Good News: 1 week, 147.6 miles on Schwinn Sidewinder

[GPSBlake]

Over the past 7 days I have ridden 147.6 miles on my new Schwinn
Sidewinder. My likes and dislikes so far.

Likes:
1) Brakes work perfect
2) Gears shift perfect
3) Smoother ride than road bike/hybrid
4) No squeaks, quiet bicycle.
5) No major problems
6) $9 Schwinn cyclometer working perfectly, within 0.4% of GPS distance.
7) Can handle sandy dirt roads much easier than hybrid 700x35c
8) Came with bolt holes in frame making mounting rear rack easy.

Dislikes & Problems:
1) If you are tall, this bike will not fit you well. I got the seat as
high as it can get via the min line and I could use another inch
2) Seat bolt for adjusting the angle of the seat came loose twice on one
ride. It may have been me not adjusting the hex screw back correctly.
Problem has not reoccured since.
3) It weighs a ton

Maintenance:
Had to adjust the low screw on the rear derailer slightly probably due
to chain streching which occurs on nearly all bicycles at first. Lubed
the chain and any moving areas like the cranks and hubs. Tires were down
to 50psi after I inflated them to 65psi last week. I assume this is
normal. If not let me know. Reinflated tires to 65psi.

Items added so far:
Rear rack
$9 12 function Schwinn cyclometer
GPS mount for my Etrex Legend
Front bag, removable.

Plans:
Going to replace current tires with slicks.
Going to add handlebar ends to give my hands a few more grip positions

Thinking back, I think the $58 Roadmaster I got before this was
previously returned or ridden. I got no owners manual on it and the
cardboard things on the tires were removed and the seat was higher. The
new ones assembled there had manuals and the seats were set for the
lowest setting. Or I got a lemon.

So far I like this bike a lot. I'll be taking a three day, 160 mile
fully loaded tour in a few weekends. I'll report back after that.

Cheers,

 

[[email protected]]

http://www.sell-free.com/FIRSTLINESECURITY/Pepper_Spray/5th.htm

and try linseed oil on your threads and nuts!
Wal self sealing tubes and Slime's liners in the tires!

good luck!

 

[Donald Gillies]

GPSBlake <[email protected]> writes:

>Over the past 7 days I have ridden 147.6 miles on my new Schwinn
>Sidewinder. My likes and dislikes so far.

With 100 mi or more on the bicycle, now it's time to take a look at
the hubs and readjust the cones. Some hubs are shipped NOS with tight
cones with the idea that they will loosen up after use.

Basically, give your bike a 30-day checkup (adjust the gears, tighten
the brake cables, make sure all major bearings aren't binding or too
loose : bottom bracket, hubs, pedals, headset.)

I'd do that before embarking on a 200 mi ride to come. That will be
necessary for a fair comparison with a bikeshop bike. All items obey
a "bathtub" curve of failure probability. By servicing your bike
while its in the infant mortality phase, you can greatly increase the
chances of making it to the wear-out phase 100,000 miles from now ..

- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA

 

[Donald Gillies]

Some hubs ship OEM from the factory with tight cones. The idea is
that they will "loosen up" with some use. Others get too loose after
just a few miles.

With 147 miles on the bike, now is the time to adjust all the cables
and check all the major bearings : bottom bracket, axles, pedals, and
headset to ensure proper pre-loading and lubrication.

All manufactured goods obey a "bathtub curve" of failure rates.
Therefore it makes sense to give your bike a 30-day tuneup during the
"infant mortality" phase, to ensure that the bike will make it to the
"wearout" phase 50,000 miles or so from now ...

If you're about to do 160 miles on the bike, I'd give it a 30-day
checkup beforehand to have a fair comparision to a bikeshop-bought
bicycle. I think it's a rare bike that comes in for a 30-day check at
a bike shop with 300 miles logged in only 30 days.

- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA

 

[GPSBlake]

Thanks for the advice. The Pacific Bike/Schwinn manual actually talks
about this and shows how to do it. I've never done it in my life but
I'll give it whirl.

 

[[email protected]]

I had a friend that bought a Sidwewinder a couple years ago and liked
it. Or at least he liked it for the 1 season he rode it before it fell
apart. It all works out though since his whole plan was to buy a new,
cheap bike every year to avoid maintenance and replacing things like
tires.

I'll be sticking with my Trek.

 

[[email protected]]

ok everyone gets five suggestions then we toss him into the sea.

'DIY chain guard $2'in tech>

seems that i gain 2-3 gears after cleaning the (already clean to some
standards, a few not)
After a 50-75 mile day then a loss of at least one gear's efficiency
from grit/dung friction.
The chainguards protect chains as well as an actual OLD guard with zero
plus weight minus a bit of drag.
chain protection goes a long way touring, especially on a short tour,
as there is the need to clean the chain out of the shop.
the 3 $2 protects, CR, seatstay, and rear gear cluster reduce sand
pickup here in dunesville by 1000%
if you have no manufactured drop bolt hole for the chainstay, a 6 0r
440 drill with fender washer will mount the cut poly bottle.
the gear cluster can be mounted like the CR with one hose clamp for the
poly's mounting panhandle, the other to turn the protective poly part
down to cover the cluster from tire rotation droppings and some of the
runoff from the seat stay poly guard.
very effective!
swim west: adios!

 

[[email protected]]

NYTimes-1.13.05
the us trade deficit soared to a monthly record of $60.3 billion in
November...
The figure confounded(and u know who)predictions that the deficit would
dimish with the weakening of the dollar and an easing in the price of
oil.
Insterad the trade gap created pressure for the dollar to drop 'even
further.'

 

[[email protected]]

sorry to read we're running outa breath here.
say, if taking the suggestion to protect your weekend with the self
sealers,
find a four in hand tube valve tool either at the LBS or hardware
store.
some self sealers jam then needing the valve unscrewed for cleaning the
needle's groove
or just expletive deleted spewing green fluid.