OK, I left you hanging in my last post.
In case you didn’t read it, the question at
the end was “why did I choose Philbert?”
Well there are a few reasons.
Let’s start with reason number one.
What if you found a bike but:
A)
Other than a couple of mechanical issues the
bike is perfect, or
B)
The bike is mechanically in great shape, but the
frame needs painting
Would it be worth your time and energy to purchase a bike
that needs some work? What if it’s a
piece of junk? How long will it last if
I get it fixed up?
Well unlike your typical purchase in this day and age, where
most things aren’t made to last for more than a couple 2 – 3 years (think smart
phones) or may work beautifully, but are obsolete (think Windows XP),
bikes tend to be the exception to this rule.
Of course there are other exceptions to this rule, but I’m painting with
a rather broad brush, so work with me.
Think about this a minute. When most of your purchases are for goods
that won’t last more than a few years, how do you know when to buy new or
used, especially when you're conditioned (like I am) to not trust anything used or old? Like any decision, it depends.
Let me give you a perfect example of what I’m talking
about. Here is my youngest daughter’s
bike which I found for $15.00 at a thrift store in North Carolina.
Nice huh? It’s a 1972 Free Spirit Sheffield sold by Sears.
I can hear the groans now. Why are you wasting my time talking about a
bike from Sears? Here’s a bit of
knowledge you may find helpful: this
bike is actually made by a bicycle manufacturer called Puch in Austria.
It’s a fully lugged steel frame with a Sturmey Archer 3
speed with a coaster brake. The front
brake was less than useless, so I removed it.
When I purchased it everything was original, right down to the dry
rotted tires and tubes which wouldn’t hold air.
If I were to guess, the bike probably has less than 75 miles
on it. The few nicks and scratches on
the bike are mostly from “Santa Claus” adjusting the seat with a pipe wrench
and various bumps from being stuffed in the back of a garage for oh, about 42
years.
Here’s a list of the work I did other than cleaning the
paint and chrome:
- Repacked the bearings in the fork, which I’m glad I did, since there was hardly any grease.
- Replaced the chain: $8.00
- Replaced the tires (Kenda KP40) and the tubes: $25.00
- Replaced the 20 tooth cog with a 23 tooth for handling the hills in Portland. It’s no mountain goat by any means, but it’s a bit better than before: $11.00
Um, that’s it.
The total cost to get this bike back on the road was $44.00
give or take a couple of dollars. Of
course, this doesn’t include the Electra bell, rear picnic basket picked up at
the same thrift store the bike was found, quick release front basket, lights
and Kryptonite U-lock. So add another
$100.00
I guess if my daughter wanted to remove the Free Spirit decals,
I could grab a set of Puch decals and replace them, but if they don’t bother her,
they don’t bother me.
So the total cost for a fully lugged, beautiful city bike that my daughter
gets compliments on all the time and will last her a lifetime (assuming regular
maintenance is performed): $144.00
Let’s say you know nothing about bikes, and had a store
perform the work and install the extras. I would double the price. Still, we’re talking less than $300.00 for a
classic 3 speed with most of the trimmings.
Not bad!
The ride is sublime.
It’s the perfect representation of what a 3 speed from this
era is all about. It’s heavy bike at
over 30 pounds, but it doesn’t ride heavy.
In other words, you don’t feel like you’re fighting the bike to sustain
forward momentum. It just moves right
along without extra effort, until you start going uphill. With only 3 speeds, the bike is no fun going
uphill, but the downhill ride is stable and predictable.
This is why Philbert is such a perfect bike for this blog.
Philbert has almost everything wrong that you would
typically find with a used bike. The
plan is to go through each problem step by step so you, my dear reader, can
make an informed decision.
Of course the risk I take is that Philbert is too far gone
to salvage. Knowing when to throw in the
towel is also part of the learning process.
If that happens, I’m out $30.00. Call
it tuition. I’ve spent more on a below
average meal at the airport, and It’s still cheaper than restoring old cars. If Philbert is restorable, I’ll end up putting
more money into the bike than it will be worth, unless of course I become
famous, then I’ll charge you way more than you should pay.
Granted, Philbert is a 52 old curmudgeon, but age doesn’t
necessarily make him valuable. Phillips was
only second behind Raleigh for the number of bikes manufactured in England
until Raleigh bought them out in 1960. Since
these bikes are so well constructed, there are literally thousands of old
Phillips 3 speeds (and others of this generation) languishing in garages, barns
and sheds. You just have to keep an eye
on your local Craigslist for a bit until one comes up. If that fails, check eBay. There are local auctions where the seller
won’t ship and requires the bike to be picked up.
If you find a bike and want my opinion (FWIW), just send me
an email re-cyclery@hotmail.com with
some photos. I’ll give you my thoughts.
Happy hunting!
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