have down 10 dollars on 125 dollar columbia ladys tank bike

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jesusfreak86

jesusfreak86

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howdy i just put down 10 dollarson this bike i put in six my dad put in the rest on this vintage columbia found it on craigslist.com im tanking the rest in at the end of the month this is the photo from the ad the crank is frozen does not move and the tires are too rotted to save i took the down payment over yesturday im going to have ski rack sports bike shop fix i for me i dont want to ruin it trying to fix it myself im going to learn how to take bikes apart and put them back togther with the old blue free spirit bike i have
3n63m73ld1fd14813a9186de3ef8d7fc419.jpg
the bike it is a old columbia
 
That bike is probably worth the $10 you already put into it... but I wouldn't give them another $115... if stuff is that frozen solid, you will probably have to do a complete overhaul and would have to put as much into it in parts. Especially if you brought it to a bike shop to fix up. If they even felt like dealing with it, they wouldn't do it cheap.

Just my two cents. If you HAVE to have it, go for it.
 
Ya might be better buying "bits n pieces" Spaceliner.
 
why would i want my 10 dollars back i really really like this bike it the only antique one i could find close too bangor maine thats hard to come by where i live :?:
 
jesusfreak86 said:
howdy i just put down 10 dollarson this bike i put in six my dad put in the rest on this vintage columbia found it on craigslist.com im tanking the rest in at the end of the month this is the photo from the ad the crank is frozen does not move and the tires are too rotted to save i took the down payment over yesturday im going to have ski rack sports bike shop fix i for me i dont want to ruin it trying to fix it myself im going to learn how to take bikes apart and put them back togther with the old blue free spirit bike i have
3n63m73ld1fd14813a9186de3ef8d7fc419.jpg
the bike it is a old columbia
Click to expand...

I dont think you can ruin that bike at all. Just fix it yourself! :D
your gonna be spending more money to have some else fix it up than the bike is worth.
 
i just dont know anything on how to fix bikes myself i went and looked at its a solid bike im willing to spend anywheres from 60 dollars to 150 dollars i would not no how to unfreeze a stuck crank i love this bike its my dream bike
 
if it's your dream bike and you have to have it, then go for it. I'd still recommend you try to fix it yourself, there's nothing complicated about it, just a lot of elbow grease (and in your case probably some PB blaster). You'll be amazed at what you can do.

A good place to start for info is the forum's "How To" section.

or this:
http://www.sheldonbrown.com

Good luck!
 
any suggestions on how to unfreeze the crank and what is pb blaster
 
Rat Rod said:
Ummm...can you get your $10 back? :shock:
Click to expand...
I disagree 8)
It might not be a screamin deal, but if nothing is rotten its a cool bike. If you tried to buy something and have it shipped you might end up spending a lot more than that.

As far as the rusty crank goes, buy a can of PB blaster or good old WD40 and hose everything down that you want to take apart. Wait a couple of days and do it again. After a week or so then try taking stuff apart.
I would agree with the rest of the comments and say that you should try and work on it yourself. You have a great information resource here for free. It is not that difficult and you can do it with basic tools, great way to learn about simple machines. You can do eeet
 
Yeah the Columbia isn't a deal but it's not a bust either. If you have another free Free Spirit, park the Columbia, learn on the Free Spirit and then apply to the Columbia.

Liquid Wrench, PB Blaster, WD-40 it's all designed to dissolve rust and loosen bolts etc. Hit with the stuff and let it sit. BFH, (big f'ing hammer), breaker bar on the end of a wrench, or heat can all help. If it breaks it needed replacing anyway.
 
PB blaster is a very good penetrating oil. If your crank is frozen, that will make getting the crank apart that much easier. Remember, the nuts on the outside of the crank(as well as the left side pedal) are reverse-threaded. So left is loose and right is tighten normally, but on the left hand pedal and the big nut on the crank, right is loosen and left is tighten. besides that, have at it. Read sheldon brown's stuff. Very imformative.
 
Do it yourself! PB Blaster is available at Wal-Mart and IMO works a lot better than WD40. If you can, take digital pictures as you take it apart. Document how the parts fit together, especially how nuts and washers, spacers, and other small parts go together. That way you have something to reference when it's time to put it back together again. I've done this lots of time when tearing into something that I've never done before and its saved me a few. If you have questions post 'em on here and get some great feedback.
 
Reverse thread means turn to the right to loosen, turn to the left to tighten. PB Blaster is going to be your best friend, it can be used to un-stick rusty nuts & bolts, and also as a great degreaser for the bearings once you get things apart. You're better off investing in a few simple tools (such as a big pair of channel locks, a set of 13 & 15 mm flat wrenches, some cheap socket wrenches from your local auto parts store, and a mallet) than you would be paying your LBS to fix the bike for you. The how-to section on this site is a gold mine of helpful tips, as is xddorox's blog about bike repair. The guys here are super friendly, and will always do what they can to explain how your bike works (or why its not working!) so get to wrenching!
 
johnny nightwolf said:
Reverse thread means turn to the right to loosen, turn to the left to tighten. PB Blaster is going to be your best friend, it can be used to un-stick rusty nuts & bolts, and also as a great degreaser for the bearings once you get things apart. You're better off investing in a few simple tools (such as a big pair of channel locks, a set of 13 & 15 mm flat wrenches, some cheap socket wrenches from your local auto parts store, and a mallet) than you would be paying your LBS to fix the bike for you. The how-to section on this site is a gold mine of helpful tips, as is xddorox's blog about bike repair. The guys here are super friendly, and will always do what they can to explain how your bike works (or why its not working!) so get to wrenching!
Click to expand...
I agree! Don't think that anyone on here will make fun of you for asking questions. This is the most friendly and helpful site on the net.
 
If you come to this site often, don't get to discouraged when you see some posts about finding your dream bike for free, or somebody grabbing a cool bike from a barn etc etc.
If that is your dream bike, then pull the trigger no matter the price, I mean it's your dream right. I can't tell you how many times I find a bike, (or heck if I am honest a beer, movie, shirt , anything) that I just can't live without, and I strike a deal. I actually never think about deal in bad or good terms. I wanted it, chances are I paid for it.
Plus $125 for something that has been around for 50 years isn't bad, better than some mass production bike with no soul.Just my .02 About tools, got have those tools man, Look at your bikes parts and try to determine what you might need, some screwdrivers, wrenches, openends, a mallet, etc. Get some pb blaster, some chain oil, and be prepared to bust every bolt on that thing. :D good luck, and if you need help, ask! oh, almost forgot, the very first thing I do when I get a new project is buy a new set of tires and tubes. Helps me to know what my goal is, To ride.
 
Honestly not trying to give you a hard time. More like watching out for you. :wink:

I watch a lot of bike sales on Ebay and on the CL and $125 is pretty high for a woman's bike with that much rust.

I think if you post a wanted ad in our Classified section asking for a project bike, someone would probably be willing to ship you one for the same money or less in a lot nicer shape.

MonsterMetal has all those sweet Worksman's that he is selling.

I personally wouldn't give more than $50 for that bike, but if it is your dream bike then by all means...go for it.

I will agree with others on the advice about using the bikes shop to restore it. If they are like any bike shop I have ever been in contact with, it's going to cost you big bucks for them to do the job.
 
I like that bike myself. I've got more in some of mine than they are worth (if your trying to make money) but I'll probably never sell some of them. Anyway, you can fix it yourself and be proud. You can do anything you want to do. But you have to want to. Besides, the best way to learn anything is to take it apart and see what makes her tick. Then you'll get a real understanding of it.
My mom said my dad stayed up half the night putting a tricycle together for me at Christmas when I was 2 . He was furious when he awoke the next morning and she told him I had taken his tools, partially took it apart and had put it back together before he woke up. Give it a try it'll come natural if you let it. Rick
 

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