Hello and Welcome.
This is the closest thing I have to a before picture of the Schwinn Hurricane. At this point I had already cleaned-up the frame. It already looks better than I thought it would. I`m glad I gave it a second look. Asking price was about 30.00 However it was "33% off day" for people in my age group. So I snatched it up.
My original plan was to clean it up, put the left-over gangster white-walls on it.(that I took off the Physio-Phat) Then sell it as a basic transportation special. While refurbishing the wheels I started thinking this is a much nicer bike than the Physio-Phat. It has the 70GS shifters and derailleurs and a SAKE three ring crank. Not to mention cantilever brakes and alloy wheels with front quick release skewer.
ABOVE : The wheels cleaned-up beautifully. They look like chrome but are actually polished alloy. At this point I really began to see this bike in a different light.
ABOVE : I finally got this pic right, I usually get this one way out of focus. You can see how close the pins are set on the truing stand and the wheel was almost perfect before I trued it up.I got it down to about a 1/16th gap on both sides with no rub. That`s plenty straight enough for this old rigid mountain bike. I have learned to check spoke tension on both sides before I start tightening spokes.
More than a few times I have found the spoke on the same side as the rub tightened rock hard. Sometimes all that is needed is to loosen a really tight spoke just a hair (half turn or less). A spoke or two that are too tight will cause the same problem as a couple that are too loose. When I say "the rub" I mean where the pin makes contact with the wheel while spinning it on the truing stand.
ABOVE : The rear derailleur and free-wheel cleaned up real good as did the rear wheel, which also needed little truing. There is a scrape on the rear D right near the logo. This is purely cosmetic and does not affect the performance.
Above : The front derailleur also cleaned-up beautifully and has almost no cosmetic damage at all.
ABOVE : I replaced the badly scratched black seat post with a chrome one from my collection of salvaged posts. The saddle was dirty but in perfect condition with no scrapes. So I just gave it a good cleaning and re-used it. I replaced all the cables and housings with new Jag-wire Basics. I did re-use the straddle cables but I did clean them up a little. The SAKE crank is super smooth. I don`t think I have ever seen one spin as easy or as long as this one does. It had been greased recently with white grease. There was no way I was going to take this bracket apart. And I`m usually real big on that. I had noticed the fresh grease first while servicing the front hub. I could tell they had done the bottom bracket and the head-set by the feel and traces of grease left in these areas. The chain is used (salvage) but very good quality so I cleaned it and lubed it and re-used it. After that I took it for a ride to see if it felt as good as I hoped it would.
ABOVE : After the ride, I knew what I needed to do. So I took the tires, pedals with traps and touring rack and lights and eventually the panniers off the Physio-Phat. And put them all on the Hurricane. And I could not be happier! This bike is awesome. I took it for it`s first real ride today and showed it off to my coffee shop buddies. While I will need to make a few adjustments, over-all it is good to go. I might see if I can steal that front half fender off the Physio-Phat as well.
ABOVE : So here it is. I will probably also swap saddles with the Physio-Phat. And I`m thinking about maybe replacing the brake-levers with something more BMX`ey. I am also going to see if I can make that 1/2 front fender work as well. Although I did trim it to fit the Physio-Phat, So it might not work.
Above: Now the Physio-Phat is back to what it was before all the improvements. It is still a good bike and soaks up the bumps real good for a rigid. I will find a good home for it somewhere.
Parliament Update: I knew I said I would not but here is the latest pic of the Parliament Custom Built. Today my vintage brake levers arrived. But there was a slight problem. It seems I only ordered one. The guy I bought it from sells them one at a time. So I guess with him, 1 means 1 not "1 set" like every freak-en body else who sells them. So I got burned. I paid 25.00 for one vintage lever GEEEEEZE! I hope he`s not looking for some positive feed-back, cause he sure ain`t gonna get any from me. Maybe I`ll publish the e-mail I sent him. I think you all will be proud of me. I showed great restraint ...lol... I really did...honestly
So till next time, Please RIDE SAFE and Shop Carefully and Remember to Always RESCUE, RESTORE & RECYCLE
Cheers,Hugh
Hugh Nice looking Hurricane, as Honda used to say "Even the Ninja must hide from the Hurricane" although they were talking about a different kind of "bike" ;-). You photo of the wheel stand gave me some ideas for the one I just got - Sunlite good price and Zero instructions- so thanks. I'm sorry to hear about your ebay experience, it really gets me when people aren't up front about stuff like that- as apparently does you too. Hope you can find another single lever at a reasonable price.
ReplyDeleteRyan
Thanks Ryan,
ReplyDeleteThis is the first Schwinn Hurricane that I have ever seen. When I saw the name, the Honda Hurricane was the first thing that popped into my head too. Speaking of Ninjas, The "Ninja Song" on the Honda Civic commercial is performed by a friend of my son. He is a very private person, So I won`t say anymore about that.
The E-Bay thing was partly my fault. One really needs to be careful and know exactly what (and how many) components they are ordering.
The real drag is, I won`t be ordering another set of levers until a bike sells. The "bike thing" does not have to make a profit. But it does have to support itself.
Since I already have everything in stock I need, I will probably restore one of the cheaper 10 speeds next. It will probably be the Ross Adventurer. I restored one exactly like it a few years ago. I don`t remember if it was posted. I`ll have to look and see.
Maybe I should post some pics of the brake- lever, in hopes one of my readers has one laying around. It might be worth a shot.
Good to hear you got a new "truing stand". I use mine constantly. I hope it works out for you.
Cheers
Hugh, I found your blog searching for Fuji s10s, because my 22 yr old son is riding my 35 yr old Fuji cross country! Unlike yours, mine is unrestored, mostly original and pretty rough. BTW, I graduated from RO Dondero HS 1971.
ReplyDeleteHey Mark,
ReplyDeleteWelcome, I think my best friends brother Terry Sadlier was class of 71. John Murphy might have been class of 71 also. I spent most of my school years at St Marys (Royal Oak) Then I finished high-school in the night-school program at Dondero. The Only teacher I remember from Dondero is Mr.Smiley.
I hope you found some useful information on my blog. "Good Luck" and "God`s Speed" to your son. Sounds like a wonderful adventure.
Cheers, Hugh
hugh i have just bought the schwinn hurricane that you had bloged about where can i find out more about the bike the year etc it looks the same as yours black red letters fenders cool looking
ReplyDeleteHey Newkarma,
ReplyDeleteYou might want to check this out...... http://bikecatalogs.org/SCHWINN/MODELS/Hurricane.html
If your Hurricane is red and Black with a black crank it would be a 1992 model. I sold mine shortly after it was finished to finance another bike project. If you are going to install a rack and panniers like mine had. I would suggest you purchase a rack that positions the panniers (saddle-bags) farther back. I noticed my heals would hit the bags while pedaling if I did not have my feet in the perfect position. You might want to check out the rack I just installed on my Specialized Rock-Hopper F.S. (posted
April 27 2012) to see the style I am talking about. I missed the Hurricane after I sold it. It was a good quality Schwinn.
Not like the Department Store garbage they sell under the Schwinn name now. Good Luck with your project. Cheers, Hugh
does anyone know what size nut holds the pedal crank on the hub for a Schwinn hurricane?
ReplyDelete