1963 Witcomb update

 Well, it's slow going, as I don't have a huge amount of spare time, but I'm chipping away at cleaning up and overhauling that Witcomb track bike I shared a few weeks ago.  It's pretty remarkable how well it's cleaning up.  It seems there was just a fine layer of filth over a bike in otherwise great shape.

I stripped all the parts off the frame, and gave it a good washing, first with diluted Dawn dish soap.  For the more stubborn bits of grunge, I used Simple Green, and in a few spots, a bit of denatured alcohol.  I had to be very sparing with the latter, or it would take up paint.  For the chromed parts of the rear triangle and front fork, I used Quick Glo, which works really well for cleaning up chrome and making it shine.  You can see the results below.

Before:

After:

I've also cleaned up most of the components, and have unlaced the wheels, since I won't be using the original sewup rims.  The front rim had a nasty dent in it, so it had to be replaced for sure, and since I was going to have to re-lace at least once wheel, I figured I'd swap out to clincher rims.  Clincher tires are just easier to deal with, and less expensive too.

Before:

 

 

After:

One odd thing I discovered is the bar tape was originally blue, and appears to have been two different shades of blue.  I never would have guessed this from what it looked like on the bike, but as I stripped it off the original colors were revealed.

There were a few paint chips, and rather than try to find a good match, I decided to just cover the bare steel with clear nail polish.  I'll be waxing the frame with Meguiar's carnauba wax, and then the next step is to start putting it all back together again.  I need to lace up the wheels of course, using the original hubs, new spokes, and a set of Mavic MA-2 rims a friend is sending me.  One oddity is that the bike has 32 spokes in the front, 36 in the rear.  Most bikes of this era had the same number of spokes in both wheels, but the British did things a bit differently sometimes.  It does make sense, as the rear wheel sees more stress than the front.

Stay tuned for more updates as things progress.

Photo album, with new additions:

1963 Witcomb Track Bike

Re-Visiting My "New" Bridgestone RB-T

I have to say, after waiting so long to put this bike together, I feel a little silly, as it has fast become one of my favorite bikes to ride! It's just a good balance of light and rugged, able to zip along on pavement quickly and handle mild dirt trails and such with aplomb. And it looks sharp too. When I first received it, I thought it might end up being a "beater"... a visually battered bike that's used for utilitarian purposes, in all weather, and locked up places and such, to spare one's "better" bikes. Much to my surprise, most of the issue was just grime, and some time and care with simple green and rags, along with a little polish, left me a bike that looks as good as it rides. For the last two months, it's gotten more use than any of my other bikes, even the others that got built up around the same time.

So what sets it apart? Well, the moustache bars are fun for a mixed use bike, first of all... great for commuting, very practical for light trail riding, and just fine on the road too. The basic design of the bike puts it somewhere around the "sport tourer" category, much like my beloved Trek 414... not perfectly suited for fully loaded, self supported touring, and not as light and nimble as a racing bike, but a good in between that lends itself to a lot of the kind of riding I do. The thing that differentiates it from the Trek, more than anything else, is the cantilever brakes. This style of brake gives you more room for bigger tires and fenders, and provides really nice stopping power and modulation in all conditions. Not that the Trek is a problem in either area, it's just that the RB-T has a little more versatility as a result.

For previous posts on this bike, see:

http://spokesofawheel.blogspot.com/2008/11/first-real-ride-on-rb-t.html
http://spokesofawheel.blogspot.com/2008/11/my-new-bridgestone-rb-t.html