I got it out and washed it down. a few paint scrapes. Shimanos, Avocet seat,... some rust. Still has some sensors attached for pedal reps and generator. Wonder where those are. Probably with the pedals. I'd turned the bars sideways and removed the pedals for transport apparently. Wheels were true, rolled nicely, pumped back up with the double action pump still on the bike, which broke. lol
Might be worth a weekend project to see if I can find the rest of it. Here's one I really miss, photo not mine. Puch Marco Polo, stolen. 531, Suntour components. Tracked truer than any bike I ever had.
View attachment 9058
Nice-looking Puch in the pic, even if it's not yours. I have very little experience w/ cantilever brakes and even less w/ Dia Compe center pull brakes. They have a somewhat aesthetically pleasing look to them that the the linear pull V-brakes, side pulls, and dual pivot brakes I'm most accustomed to don't have.
What's your current bike, if you don't me asking?
I've got 3 bikes:
'03 Giant Boulder SE mountain bike - 3x7 speed. College grad present. About the only parts on it that are stock are the handlebars, stem, shifters, brake levers, and derailleurs. Everything else has been replaced a time or 2. Just put more $ into it this spring than I expected. Replaced all the drivetrain parts and then discovered a crack in 1 of the rims, so I also bought a new wheelset w/ a higher spoke count. Front derailleur might be swapped out soon. Lucked into a better one as part of a random lot of tools and parts I found on eBay. If I don't use it, I can sell it and basically get back all that I paid for the lot.
'05 Cannondale CAAD 8 road bike - 3x9 speed. Bought used on eBay in 2013 Love it! It's basically my version of a "rag top." It only comes out in nice weather. It was the right size, and I'd always wanted a Cannondale. All the markings indicate it was handmade in the USA. Aside from a recent saga with the crank bolt working its way loose a few times before I finally gave up and applied threadlocker blue to solve the problem, the bike rides terrific.
'97 Trek 1220 road/touring bike - 3x7 speed. Given to me by a fellow rider who had it sitting in his basement and must've felt sorry for me cuz I had been riding a mid-80s Fuji Ace which was slightly too small for me. That steel frame offered a very smooth ride on the rough chip and seal roads of farm country not too far away from where I live. It also had downtube shifters which I only liked b/c they taught me how to judge a climb properly in order to be in the right gear to make it up cuz there's no way to shift it when you're out of the saddle. After getting the Trek, I gave the Fuji to a fellow rider who was looking to convert something into a singlespeed. I wish I'd kept the freewheel tool I bought for it. I learned the bike had 1 more owner before it disappeared from a local co-op that went under while the bike was there. Anyhow, crashed the Trek in 2013 and bent the front brake bolt. Couldn't find an exact replacement and didn't feel too confident in the bike after using some different hardware to reattach the front brake caliper. Rode it inside on the trainer a few times. Otherwise, it sat in the garage until this summer when I got the bright idea to upgrade the components and try to modernize it. Theoretically, I could put the stuff on the Cannondale and move the Cannondale parts to this bike to upgrade 2 bikes at once, but I'll leave well enough alone on the Cannondale. Even so, I decided to think bigger w/ this bike and considered doing a new DIY "rattle can" paint job until I came to my senses and realized it's not terribly expensive to get a frame and fork professionally blasted and either painted or powder coated. I'm awaiting that part of the project to be completed. If you figure all the supplies (tape, various grits of sandpaper, primer, clear coat, and an entry level mask that'll keep you from painting your lungs) and all the time required to properly sand the frame to bare metal (chemical paint stripper is harmful stuff) and then sanding a few more times along the way, it didn't seem worth DIYing. Additionally, figuring in 2 coats of primer, at least 2 coats of paint, and 2 clear coats, and that's a lot of opportunities for someone lacking patience and a steady hand to screw up the entire job. It took long enough to sand and repaint 2 lousy H2O bottle cages. The satisfaction of DIYing has no value to me if it drives me crazy, so finding a pro is worth every penny, IMHO. Got all the custom made vinyl transfer decals I needed for $20 via eBay. If all goes according to plan, it'll be a 2x10 speed full Shimano Ultegra drivetrain when I'm done with it plus new drop bars and a threadless stem adaptation. The wheels are subpar, but I'll ride them until they break before upgrading. Might not take too long w/ my track record of bike wheels vs. the streets in my city.
Incidentally, I hope to have scored extra karma on Tues. morning by replacing a punctured tube for a lady at a trailhead parking lot who was almost ready to ride when she noticed her front tire was flat. She had all the tools to fix a flat on the road but no idea how to use them which was evident when she tried to unthread a CO2 cartridge that had been tapped but hadn't been expelled - "BOOM!" It sounded like a shotgun blast and sent the cartridge and inflator parts flying through the parking lot. Thankfully, it missed hitting anyone or anything. The wheel had a wide rim, so no levers were needed to re-seat the tire. Also, I keep a floor pump in my car which I produced to make the job even easier. She offered me money, but I refused and told her I'm paying it forward for all the times my friends fixed my bike when I first got into riding. It was also the first time I got to fiddle w/ a bike that had disc brakes and a thru axle, so good experience for me. I'm so used to not being able to fully inflate the tire until after remounting the wheel, so that the tire can squeeze in between the brake pads.
