Rainy Day Window Shopping.

[kayakerles]

OK, I am very happy with the three bikes I ride, but on rainy days sometimes it’s just fun to look at what else is out there.

One of my bikes is a 1997 old-school steel hardtail Bianchi mountain bike. Here it is on the day I brought it home, after buying it from a guy on craigslist for $145 (£105) eight years ago. It has served me well. (Have since added different handgrips, mudguards, flat pedals, a rack on the back and 1.5” semi-street tires.

The dad who was selling it told me that his son went off to college, and when he offered to drop the bike off to him at school, his kid said, “dad, it’s a bike. I don’t want a bike anymore, I want a car.“ So his loss was my gain!

And today... after a grocery pickup. (This has been my commuter bike for the last six years.)

In

In my apartment complex's bike storage room, someone has a modern day version of my bike, which I really like. Here it is:

it has an aluminum 6061 frame, disc brakes, 31.8mm wheels, and 1x9 gearing. I would love to test ride it, but for now will still be happy riding it’s older brother.

here is the spec page if anyone is interested in taking a look at it: Bianchi iseo link and no, I do not work for Bianchi!

Just for fun, what do any other old-school mountain bikers think of this one?

 

[raggydoll]

I prefer your 97 model!
Love the colour and looks as good as it did when you bought it!

 

[kayakerles]

I prefer your 97 model!
Love the colour and looks as good as it did when you bought it!

Thanks, RD. If I could only keep 1 of my 3, this would be the one.

 

[raggydoll]

What are your other 2 bikes?

 

[kayakerles]

What are your other 2 bikes?

My other2 toys... Trek FX 7.6 hybrid, and an old Schwinn SuperSport 10-speed, now a single speed. Especially love the hybrid on the road, but it can’t go EVERYwhere. My Schwinn is a silent smooth old steel ride, but then there's hills. I appreciate gears in hilly situations. 🙄

 

[raggydoll]

3 really cool bikes to cover all bases!
Did you convert the schwinn to a single speed?
I'd love the simplicity of a single speed but as you say.....hills!

 

[kayakerles]

3 really cool bikes to cover all bases!
Did you convert the schwinn to a single speed?
I'd love the simplicity of a single speed but as you say.....hills!

Yeah, when I got it, the LARGE gear had been removed, so it was already down to a 5-speed. Since the original rear derailleur was SHOT, after having 2 shops try to fix it, I tossed it and had it made into a single speed. Not a racer, but I can still make it up gentle inclines. Original Moly frame from 1964! I left the gear shifters on it just for memory's sake. Couldn’t bring myself to take them off. Rides silent as the night like a hot knife through butter.

 

[Cycleops]

Just shows you don’t have to spend a fortune to get a bike collection that covers most bases. I get to pick from stuff that comes down here from the US and Europe, things that people don’t want, so I see all sorts. I think a lot come from charities as many have a sticker with ‘Bikes for Africa’ on them.
I also have a Schwinn from when they used to make proper bikes:

They wanted to put home grown components on it but could only find some rims which came from Sun, who I believe also make motorcycle rims. Lovely bike to ride.
Also have a Trek SL which I rescued from under a pile of abandoned bikes owned by a local bike shop. Nobody much wants drop bars here or steel frames either strangely.

So window shopping is very tempting here as the bikes are so cheap and there’s a plethora or used spares, ‘home used’ as they are called, you pay more for them than new Chinese. If I want some quality new spares we have a Decathlon here which is a huge French chain who have branches all over the world but strangely only one in the States.
Getting older I now prefer a mountain bike for comfort due to the poor roads and tracks so I use a five year old Cube I picked up not long ago for about $120.

 

[raggydoll]

Yeah, when I got it, the LARGE gear had been removed, so it was already down to a 5-speed. Since the original rear derailleur was SHOT, after having 2 shops try to fix it, I tossed it and had it made into a single speed. Not a racer, but I can still make it up gentle inclines. Original Moly frame from 1964! I left the gear shifters on it just for memory's sake. Couldn’t bring myself to take them off. Rides silent as the night like a hot knife through butter.

I think it suits being a single speed.
Looks like it was always meant to be one.
And you were right to leave the shifters!
Show's it's heritage!

 

[raggydoll]

Just shows you don’t have to spend a fortune to get a bike collection that covers most bases. I get to pick from stuff that comes down here from the US and Europe, things that people don’t want, so I see all sorts. I think a lot come from charities as many have a sticker with ‘Bikes for Africa’ on them.
I also have a Schwinn from when they used to make proper bikes:

View attachment 594801

They wanted to put home grown components on it but could only find some rims which came from Sun, who I believe also make motorcycle rims. Lovely bike to ride.
Also have a Trek SL which I rescued from under a pile of abandoned bikes owned by a local bike shop. Nobody much wants drop bars here or steel frames either strangely.

View attachment 594802

So window shopping is very tempting here as the bikes are so cheap and there’s a plethora or used spares, ‘home used’ as they are called, you pay more for them than new Chinese. If I want some quality new spares we have a Decathlon here which is a huge French chain who have branches all over the world but strangely only one in the States.
Getting older I now prefer a mountain bike for comfort due to the poor roads and tracks so I use a five year old Cube I picked up not long ago for about $120.

View attachment 594803

Looks like you got some great deals!
$120 for that cube is a steal!

Hurts to think of all the perfectly good bikes that end up getting dumped when all they need is a little tlc....and sometimes not even that!

 

[kayakerles]

Just shows you don’t have to spend a fortune to get a bike collection that covers most bases. I get to pick from stuff that comes down here from the US and Europe, things that people don’t want, so I see all sorts. I think a lot come from charities as many have a sticker with ‘Bikes for Africa’ on them.
I also have a Schwinn from when they used to make proper bikes:

View attachment 594801

They wanted to put home grown components on it but could only find some rims which came from Sun, who I believe also make motorcycle rims. Lovely bike to ride.
Also have a Trek SL which I rescued from under a pile of abandoned bikes owned by a local bike shop. Nobody much wants drop bars here or steel frames either strangely.

View attachment 594802

So window shopping is very tempting here as the bikes are so cheap and there’s a plethora or used spares, ‘home used’ as they are called, you pay more for them than new Chinese. If I want some quality new spares we have a Decathlon here which is a huge French chain who have branches all over the world but strangely only one in the States.
Getting older I now prefer a mountain bike for comfort due to the poor roads and tracks so I use a five year old Cube I picked up not long ago for about $120.

View attachment 594803

Wow, to live in a land of bikes-a-plenty. I love that mountain bikes can enable one to ride anywhere in any conditions. “Speed” hasn’t meant anything to me in a long time. I've never needed/wanted suspension of any kind, and I’ve never had anything but caliper brakes, and they have served me well my whole life, but how nice that you can have quality stuff without excessive expenditure. That Cube for $120. Ha! Those are 3 nice bikes you have there. I bet you have even more. Odd that drop bars are unpopular there. But I like the term “home used.” Your sleek looking old school Schwinn looks like it is for someone 8’ tall. If it's a comfy ride for you, you are a tall man!

I ride my now-single speed so rarely that I may seek to get it into the hands of someone 1/2 or 1/3 my age that could get more use out of it. I’m thinking it would be better for it to be used more by someone than just being dusted off now and then and used for infrequent short rides.

 

[Cycleops]

Thanks @kayakerles . That Schwinn is actually a bit too big for me, I'm 6'2", but I like large frame, it seems to suit me.
Yes I have a few bikes, there are some nice and unusual ones that come up so sometimes can't resist.
This Alan was in a lot close to where I live and I couldn't believe it when I saw it. Don't know if your familiar with them but these aluminium ones have the tubes glued and screwed into the lugs. Quite unique. Made in Italy and dates to 1980.

If I brought it to the UK or Europe I could get $500+ for it. Unfortunately it's way too small for me but I couldn't just leave it there. Nobody wanted it

 

[kayakerles]

Thanks @kayakerles . That Schwinn is actually a bit too big for me, I'm 6'2", but I like large frame, it seems to suit me.
Yes I have a few bikes, there are some nice and unusual ones that come up so sometimes can't resist.
This Alan was in a lot close to where I live and I couldn't believe it when I saw it. Don't know if your familiar with them but these aluminium ones have the tubes glued and screwed into the lugs. Quite unique. Made in Italy and dates to 1980.

View attachment 594917

If I brought it to the UK or Europe I could get $500+ for it. Unfortunately it's way too small for me but I couldn't just leave it there. Nobody wanted it

Wow, that IS unique, and lightweight aluminum to boot! I don’t believe I have ever heard of the brand, or that method of building bikes. Then again, I am not a bicycle historian. Interesting. It’s a nice sleek looking bike. My friends back in NYC in the 70s/80s used to ride Atalia's and Botteccias while I was riding my Peugeot. The Botteccias were pretty nice, lightweight (for steel) and both front and rear chrome dipped forks. Like this one on eBay now for $475, Probably cost $125 new back then.

Both my old Schwinn and Peugeot from long ago had these rat-trap Spring loaded racks on the back. They were fun in the day, but required bungee cords in addition to help keep things from falling off. They were actually made in Switzerland. Such beautiful things… Bicycles!

it is probably a good thing we only live in a small, one bedroom apartment here. Otherwise I would be tempted to pick up another beautiful bike here in there too, especially irresistible bargains. My wife always says I like “collecting“ things. I think she is right!

Oh, as much as I DO like kayaking (hence, “kayakerles”) you can just call me Les.