Pair of 1980s steel framed bikes

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Julia9054

Julia9054

Guru
Location
Knaresborough
Two very nice bikes. But at 5ft 4inches I think they are going to be too big, even with a shorter stem.You have relatively long legs so a short torso therefore you will be overreaching. They look like 23" frames to me.
You are probably right. I doubt I will be riding them much but I just feel very privileged to have been given them and want to do them justice.
 

T4tomo

Guru
Maybe, but your not going to be doing 100 mile days on them, so with a shorter stem and saddle in most forward position on its rails, you should be able to get them reasonably comfortable to ride on. Lovely looking bikes.
 

swee'pea99

Legendary Member
What a cracking pair of bikes! You really have hit the jackpot there. Except that as others have said, they're both quite a lot too big for you. I'd say those would be right for a 5' 10" bloke, give or take. But that doesn't stop you doing them up, so...check them out, lubricate things that need it - chain and cables (run 3-in-1 down into the housing from each end, working the brakes/gear levers to encourage the oil in), and gears - again, lots of shifting while you oil at every pivot - possibly brakes, again at the pivots. And more than likely that's all you'll need to do, apart from replacing perished tyres and maybe brake blocks. Good old bikes like those don't tend to go wrong, as such. Shame they're the wrong size for you - they'll be a joy to ride once they're done.
 
As others have said you have done well and those cycles do look nice. You may need to replace the handlebar stem for shorter reach ones, you can play around with moving the saddle about to find out what position best suits you. As for buying new tyres you only need one set as you can always swap the wheels from cycle to cycle provided the gearing is similar. It is handy having a spare cycle, riding whichever cycle takes your fancy.
Good luck in fettling.
 

Cycleops

Legendary Member
Location
Accra, Ghana
Might they fit a cycling partner Julia?
 
What sort of bike are you used to? I was just asking as the first time I rode a bike with 7/8 tyres it felt like I was balancing on a razor blade, I was used to 1 1/8. Once I had ridden it for a while it felt normal.
 

scarygerbil

Senior Member
Location
norfolk
i ride a 23 inch bike with an inside leg of 30 inch it can be done but the handle bars are set up a higher than normal and cycling shorts are needed and toe clips are not recomended as i found out infront of a pub beer garden to my embassesment
 
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