Basic, emergency treatment

pottssteve

Hi All,

I've just bought an old French made Peugeot 7 speed steel framed bike which looks about 30 or 40 years old. It has the shifter on the top tube and the derailleur is Simplex brand. Amazingly the gears still work, as does the dynamo and the front and rear lights. The brake pads (it has cantilever brakes) have perished and the chain is dry and dirty. It has some rust on the cranks and a bit on the frame.

My question is, bearing in mind I have very little budget and similar mechanical skill/tools, what are the basics I need to do to make it a bit more mechanically sound? I've had new tyres put on (the old ones were perished). Can I clean the chain and cassette effectively with white spirit without taking the bike apart? I basically want quick, cheap and easy! What's most important? Any advice gratefully appreciated.

Cheers,
Steve

Monty Dog

FWIW If the bike is 7 speed, then likelihood is that it is 1980s rather than 70s. Expecting that it has seen relatively little use in the last 30 years, then expect that the grease in the bottom bracket, headset and hubs has long since disappeared and would suggest replenishment before some concerted use. I would suggest a through strip down, clean and regrease - it will give you the chance to clean all the components throughly and hopefully refresh them for another 30 years use. This doesn't necessarily mean big expenditure, just serious amounts of elbow grease! Likewise with the chain and freewheel - particularly to run some oil into the bearings / pawls or it won't last very long.

pottssteve

Thanks, Monty,

Is there a good website with videos that I can watch to find out how to do this?

Cheers,
Steve

alfablue

Bicycle Tutor is pretty good for videos, clear, simple;

Park Tools Repair how-to's doesn't have videos but is more technical/definitive;

Sheldon Brown is the grand-daddy (has lots of info about older components);

the Retrobike Forum may be helpful/interesting.

pottssteve

Thanks guys,

I'm still waiting for my tools to arrive from Hong Kong (not that I have a lot of them!). Is there anything I can do before then?

Steve

Monty Dog

Get some fine grade steel wool or Scotchbrite pads and get polishing!

pottssteve

Monty Dog wrote:

Get some fine grade steel wool or Scotchbrite pads and get polishing!

Will do!