1973 Schwinn Continental

[ornery37]

Just found out one of my Schwinn is a 73 and the girls Schwinn is a 74. I know it is heavy but just put rims of a free spirit I have and changed out the handle bars with bars I Scored at Frankenbike Swap meet here in Austin and it is a nice ride.

Here is what I started with

here are the bars I scored at Frankenbike Swap meet.

and here it is now after taking a few parts off the 74

course I am having to move the brakes levers in different position and hook up the rear derailleur.

 

[Bicycle808]

Nice start.

These bikes get a lot of hassle for being heavy, but I think that's mostly b/c they're so heavy relative to other road bikes. Even the typical Varsity was under 40lbs; your Conti would be lighter due to some aluminum components, plus the forks should be stronger and lighter than the flat-blade Varsity fork....

The truth is, the electroforged 1010 steel Varsity/Conti frame weigh less than the electroforged cruiser frames-- if you take off the derailers, chifters, gears, etc, the Conti will weigh less than the typical Schwinn Cantilever cruiser.

What are the future plans for your yellow bike?

 

[ornery37]

Thanks Bicycle808, I just been cleaning it up, trying to figure where I want my brake levers on the curly ram horn bars, and riding it some. The weight does not bother me, I am building a burrito bike that is going to be around 60-70lbs

 

[Thxcuz]

I love my conti. Absolutely bomb proof.
I'm not going to win any races with it but in 20 years it will still be in the same great shape it was in when it rolled out the door in Chicago.
I wouldn't say the same for any weenie bikes that the spandex crowd parade around on.

 

[ornery37]

Yes, this bike is also very smooth riding. I just sprayed some lube in all the areas just to see if anything was grinding, but all good so added some new tires and wiped it down. Course, still haven't decided where I want the brake levers.