopeful that the riding season will begin in March, which usually means we have a somewhat longer season than usual. But there's always the chance we get late snow and don't start until later in April. We shall see... 

Pedals - Infesto/German Pedal Rebuild

 I've talked in the past about rebuilding Union pedals, MKS 3000 pedals, Raleigh pedals, and Torrington pedals. Each is similar, but has a few differences. 

This entry is to show how to rebuild an alternate style of German pedal, which is different from the more common Union. Several German brands, and perhaps some lesser-seen vintage Japanese brands, rebuild in this manner.

1. Use a thin, flat-bladed screw driver and a small hammer to wedge-off the dust cap. The dust caps on English pedals tend to be threaded, but on these German pedals and the Union bow models, the dust cap is a slip fit.

2. Remove the nuts securing the cage together. These are the little nuts at the end of the axles holding the rubber pedal blocks.

3. Now the pedal can be taken apart down to the core. Pull the cages apart and remove the inner base plate from the pedal core.

 

4. Place the flat of the pedal axle in a vise. Unscrew the lock nut and lock spacer. 

 

5. Unscrew the bearing cone nut carefully, so as not to allow the bearing balls (loose) to roll over everywhere. Keep a close eye on the inner bearings as well - once the cone nut is loose, it is possible to pull the bearing joints so that the balls escape and roll out everywhere. A magnetic catch bowl can be placed below the work if you are afraid of bearing balls escaping.

6. Carefully disassemble the pedal core, and clean and inspect all parts.

 

These pedals, when disassembled allow each bearing cup to be removed from the axle cover tube. NOTE: ONE CUP HAS A LARGER CENTER HOLE. That cup with the larger center hole is the one that mounts on the INSIDE, so that it runs its bearings against the base of the pedal spindle. 

 

Reassembly is just the reverse: re-grease everything, re-assemble the cores (see note above about the differing cups), mount the cages and secure the cage nuts, and final adjust the bearing tension, then put the dust cap back on by gently tapping with a rubber mallet.

 

Other notes:

-Bearing tension is standard - loose enough to turn freely, but not so loose that side-to-side play develops appreciably. Just a hint of play is OK.

-Again, note that the cups are not the same. The larger hole is the inside cup, the that works in conjunction with the spindle base/fixed cone. Do not try to force the small hole cup to slide all the way down the spindle.

-Some dust caps may be stubborn. Don't be afraid to line the dust cap with a little grease when reassembling, or to use a little WD-40 or Kroil when taking apart.

-Do not remove the rubber blocks from their axles if they appear to be solidly in place. There is no need to remove the rubber blocks from their axles unless you absolutely must repair something there.

Schwinn Cones - Surfacing and Smoothing

I wrote recently about my process for resurfacing and smoothing Sturmey Archer cones and Raleigh front cones. [See HERE]

The set up and work are fairly basic - take a spare or damaged axle appropriate for the cone you want to surface and smooth. Cut the axle in half so that the smooth center portion will go into the drill press chuck. 

Gather your materials - pencil stones, emery pieces, polishing tips, polish, rags, and oil. The surface is worked evenly from coarse to smooth. Some cones may not need help from the stones, and others will need more substantial work. Some cones can be saved; some cannot. But keep working the surface as evenly as you can. 

After final polish, de-grease with acetone and then apply some gun bluing and finally oil for storage. 

Schwinn cones seem a little softer generally than Sturmey or Raleigh cones. It's not a big difference, but the stones seem to work the surface a little faster than the British cones. All of the cones were reasonably well-made and seem to re-smooth pretty well. 

They may not end up lasting as long as new-old stock cones, but at least they can run awhile longer and are saved from the scrapper.