One of my Facebook friends shared a video recently. In the video she talked extensively about self-change, shame, abuse, and trauma. She spoke of confronting these things head-on and personally changing the world by facing her own feelings about her past and breaking a long-preserved silence and encouraging others to do the same. Her post was inspired. As I have watched her life change and how she has gained confidence over time, I can’t help but be inspired by her. She is remarkable and brave.
Parrallels
Restoring this bicycle makes me mindful of my own journey and seeing others share their experience gives me courage to share portions of my own restoration. For the bike, new tires to support the load and absorb shock much like forgiveness has built a firm foundation and absorbed wrongdoing in my own life. I’m strong, but I am far from perfect. The cleaned scuffs and scratches show years of wear and tear, but reveal a history about how the fork once turned into the frame and left a characteristic deep etch in the paint. Beauty emerges from the miles. Beauty that you cannot cover up with a fresh coat of paint. It tells a story. It is a story that you can’t keep inside forever. The scars and scuff marks are visible, and because they are visible, they must be incorporated to create a final impression.
Clean and Rebuild
The project is coming along nicely. I found replacement brake cable housing. Not vintage as I had hoped, but some ice grey sport housing from Jagwire. It is nice stuff, easy to work with, and a great color for a vintage bike-ice gray. I’m using the original vintage cable ends as they fit into the brake assembly much better. I’ll talk about the brake rebuild later. I’m still in the middle of the shift cable housing replacement, as I had thought originally I could replace the shift cable housing just as easily as the brake cable, and with the same material. I was wrong about that, and now I have the shift cable replacement kit on order.
Much of the outside of the bike is very clean now. The fenders have been cleaned and polished. The frame has been cleaned very thoroughly, and the chrome has been cleaned and I’ve used a very fine steel wool to remove rust from the chrome parts on the fork, the front carrier, and the bicycle rims. As I envisioned, there is still some shine left in this bike after all of these years. But it begs the inevitable question about whether or not you ever complete a restoration, or is it something that you are always approaching the end of- like a mathematical limit.
The Fenders
The fender brackets are aluminum. They were very oxidized. I tried some natural methods for polishing, including lemon juice and an acid based cleaner. There was just too much pitting on the brackets to get a good result. For some time, I considered a dremel tool or attaching something to a drill, but I finally resorted to steel wool followed up with some aluminum polish. You have a lot of time to think when you are polishing aluminum. It turns out that, as the steel wool gradually removes the oxidization, it is a good time to ponder life. Putting good ole’ elbow grease to work works the mind.
What is your response when life, as it often does, fails to meet your expectations? When I started this project, I imagined an old bike completely refurbished to its original state. My imagination is rarely ever realistic. While the result is not what I expected, it is no less desirable. It likely proves even more so because as a result of my effort, I get a unique opportunity to share the experience with others. Polishing aluminum made me think about how approaching an experience with a willingness to learn can have an impact on your destination. It has in this case. I’m working toward perfection, but it isn’t my ultimate destination.
Function vs. Form
When I reattached the front wheel, I noticed some significant play in the axle. So much so that I thought I was going to have to take the front hub apart and lubricate the assembly. I was trying to avoid unnecessary disassembly. I didn’t recall loosening the cone or lock nut when I took off the front wheel and knowing it had been sitting there for a while meant that a clean of the hub was probably a good idea. Well, that became yesterday’s job.
I haven’t taken apart a front hub in nearly three decades, so I was a little nervous about what I might find in there. I figured since it had been sitting in the garage for so long, the grease may have deteriorated and the bearings may have rusted or the hub assembly may have been worn significantly enough to warrant replacement of some of the components. I have been fortunate that I have been able to find so many of the replacement parts so far. I slowly took the hub apart, identified the type of grease necessary for the the reassembly, and ordered it.
Piece by piece the parts are gradually coming back together and I am approaching the vision I had for this old two-wheeler. I can’t wait to see how it comes out. I like what this bike is re-becoming.
Endurance and Change
Preservation and restoration both take time. I have endured my fair share of abuse and neglect, but that seems distant now. I was afraid–and maybe still am afraid– of never becoming, or ever being, good enough. As part of the MBA program, my peers and I talked quite extensively about tapping into our strengths. For me, restoration is certainly one of those. Taking something that is broken, and making it new again. Identifying the broken pieces and bringing the components back together to function like they were designed. That brings me joy and it is a joy to share that with you.