Day 2 of the Minimal Environmental Impact Bicycle Restoration, Throws Up Some Interesting Challenges
I'd already removed the Axle from the Rear Hub on Day 1, in order to make it easier to get the Freewheel off. As I mentioned on the Day 1 page, the Freewheel was rusted on tight, so I sprayed it with WD-40 and left it overnight.
This photo shows the axle still in place, but I am using it because it shows very well, just how much rust is around the Spoke Protector and how gunked up the Freewheel is.
I didn't have a Freewheel Removal Tool for this particular 'Roots Industries' Freewheel, so I had to use a punch and hammer on the two small indentions in the Freewheel Locking Ring. It took a good 30 minutes to free up.
Before and after. The photo on the right shows how well it came up after a thorough clean, flush and re-lube.
What we can tell from this Freewheel, is that the 2 highest gears, (5 & 4 / the closest to you) were the most, if not the only one's used.
We can tell this, because of the 'shiny' spots on the very ends of the teeth. When we look at the other 3 Gears (3,2,1), the teeth tips are still dull. Because of this, it is highly likely that this bike belonged to a Teenage Girl. Its small Frame Size certainly helps confirm this. Most Teenagers (unlike Adults) are able to ride whilst using only 1 or 2 Gears, usually the high ones, because of their limitless supplies of energy. This would also account for the low amount of riding that this bike has had, Teenagers grow out of bikes very quickly, either physically or mentally!
Now that the Freewheel is off, the Rear Wheel can be dismantled. I unscrew each spoke individually, instead of cutting them with Bolt Cutters, because even though I am not re-using these spokes on this bike, I will use them on other projects like the
Mechanarchy Rear Bicycle Pannier Racks, so I want to keep the threads and the spokes intact. The photo on the right shows that the rust on the Rear Rim is more severe than on the Front Rim. One of the outside side walls of the Rim, in one or two spots, is going to need considerable work to remove rust that would otherwise chew away at the brake pads if it was not fixed. Because of its condition, I still haven't decided whether I will re-use this Rim on this bike or not. I'll do the work on it first today, and see how it comes up. This may be a waste of a lot of time, but I think it's worth trying.........
To clean the Front Chain Ring properly, and to get at the rust on the rear of the Chainguard, I need to remove the 3 rivets holding the guard on. The hand operated Drill Press, makes light work of it.....
Once the Chainguard is removed, we can easily see the gunk on the Chainring and the rust on the rear side of the Chainguard.
These are firstly degreased, then scrubbed with steel wool in soapy water, before being treated with the Phosphoric Acid De-rusting agent.
There are a couple of important points about this acid. Firstly, it actually requires some 'red rust' in order to work most efficiently, so we don't want to remove too much of it during the scrubbing or wire brushing.
Secondly, whilst it's only a relatively weak acid, it's best to wear rubber gloves AND, make sure that you don't spill any on your nice clean cement workshop floor. If you do, the acid will most likely eat a hole in your concrete. Why? Concrete is highly alkaline, which is why it doesn't like 'Acid'!
And finally, when you are ready to wash the acid off, make sure you use an old laundry or kitchen sink filled with clean water. That way, you'll neutralize all the acid. Once neutralized, simply drain the water out of the tub and pour it on your Lemon Tree!
Here we have the Rear Derailleur inner housing, the left Crank and the Head stem, all coated with acid. These, along with the Front & Rear Rims, Spoke Protector, Chain Ring, Chainguard and Brake Levers will all be left overnight before being washed on Day 3.
Whilst that's all going on, I finish cleaning up the remainder of the small parts like bearings, cups, axles, nuts, bolts and washers, and I begin dismantling the Front and Rear Brake Calipers in readiness for scrubbing and de-rusting.
The Rear Hub has far more rust on its centre stem than the Front Hub, but it has cleaned up well and the bearing cups are in absolutely perfect shape.
When every bit of the Chrome Work is washed, polished and finished, I'll post a picture of it all, on Day 3.
Finally on Day 2, the decision has to be made as to what to do with the Frame and its paintwork. The paint is badly faded and chipped in quite a few places and as you can see on the left, surface rust has started to appear around the bikes Lugs. The Rust will need to be fixed
before it gets any worse. But this means sanding these areas back and re-painting. Spray painting is highly Environmentally Unfriendly, which is why I only respray 8 Bikes per year, and I use the absolute least Toxic Paint I can find. For this Bike however, and hopefully for many others in the future, I am going to try out something very creative, that won't involve spray painting. What is it? You'll have to wait, for Day 3!...................
