Doing up (another) old bike - Frame touch up questions

[xxamr_corpxx]

After realising that I was the only one in the family who could ride road bikes confidently, I'm going to build up a hybrid for my other relatives so they can ride.

My bike is this - My 12 Speed morrison with suntour 7 drivetrain, diacompe brakes, 27 x 1 1/4 tyres. Will stick in a flat bar, index thumb shifters, triple chainring, and a long-cage derailer.

Have done a similar conversion before, but someone else supplied the parts and this time I'm on my own (well, and you guys).

Anyway...

1. Brake levers - will any old brake levers off a MTB do or will I need to get an old MTB specifically with calliper brakes?

2. What's the best way to sand rust off the frame without touching the good areas?

3. Rust treatment, Should I :
(a) : Use some rust converter to convert the rust, then spraypaint over.
(b) : Sand off, spray zinc, then spray paint.
(c) : Is there something I could buy from the bike shop that works?

4. I'm using a non-index 6 speed cassette on my rear wheel, is the spacing between each gear going to be ok for index shifting?

5. Is gripshift that much better than thumbshift? Worth the cost?

 

[garage sale GT]

If you touch up paint chips which have rusted, you want to sand the good areas down a bit so there is no obvious chip under the new paint. If you go down to bare steel, I would just use regular primer.

However, you may not get a good color match on the topcoat and the rust converter plus a brush touchup would result in a smaller repair which was less visible from a few feet.

I personally feel, though, that an obviously well maintained but slightly battered old frame looks great.

You can't use V brake or disc levers.

If I won a bike with grip shifters, I would take them off and replace them with thumb shifters at my expense. It's a matter of preference.

I don't know much about chainring spacing on old 6 speed cassettes. Now my old Suntour/Maeda freewheel is a cinch to be wrong. Also, newer derailleurs often can't be used with older cassettes or freewheels because the chain and sprockets on the old systems is thicker and won't fit in the cage.

 

[John M]

After realising that I was the only one in the family who could ride road bikes confidently, I'm going to build up a hybrid for my other relatives so they can ride.

My bike is this - My 12 Speed morrison with suntour 7 drivetrain, diacompe brakes, 27 x 1 1/4 tyres. Will stick in a flat bar, index thumb shifters, triple chainring, and a long-cage derailer.

Have done a similar conversion before, but someone else supplied the parts and this time I'm on my own (well, and you guys).

Anyway...

1. Brake levers - will any old brake levers off a MTB do or will I need to get an old MTB specifically with calliper brakes?

2. What's the best way to sand rust off the frame without touching the good areas?

3. Rust treatment, Should I :
(a) : Use some rust converter to convert the rust, then spraypaint over.
(b) : Sand off, spray zinc, then spray paint.
(c) : Is there something I could buy from the bike shop that works?

4. I'm using a non-index 6 speed cassette on my rear wheel, is the spacing between each gear going to be ok for index shifting?

5. Is gripshift that much better than thumbshift? Worth the cost?

I would try any brake lever that you have. There is more of a problem with using a non-V compatible lever with V-brakes than the other way around.

The old Suntour rear gears will not likely index properly with current shifters. If it is a freewheel hub, you can get a index-compatible freewheel. If it is a Suntour cassette, it may be difficult.

Take a look at Sheldon Brown's website for details about older drivetrain cog spacing.

 

[garage sale GT]

However, you may not get a good color match on the topcoat and the rust converter plus a brush touchup would result in a smaller repair which was less visible from a few feet.

That's pretty unclear so I will rephrase.

"however, if you spray paint, you may not get a good color match with your topcoat.

So, in the interest of a smaller repair, use rust converter and brush on some touch-up paint onto the chipped area."