Monty & Electra
It's been a while, as usual. I don't blog much these days. I don't Facebook either. I quit several months ago. I do twitter, 280 character prose and opinion.
I like the immediacy of Twitter. The news comes in real time, updates and analysis at my fingertips. It takes only seconds to get involved in the conversation, 280 characters or less.
It's all about Trump, this fucking corrupt clown car of a regime. Guilty pleas and prison sentences have only just begun. It's gonna be a grade A shit show before this is over.
Sometimes I have to step away and do something else, a temporary obsession to distract me. This week was the search for a bicycle I can fit in the trunk of my Honda. I love my heavy cruiser, but it is huge and heavy and I kinda need a lighter more agile bike... specifically one that folds in half. So I went on a Craigslist search for used as well as doing reseach new bikes.
I was looking at bikes with 20" wheels like this...
This is your typical compact folding bike, cool rides but I'm not a fan of the small tires. After looking at a few of these I came across an ad for a used Schwinn Montague 26" folding bike for $50. That can't be right. I knew what a Montague bicycle was but, 1.) they're rare in these parts, 2.) the Schwinn models were last produced 23 years ago, and 3.)... ONLY FIFTY BUCKS?
This was a rare find so I jumped on it.
The bike was a fucking mess, broken and neglected. The tires were dry rotted, rear derailer mangled, all rubber had to be replaced, a new seat and lots of work to make it road worthy. The patented Montague Bi-fold frame was solid, even had all the decals with good paint. The wheels were okay but needed work to run true.
The famous fold.
I believe I bought a 1991 Schwinn Montague M1000 but have yet to confirm that. I bought new tires, tubes, break pads and grips on the first day. On day 2 I took Monty over to the local bike community co-op we have in Tempe, Bike Saviors. I love these people. If I need to work on my bike, buy parts, any maintenace I can't do in my garage... this is best place to go.
Bike Saviors is a non-profit with a couple of full time 'employees' and a pack of volunteers who run a bike shop where DIY bike people can use the maintenance stations with all the tools, technology and expertise at your fingertips, and they have a huge inventory of new and used parts.
This pic is from a maintence class I took there a few years back with my Electra Super Deluxe cruiser.
When the bike tech volunteers saw my new Bi-frame they agreed I scored a rare bike. Frank was jealous. He hooked me up with a used Shimano derailer and cushy seat. I trued the back wheel and straightened the frame where the derailer attaches. After caliper and break pad adjustments I was on the road. This is my new ride, a rebuild in 3 days. When folded it fits in the trunk of my car.
Monty
On day 5 I'm still making tweaks. I'll be replacing the break calipers soon. The current set up works but is not good. I ordered a Montague bike rack-stand. It's a bike rack above the rear wheels that rotates under the wheel to create a stand. I'll ditch the kick stand.
So now I have two bikes, Electra and Monty.
Electra... with new wheels and tires.
