Originally Posted by Donovan1986 .
... how upgradable are old bikes like this? If i went to a bike shop can i throw a new good seat/road handlebars on???
FWIW. Almost ANY bike made after WWII can be readily upgraded ...
Your budget & desire are the ONLY true qualifications, IMO ...
If you are
a wise shopper then you can move the majroity of the components which you might buy onto a future frame ([COLOR= #808080]just save whatever you remove in a box so you can reassemble the Schwinn to the current condition[/COLOR]) ...
FIRST, the things which you might buy for the bike which probably cannot be transferred to another frame:
- seatpost
- brake calipers
- headset ([COLOR= #808080]these usually do NOT need to be replaced[/COLOR])
Not a particularly long list.
SECOND, the things which you can probably transfer if you ever get another frame:
- saddle
- brake levers/shifters
- front derailleur (choose a braze-on front derailleur + adapter)
- rear derailleur
- bottom bracket
- crankset
- wheels
27" wheels are generally NOT good for racing unless everyone else is racing with the same size wheels because of their 'mass' ... a 27x1.125 tire is the equivalent to a 700x32 ... so, 27" wheels are not ideal for accelerating, etc.
Your frame's rear dropout spacing is probably 126mm ...
- 130mm is the current standard for Road bikes ...
- the rear triangle on most-but-not-all steel frames can be respaced ...
- this requires some patience ...
- with the rear wheel removed, you would grab each dropout & pull outward with whatever you estimate to be 30 lbs. of force
- measure
- repeat (many times ... allow 5-to-10 minutes) until the spacing equals 130mm
[*] THEN, you need to realign the rear derailleur hanger (dropouts) so that they are parallel to the central plane of the bike ...
- sandwich the dropout between two pieces of scrap plywood-or-equivalent & tweak the dropout with whatever you estimate to be 5 lbs. of force
- check
- tweak, again
If you opt for 700c wheels, then you will probably need to buy some extra long brake calipers ([COLOR= #ff8c00]
TEKTRO makes a nice set of suitable dual-pivot calipers ... expect to pay ~$60 +/-[/COLOR]).
It may be less expensive to buy a set of 700c wheels from NASHBAR, PERFORMANCE, EXCEL, COLORADO CYCLIST or eBay
unless you take the time to learn how to relace & true your own hubs with 700c rims. Again, the wheelset can always be used on another bike.
- a set of CAMPAGNOLO shifters can be made compatible with the majority of SHIMANO derailleurs + 8-and-9-speed Shimano cassettes ... SunRace makes a reasonably good 7-speed freewheel which should fit on your current wheel without needing the frame to be respaced
- 7-speed & 8-speed INDEXING are reasonably close enough that you should be able to use an 8-speed shifter with it ... again, the 10-speed Campagnolo shifter + 9-speed Shimano rear derailleur can be used to simulate 8-speed indexing
BTW. 'I' don't think you should bother changing the handlebars
unless the width is wrong ([COLOR= #808080]
i.e.,
too narrow[/COLOR]) because for most people it the lower half is cosmetic because 'I' think that most people do
not ride with their hands in the Drops.
