dimrub
Senior Member
As I told here, I'm volunteering fixing bikes for people who got stuck in the city, away from home. People bring over bikes of all kinds in all conditions, but mostly kids bikes, some MTB, and now and then a city bike (these are naturally in high demand). So it's only natural that this beauty caught my eye:
The woman who runs this project looked at the way I looked at this bike, and said that I can have it. Granted, this classic 80s road bike with shifting on the headset is of no use to folks who just want to get somewhere, and besides, getting it back to a reasonable working trim is not a reasonable task in the context of this project - but it's very reasonable as a crazy pet project for yours truly, outside of my volunteering hours. So renew it I will attempt.
But first I wanted to figure out who are we dealing with here. Unfortunately, I was being stupid, so I didn't take a proper photo of the writing on the top tube. "Alpina" led me to a defunct South African manufacturer, who was either buying frames from Italy, or producing its own based on Italian design. I was unable to google up a photo of one just like I have here - with the shifters on the headset, the rear rack and the place for a dynamo. I can only imagine how a South African bicycle turned up in Tel-Aviv - I think it may have to do something with the fact, that Israel, itself under the Arab embargo at the time, was one of the few countries willing to trade with the Apartheid RSA.
I haven't looked at it too close yet, but here's what I saw:
- Everything that can be stuck is stuck: the front wheel, the bottom bracket, so everything needs to be taken apart, degreased, regreased.
- Lots of rust everywhere, but fortunately not on the spokes (the stories I could tell!)
- The left pedal is screwed in sideways and needs to be replaced. I don't want plastic there, so I may end up ordering an aluminium one from China. I hope the crank arm is ok.
- The wheels are fine and true (which is a small wonder), but the tires are gone, so new ones will need to be sourced.
- The dynamo is long gone, but there's one - a completely unnecessary one - on one of the donor bikes (our term for bikes that are dead, but can still donate parts in order to save other bikes' lives). Interestingly, all the cables on this bike - both brakes and gears - are out in the open, as befits the era, but the wire from the dynamo to the rear light is routed through the frame. The headlamp is there, though I'm not sure whether it works, and the rear one is gone and will need to be replaced.
- Cables, noodles, casings, chain need to be replaced (and dork disc removed), that goes without saying.
- I think the freewheel is fine, which is a relief and a surprise too.
- The seat is serviceable, although I'd prefer something classier, if this comes through.
The woman who runs this project looked at the way I looked at this bike, and said that I can have it. Granted, this classic 80s road bike with shifting on the headset is of no use to folks who just want to get somewhere, and besides, getting it back to a reasonable working trim is not a reasonable task in the context of this project - but it's very reasonable as a crazy pet project for yours truly, outside of my volunteering hours. So renew it I will attempt.
But first I wanted to figure out who are we dealing with here. Unfortunately, I was being stupid, so I didn't take a proper photo of the writing on the top tube. "Alpina" led me to a defunct South African manufacturer, who was either buying frames from Italy, or producing its own based on Italian design. I was unable to google up a photo of one just like I have here - with the shifters on the headset, the rear rack and the place for a dynamo. I can only imagine how a South African bicycle turned up in Tel-Aviv - I think it may have to do something with the fact, that Israel, itself under the Arab embargo at the time, was one of the few countries willing to trade with the Apartheid RSA.
I haven't looked at it too close yet, but here's what I saw:
- Everything that can be stuck is stuck: the front wheel, the bottom bracket, so everything needs to be taken apart, degreased, regreased.
- Lots of rust everywhere, but fortunately not on the spokes (the stories I could tell!)
- The left pedal is screwed in sideways and needs to be replaced. I don't want plastic there, so I may end up ordering an aluminium one from China. I hope the crank arm is ok.
- The wheels are fine and true (which is a small wonder), but the tires are gone, so new ones will need to be sourced.
- The dynamo is long gone, but there's one - a completely unnecessary one - on one of the donor bikes (our term for bikes that are dead, but can still donate parts in order to save other bikes' lives). Interestingly, all the cables on this bike - both brakes and gears - are out in the open, as befits the era, but the wire from the dynamo to the rear light is routed through the frame. The headlamp is there, though I'm not sure whether it works, and the rear one is gone and will need to be replaced.
- Cables, noodles, casings, chain need to be replaced (and dork disc removed), that goes without saying.
- I think the freewheel is fine, which is a relief and a surprise too.
- The seat is serviceable, although I'd prefer something classier, if this comes through.
