My first retro/bike resoration

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Kev365428
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My first retro/bike resoration

Postby Kev365428 » Fri Aug 10, 2007 7:36 pm

Hi all,

After reading all of the inspiring stories on here over the last few months, especially those from Karen and Gary, I decided to have a go at a restoration myself.

I picked this bike up off eBay this week for $30 and thought I might try to clean her up and make a lady of her once more. Not sure if it could be classed as retro or not, but it's older than any other bike I've owned, so that's good enuff for me.

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Does anyone know of a website where I might be able to find out what model/year this might be? I've googled away but with little success.

I started to pull her apart today and got most of it done until I hit the cranks.

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If you look close, you'll see that the nut has been welded onto the shaft. I'm thinking that the only choice here is to hacksaw the shaft off on the BB side of the crank. If anyone has any suggestions on another method, please let me know.

Another thing I noticed is on the under side of the BB, there are two braze marks like something was once attached.

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I'm in no hurry to complete this job, and with the lack of free time I seem to have these days, it'll probably take years instead of months, but I can wait.

To be honest, I'm still trying to decide if I'll attempt a full restoration, or just buy new gear and refit her to a more modern standard. I'm happy to take any help or advice on which way I should go.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to posting more pics when things start to roll along.

Cheers all.

Kev.
edited to better fit screens

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Postby cludence » Fri Aug 10, 2007 10:30 pm

I would guess it is a late 70's early 80's frame. The stuck on star indicates a later made frame. The marks on the underside I am guessing were where a kickstand once was bolted/welded on. If you need parts, let me know as I often come across the components to match your bike but I suspect you will prob end up upgrading to better components over time?

Enjoy the resto bug!


Karen.

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GaryF
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Postby GaryF » Sat Aug 11, 2007 12:00 am

Hi Kev,

To be very honest, your bike is an 'entry level' bike. That said, It would still be fun to do up. Karen is spot on suggesting the marks under the rear forks are fron a kick stand attachment. When (if) you strip the frame, file the marks down to the original tube profile. Hacksaw the axle through to remove the crank arm. Both crank arm and axle are 'stuffed' anyway.

Karen has suggested upgrading the parts and I agree. I suggest looking to fit an older Shimano 105 or 600 groupset. I can't see how the rear derailleur is attached to the frame - does it bolt directly to the rear dropout or is there a steel fitting between the derailleur and the dropout? Go for a pair of wheels with alloy rims and Shimano hubs to match the other parts. Alloy stem and bars by 3TTT or Cinelli would be nice but SR are pretty good as well. (SR did make nice seatpost and cranks that would suit the stem.)

When a replacement groupset is required, it is important to match the bottom bracket bearings and headset bearings. If you measure whe width of the bottom bracket shell it will tell you if the frame uses English or Italian threads. English threads are much more common. An English bottom bracket width is 68mm where an Italian bottom bracket width is 70mm. (Yours should be 68mm)

Perhaps you could move the gear levers to the down tube to give the bike a more racing bike appearance.

The distance between the rear dropouts is also important. Common widths are 120mm, 126mm and 130mm for more modern frames. The width will determine the rear wheel and number on sprockets you can fit to the bike.

If you go for lighter components and upgrade the wheels you will have a nicer bike to ride. Upgrading wheels makes a BIG difference.

On the other hand, you could clean up the components you have and really improve the apearance of the bike. Steel wool, metal polish like brasso, wet and dry paper and plenty of elbow grease will do wonders to the parts.

You could repaint the bike frame but perhaps a careful cut and polish may bring it back to a nice finish. If you re-paint, you might find decals a problem to source. Cyclemondo on ebay has replacement Malvern Star decals although they are for different models.

Good luck with your project,

Gary.

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Postby Seele » Sat Aug 11, 2007 2:28 am

Hi Kevin (Karen and Gary too),

By all mean go for it! I just finished my project bike based on a Repco Traveller (made a post on the sticky thread in this section too.

With a bit of patience it is quite possible to come across job-lot boxes of parts on eBay, and perhaps a variety of other sources too; what others discard as extra parts leftover during upgrades would be excellent bounty for us too.

Even though the picture is a little small I have a feeling that the rear derailleur is a Shimano Tourney quite common during that period, and as Gary pointed out, you would also need one with the hook attachment which works with a right-hand-side drop-out without the anchorage point, if it needs to be replaced. However, with some elbow grease, degreaser spray, Ajax powder, old toothbrush and a dollop of elbow grease you might be able to rejuvenate it, if it is not too rusty.

Part of the fun in doing a vintage build is to source components on a budget; it is all very well to splash out on new parts but it sort of defeats the objective anyway. Apart from the usual outlets, don't overlook the charity shops; I got the pair of funny wheels from my local Vinnies for very little. Now I do feel like embarking on another build :shock:

Have fun, keep us posted!

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Postby Kev365428 » Sat Aug 11, 2007 8:07 am

Thanks for the advice and suggestions, friends.

Here is a pic of the rear derailleur.

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I think after listening to what has been said here, and after sleeping on it, I might try to save what I can that's original, and only renew parts that I can't find/repair.

Like Gary said, it's an entry level bike for this sort of thing, so if I stuff it up, no harm done.

Kev.

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Postby GaryF » Sat Aug 11, 2007 8:28 am

Kev, Definately not a stuff-up. Its a bike with great posibilities. Seele's advice is very relevant and important. I think that is the way to go.

You have options though. Its your restoration and you can't go wrong. Any of the options would be worthwhile.

The rear derailleur shows signs of surface rust which should clean off with some steel wool and is quite controllable with a good cleaning program. It is probably typical of the other parts which should clean up nicely. It would be interesting to see if the paint would come up with a sheen.

My first restoration was on a children's bike. I didn't do a fantastic job on reflection but I did learn from it and I am still impressed with what I was able to achieve.

I think your Malvern Star is a great project and it is a Malvern Star - an iconic Aussie bike that many people can relate to. I'm sure if you took it out for a ride after the restoration, you would get many admiring looks.

Gary.

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Postby mikesbytes » Sat Aug 11, 2007 8:35 am

The marks underneath are definitely from a side stand
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Postby europa » Sat Aug 11, 2007 10:02 am

Another thing to remember is that 'entry level' doesn't always mean 'rubbish frame' - good frames did get cheap components just to keep the price down.

Go for it, make it as nice as you can and you'll have a winner. If you want to use her regularly, just get good components. If you want to do a 'restoration', buy period components and make them a matched set eg all Shimano600.

Richard
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Postby Seele » Sat Aug 11, 2007 11:12 pm

Hi Kev,

By the way it looks, it seems to be very similar to the Repco Traveller on which I based my build, with nearly identical components and configuration. The Shimano RS rear derailleur is very close to the Tourney on mine, and if not rusted seriously, and properly cleaned up, it can still provide good service for a long time to come.

Like the Traveller it has stem-mounted shift levers; I have never been happy with them as they make shifting less precise, and I replaced them with a down-tube mounted set. Coupled with the brake levers with extensions, they're meant to give the customer something "more" for his money even though they are of very dubious merits.

Like any restoration in any discipline there are as many approaches as individual projects. You can go for "original" as in returning to its original specifications without changing anything, or go for "concours", which is like "original" but with parts replaced and extra care in finishing, or my approach as in keeping to its period spirit with an eye for practicality, without too much regard for how the particular bike was meant to be as it left the factory. As Richard said, you will still end up with something enjoyable.

Good luck!

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Postby Mulger bill » Sat Aug 11, 2007 11:33 pm

europa wrote:Another thing to remember is that 'entry level' doesn't always mean 'rubbish frame' - good frames did get cheap components just to keep the price down.

Go for it, make it as nice as you can and you'll have a winner. If you want to use her regularly, just get good components. If you want to do a 'restoration', buy period components and make them a matched set eg all Shimano600.

Richard
:shock: All those words and not one mention of a fixie :wink:

Go for it Kev, she'll come up a treat 8)

Shaun
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Postby europa » Sat Aug 11, 2007 11:40 pm

Mulger bill wrote: :shock: All those words and not one mention of a fixie :wink:
And when all else fails, convert her to a fixie ... you know Mulger wants you to :wink:

Richard
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Postby Mulger bill » Sat Aug 11, 2007 11:59 pm

Hehehe, see the trouble you cause Richard. :wink:

I'm gonna give Gripsport a call on Monday, see about costing a possible fixie conversion for Bruce, dropbars an' all :shock:

Shaun
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Postby Seele » Sun Aug 12, 2007 12:53 am

Shaun,

Get my funny double-sided rear wheel and get the best of both worlds :lol:

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Postby Kev365428 » Thu Jan 24, 2008 4:07 pm

Well, I said I wasn't in any kind of hurry, and I meant it.

Just got the frame back from the paint shop. Decided on pure white, as I reckon your can't go wrong with white. Tends to hide all of the little blemishes.

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I got the frame blasted by one mate, then painted by another mate as a favour. Unlucky in the fact that I was laid up on the weekend and most of this week due to multiple illnesses, so I couldn't really oversee the work. As it turned out, their are a few small blemishes that I would have spent some time on before painting, and also a few smallish runs in the clear coat, but for a "luv" job, I can't complain.

With all the time that's past, you would have thought I'd have made some decisions about the componentry, but I'm still undecided. I think I'll definitely install a new headset, BB, cranks, chain and chainwheels, but as for the rest I might clean up the old stuff and replace as it fails. Sort of a mix of old and new.

Will keep you posted.

Kev.

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Postby Birdman » Thu Jan 24, 2008 4:12 pm

The white does look awfully good. Is that powdercoat, 2Pac Epoxy or something else???

What are you doing for Decals on it also. Did you salvage the old ones for reference?

Mitch.
SOME PEOPLE ARE LIKE SLINKYS. NOT REALLY GOOD FOR ANYTHING BUT THEY BRING A SMILE TO YOUR FACE WHEN PUSHED DOWN THE STAIRS.

Until next time...

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Postby Kid_Carbine » Thu Jan 24, 2008 4:30 pm

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If you look at other normal bike frames like this, you will see that they all have a chainstay bridge of some sort on this area. This one would have had a stamped steel one that was brazed on underneath & it probably had a small turned down [or up?] lug nearest the tyre to allow the fitment of a mudguard & a vertical hole through the plate to allow the fitment of a side stand.

The universal fitment of such a chainstay bridge in this location, be it a simple piece of curved tube or a flat piece like this one had makes me feel that it is required as a structural part of the overall frame.

Does it relieve flexing forces where the chainstays enter the bottom bracket shell & therefore prevent cracking, ... is it just an ornament, is it just a way to add a few extra ounces of weight to a frame?
Beats me, but it costs the manufacturer money to put it there & every frame I own, along with every frame I have been able to see today has one, so it's probably important for some reason or other & geting one from a roadside recovery hulk shouldn't be too hard.
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Postby Kev365428 » Thu Jan 24, 2008 4:33 pm

Just a base primer underneath, followed by 4 coats of plain old vanilla acrylic, then another four coats of clear over the top.

The original decals were pretty trashed, so I didn't bother trying to keep them. Got a heap of photos though. Still trying to toss up whether I want to spoil the clean lines with either original (or close to original) decals, or maybe some mild but unique custom ones. A bit of subtle pinstripping has crossed my mind though.

Kev.

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Postby GaryF » Thu Jan 24, 2008 4:54 pm

Hi Kev,

It looks super clean. White and red are always pretty safe colours but white is my 'go to' colour. Decals? It does look good without them.

Keep up the good work,

Gary.

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Postby Birdman » Fri Jan 25, 2008 11:14 am

Maybe a few red pinstripes and paint the lugs red too. Look pretty classic.

Mitch.
SOME PEOPLE ARE LIKE SLINKYS. NOT REALLY GOOD FOR ANYTHING BUT THEY BRING A SMILE TO YOUR FACE WHEN PUSHED DOWN THE STAIRS.

Until next time...

MountGower

Postby MountGower » Fri Jan 25, 2008 12:12 pm

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Postby Caelum » Fri Jan 25, 2008 2:34 pm

Out of interest, what would a bike built on an older steel frame, and fitted with modern components weigh?

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Postby Birdman » Fri Jan 25, 2008 2:50 pm

Caelum wrote:Out of interest, what would a bike built on an older steel frame, and fitted with modern components weigh?
About the same weight as a new carbon bike with new components after you upgrade the frame to an older steel frame. :D

Mitch.
SOME PEOPLE ARE LIKE SLINKYS. NOT REALLY GOOD FOR ANYTHING BUT THEY BRING A SMILE TO YOUR FACE WHEN PUSHED DOWN THE STAIRS.

Until next time...

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Postby triode12 » Fri Jan 25, 2008 2:53 pm

MountGower wrote:Kev

Consider highlighting the lug ridges. Is that what they're called? You know, the little face between the lug surface and the frame. Takes ages but looks a million dollars.
Just use a paint marker. :D
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Postby Kev365428 » Fri Jan 25, 2008 3:33 pm

Mmm, the lug faces sounds like a good idea, but I'm kind of loathe to spoil the clean, uncluttered look. Maybe on my next rebuild I'll try that one out.

Oh, BTW Mitch, spoke to the painter today and he informed me that 2 pack enamel was used, not acrylic.

Kev.

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