2006 Schwinn Varsity at Wal*Mart

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Strayhorn wrote:

> "Adam Rush" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>> Who wouldn't want one? Okay, not me.
>>
>> Are you saying that there are people who look back
>> fondly on the Varsity?
>
> You bet. My college girlfriend had one -
> in screaming zonker yellow.
>
> Or maybe I'm just fond of the memory of her on it . . .

As I was rolling in to school one morning about fifteen years ago, I saw
one of my students arriving on a purple Varsity. She explained that it
was the bike her dad rode to the same college about twenty years prior.
It was in perfectly serviceable shape, and it was obvious that she and
her dad both regarded it fondly.

--
"Bicycling is a healthy and manly pursuit with much
to recommend it, and, unlike other foolish crazes,
it has not died out." -- The Daily Telegraph (1877)

 

[[email protected]]

Plastic! yes. Some of the bikes being sold at wallymart have plastic
bits in the quick release levers. I saw one that use a nylon looking
piece as the cam reciever. Over tighten and the plastic will crack
and break. The plastic pieces fall out, leaving the wheel so loose the
lawyers lips are ineffective. Then the front wheel falls off. These
may be the same levers that wallymart just defended in court. Seems
many children have done the 'flying face plant' while riding. There
was a website with photos of the smashed up faces. nasty looking.

Given the low level of knowledge of wallymart bike assemblers,
wallymart customers and wallymart corporate bike purchasers, wallymart
selling bikes with any QR levers is just many injuries waiting to
happen in addition to all those already.

 

[Ozark Bicycle]

[email protected] wrote:

<snipped>

>
> Given the low level of knowledge of wallymart bike assemblers,



"low level of knowledge"? Aren't you the guy who works at an LBS whose
owner tried to sell someone who had a *flat tire* a new wheel because
he a) didn't have a suitable replacement tube and b) couldn't figure
out how to make what he did have work?

Pots, kettles, stones, glass houses, etc., etc.

 

[Fred Clydesdale]

In article <[email protected]>,
"Adam Rush" <[email protected]> wrote:

> > parts. Non existant quality. Bad finish on most parts. But it has the
> > Schwinn name on it so it must have Schwinn's legendary quality and a
> > Varsity to boot. Who wouldn't want one? Okay, not me.
>
> Are you saying that there are people who look back fondly on the
> Varsity?

hey, i RACED on a varsity. okay, raced and LOST on a varsity. but
i was up against hans schneider, so i don't think the varsity was
entirely at fault. damn exciting racing, though, since there was
always a sizeable chance that the welded-on kickstand was going
to choose to descend on any halfway rough corner.

 

[Adam Rush]

I remember that Varsities always had such a perfect connection between
the down and top tubes and the steer tube. I also know that those
frames were so damn heavy that the clamp on our shops frame ended up
finally breaking under one.

What was it they did building them?

 

[Johnny Sunset aka Tom Sherman]

Adam Rush wrote:
> I remember that Varsities always had such a perfect connection between
> the down and top tubes and the steer tube. I also know that those
> frames were so damn heavy that the clamp on our shops frame ended up
> finally breaking under one.
>
> What was it they did building them?

See "Inside the Varsity" by Marc S. Muller, conveniently located on S.
Brown's website:
<http://sheldonbrown.com/varsity.html>.

--
Tom Sherman

 

[AmericanFlyer64]

Mike Jacoubowski wrote:

>>>If you can go just slightly higher, I would suggest that a $249 hybrid,
available at many bicycle shops and (hopefully, though not always...
shops
do vary, but we're not all as bad as one poster believes) a
high-quality
assembly job. Plus a typically free 30-day check, on-site repair work,
etc.

No, it's not a "road" bike, but it does a better job at being what it
looks
like it is. A very functional bike that's reasonably efficient ** and
will last
much longer than its department-store brethren ** <<<

My last two bikes have been "department store" bikes, and they held up
pretty well. This will be the 4th year for my "Wal*goose" hybrid, and
I've had no problems with it whatsoever, save for needing to have the
rear wheel trued (but that was because I ran over a curb). It's
probably got close to 3000 miles on it, and it shows no signs of
stopping any time soon.

The bike before (a rather plain MTB) I got on clearance from Sears, and
I had it for a little over 5 years until it got stolen. If I remember
correctly, I had to replace a brake cable for some reason, but
otherwise it performed flawlessly.

Okay, granted, they would probably never be able to do a century or
anything along those lines, but for the type of riding I do, mainly
recreational riding (mainly paved paths, and a few dirts trails),
they're just fine.

So to say that a bike from a LBS will last "much longer than its
department-store brethren" is not always the case.

Anyway, that's my 2 cents worth, for what it's worth.

Peace.

 

[Adam Rush]

Carl Fogel had a great series of posts about his experience with a Fury
Roadmaster. What ever happened to him?

 

[Johnny Sunset aka Tom Sherman]

Adam Rush wrote:
> Carl Fogel had a great series of posts about his experience with a Fury
> Roadmaster. What ever happened to him?

Mr. Fogel likely became disappointed with the quality of the people on
"wreck.bicycles" and left.

--
Tom Sherman

 

[G.T.]

Johnny Sunset aka Tom Sherman wrote:
> Adam Rush wrote:
>
>>Carl Fogel had a great series of posts about his experience with a Fury
>>Roadmaster. What ever happened to him?
>
>
> Mr. Fogel likely became disappointed with the quality of the people on
> "wreck.bicycles" and left.
>

Who cares? I found that whole Roadmaster thread more obnoxious than a
JB vs jb flamewar.

Greg None

--
"All my time I spent in heaven
Revelries of dance and wine
Waking to the sound of laughter
Up I'd rise and kiss the sky" - The Mekons

 

[A Muzi]

Adam Rush wrote:

> I remember that Varsities always had such a perfect connection between
> the down and top tubes and the steer tube. I also know that those
> frames were so damn heavy that the clamp on our shops frame ended up
> finally breaking under one.
>
> What was it they did building them?

The actual joint is an inch and a half behind where you
think it is. On the occasional poor weld you can see the
dovetail pattern joint well behind the smooth headtube.

They are just mild steel seamed pipe, nothing special.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

 

[Johnny Sunset aka Tom Sherman]

Andrew Muzi wrote:
> Adam Rush wrote:
>
> > I remember that Varsities always had such a perfect connection between
> > the down and top tubes and the steer tube. I also know that those
> > frames were so damn heavy that the clamp on our shops frame ended up
> > finally breaking under one.
> >
> > What was it they did building them?
>
> The actual joint is an inch and a half behind where you
> think it is. On the occasional poor weld you can see the
> dovetail pattern joint well behind the smooth headtube.
>
> They are just mild steel seamed pipe, nothing special.

My cynical side believes that slapping an "AISI 1010 Steel" sticker on
such bicycles would improve their sales. After all, the normalized
areas around the welds must have a yield strength of 26 ksi or so!

--
Tom Sherman

 

[[email protected]]

You have the correct person. The owner of that LBS 'real' job is loss
containment for the regional wallymart warehouse. (aka night watchman)
The lbs is the owners saturday only hobby in a small town that would
not support a full time lbs. I help him with the bike repair for on
ragbari for entertainment instead of drinking. Besides he and the
ragbraiers really need some expert help.

 

[[email protected]]

Electro forging! They would take the two pieces to be joined, put them
in a giant welder similar to a spot welder, slam the two parts
together! The huge electric current would melt them together in a
flash. Then grind off the exterior to make it smooth. On some of
those bikes you can see the flash on the insides, often with a small
hole right in the center. I saw a video of the machine in action one
time. The tubing (really sheet steel curled over to make tubes) has to
be heavy to withstand the process. thick low-carbon steel. The bottom
bracket and head tube assembly were stamped sheet steel and welded
together too. No expensive materials here. Just expensive machinery
that could make these by the million.

 

[Ozark Bicycle]

[email protected] wrote:
> Electro forging! They would take the two pieces to be joined, put them
> in a giant welder similar to a spot welder, slam the two parts
> together! The huge electric current would melt them together in a
> flash. Then grind off the exterior to make it smooth. On some of
> those bikes you can see the flash on the insides, often with a small
> hole right in the center. I saw a video of the machine in action one
> time. The tubing (really sheet steel curled over to make tubes) has to
> be heavy to withstand the process. thick low-carbon steel. The bottom
> bracket and head tube assembly were stamped sheet steel and welded
> together too. No expensive materials here. Just expensive machinery
> that could make these by the million.


"No expensive materials here (old time Schwinn)"? Did I miss
something? Was Schwinn pretending to make Colnagos, or even Peugeots?
Or were they selling rugged, reasonably cheap bikes tailored to the
American market of that time?

 

[Johnny Sunset aka Tom Sherman]

G.T. wrote:
> Johnny Sunset aka Tom Sherman wrote:
> > Adam Rush wrote:
> >
> >>Carl Fogel had a great series of posts about his experience with a Fury
> >>Roadmaster. What ever happened to him?
> >
> >
> > Mr. Fogel likely became disappointed with the quality of the people on
> > "wreck.bicycles" and left.
> >
>
> Who cares?

I was being both serious and sarcastic. I think JB had
"[email protected]" pretty well pegged.

--
Tom Sherman - Behind the Cheddar Curtain