New Additions - Update

So all day I couldn't wait to take my trailer for a spin, and also pick up some things needed to start cleaning up the Colnago Sport! Finally 5pm rolled around and I started getting ready.

Me and the trailer headed to Canadian Tire for some cleaning chemicals, Propeller Brewery for some tasty root beer, and then the grocery store! $110 worth of groceries + other supplies later!



This hitch mechanism is a little bizarre, but I have to say, the little trailer did alright for itself.

Then I started disassembling the Colnago Sport. Brakes, levers, cables and handlebar tape was the first stuff to go. I've already got my old Tektro levers from when I converted the Surly to V-brakes. There are also a set of Shimano 105 brakes for sale on ebay ending tomorrow afternoon with no bids yet. Hoping to snatch them up. The brakes and levers I will probably give away. If someone wants to give me a couple of bucks for them for an old restore or something then so be it, but other than that they might hit the junk pile.

Took the chain off (garbage), and then the front and rear derailleurs. I put them in a jar of varosol to start breaking down the gunk on them. If I decide not to upgrade to Shimano 600 7 speed right way, these parts can be re-used. They are still very functional. Waiting for all the varosol to dry on them overnight so I can re-lube them. I also disassembled the shifters, cleaned them out, and applied some white grease.

I meant to buy brake cleaner to clean off the rims, hubs, and spokes, but I forgot it.

The big differences I saw tonight was on the fork and on the crank. There were some small rust spots on the chrome fork. After reading up on it a bit, I decided to try 0000 grade steel wool + mothers chrome polish. After about a minutes worth of work... well look at the difference.


Non-polished on the left, polished on the right. All the small rust spots buffed right out! There are still some small areas of pitting on the fork, but hard to notice with that shine! I took the chain rings off and wiped the grease off them to make them a little shiny again, and I gave the crank arms a bit of a polish as well.

Things still to do
-Disassemble the headset to clean and re-grease. (Lost my vice grips in the move and don't have a wrench big enough!)
-The Bottom Bracket is not very smooth. I need to remove it to try to repack the bearings, and if I screw it up I'll just buy a new cheap square taper BB.
-Freewheel cassette needs to be soaked and cleaned, also needs to be tested for wear.
-Wheels need to be cleaned and trued.

Once these are done, and I get new brakes I can start putting her back together! I'll be sure to keep the blog up to date on my progress.

It's nice to actually do a project for a change instead of just writing about doing one.

New Additions!!!

Steel is real...











After posting an ad on Kijiji last week I quickly got a response from Phil here in Halifax. He said he had an '84 Holdsworth and a an old Colnago Sport, two bikes which I've never heard of. Granted I'm not that knowledgeable about vintage bikes. He wanted $200 for the Holdsworth frameset, or $200 for the whole ColnagoSport. After some research the Holdsworth Elan is an old British racing bike, and quite a nice one. However there was some minor denting on the downtube, and it was a bit expensive for just a frameset for my budget, but a great bike.

Then I started looking into the Colnago Sport, I didn't not get a pic of this bike in advance. Colnago was a very popular Italian made bicycle in it's day. Colnago's were famous for their clover leaf engravings on the fork and other lugs. I found some info on the Sport online, and found some mixed info. From what I gather, this is out of the bike boom. Colnago contracted out other manufacturers to build a lower end bike for the American market, and they lacked the traditional clover leaf lug work and were labeled "Colnago Sport." Some say it was made in Mexico, but many have stickers that say "Made in Italy." From what I read it is made with true Columbus Aelle tubing and is a decent bike, but most consider it not a "true" Colnago. For some reason I didn't expect this bike to be in very good condition.

When I got to Phil's tonight to look at the bikes I walked into a garage full of them, but one stood out to me immediately.

-He had a lower level Peugeot converted to a single speed city bike.
-An old pre-raleigh buy out Carlton British made bicycle that was painted over by the previous owner and had little to no original parts.
-The Holdsworth Elan which while it was a nice bike, with the denting and paying that much for just a frame I couldn't justify it.
-He had another french bike which the name is escaping me but it was totally restored with a new powdercoat and new replacement decals which matched the originals exactly. Very well done restore, but again too expensive for me.

Then there was the Colnago Sport. It just really called to me. The fact that the wheels are pretty decent and in okay condition, drive train and crank are okay except for the chain, and the paint and frame were in good condition made it very desirable. I was able to buy it from Phil for $150. With new cables, a new chain and maybe a wheel truing, this thing should be ride-able.

My plans for this bike will be stretched out over a long time to not spend a whole lot of money at once. I plan to upgrade the drive train to older Shimano 600/105/Ultegra components that I can find on ebay. Keep it fairly retro with downtube shifers and older gear, but still modern enough to function well. Black and red bar tape or leather... not sure yet. A Brooks saddle: B17, Swift, or Swallow not sure yet. A mini front rando rack and an english style small saddle bag.

This bike will be used for speedy long rides on the weekend when I don't want to pack a whole lot, and just want to ramble down the coast. Really looking forward to this project.








New Trailer!

Well... new to me!
I found this on Kijiji from a grandmother who lives about an hour and a half away for $45. I was heading out of town on Sunday for a business trip into New Brunswick so I emailed her and we met in the main town close to where she lives. Her grandson refused to get into it, and preferred to "attempt" to ride his bike. She was firm on the $45 however, but it's a pretty good deal when you think about it considering the price of purchasing a new cargo trailer, or even a new bargain basement trailer for that matter.

So here it is! it's been sitting in my trunk roaming new Brunswick since then. I removed the foam seat and pushed the vinyl that was the seat all the way to the back after removing all the straps that held it to the frame. Now as you can see in pic 3 and 7 I have lots of room for groceries and other cargo!

I'll be getting groceries with the old winter beater and this puppy tomorrow evening. I'll let you all know how it went!


I'm really pleased with both of these new additions. They are very different in their application but I will try to enjoy both of them thoroughly. Just goes to show the many ways you can enjoy cycling!

Chain Lake Trail

So today I set out around 11 or so, after a hearty breakfast of bacon, a blueberry bagel, orange juice and a cup of tea.

First I went to Bikes by Dave. Dave Reminds me a lot of Harold from Earle Industries back in St. Johns. An older guy who just really loves bikes and running his shop. I told him about my trailer idea and asked him if knew anyone who could do some fabrication for a decent price. He directed me to Cam, a mechanic in the store. "I know just the guy," he said, "you should talk to Steve he's a welder at the docks and is just setting up his own space. He loves bikes and trailers." Awesome. He couldn't find his number so I passed on my contact info to Cam to give to him.

Then I made my way down to Halifax Cycle Gallery to speak with one of the owners, Roger. Told him my idea. "I know just the guy," he said, "you should talk to Steve." I laughed. Apparently I should talk to Steve. I chatted with Roger a bit, got Steve's contact info, and then headed out to the Chain of lakes trail.

I haven't gone on an extended ride in quite some time, and the terrain didn't help. Being an old railway line, the grade was fine. At first the trail was paved, and actually cleared of snow. Pretty awesome. But that didn't last real long. After passing under a bridge at NW Arm Drive, the trail turned to gravel, under about 3 or 4 inches of snow. Now, we've had a lot of snow/rain/snow/rain, and some really cold days, so every footstep and track on the trail was a big hard ice speed bump, and with no suspension, my wrists had a hard ride ahead of them. Some spots were okay, with a nice inch of just crunchy snow and a few bike tracks, but the majority was pretty rough.


Once I hit Governor Lake I was ready for a little break and a snack. I found a little spot just down off the trail that opened up a little. The lake appeared to be really frozen. I tested the strength of the ice very precisely (see the rocks in the following pictures) and decided to see just how well my Schwalbe Ice Spikers worked on ice.


If riding around in circles on a flat sheet of ice doesn't convince you, then I don't know what to tell you. Schwalbe's Ice Spikers work. Simple as that.

Lunch Time.

I had a nice ripe pear, some almonds, and a can of pepsi. I made sure to bring all my garbage back with me. From here I headed to the tip of Governor Lake, despite the vibration inducing terrain, committed to completing the route I had set out for myself.


I turned around and headed back from here. there was a slight grade down for a good chunk of the trail back, so it wasn't as bad, but after my break my toes and hands had gotten cold, and I was getting tired. Everything warmed up again after a short while, and I hit pavement again. Freedom! I then continued on the trail past the point at which I started at just to examine it. I made it to the end, where I crossed the road, and continued on the old railbed to where the railway still exists. On my way here I ran into a group of men hanging out by the tracks, drinking a case of beer, at 2pm. They were having a really good time by the sound of it, and one of them was urinating out right on the path. It was an interesting encounter to say the least, and a funny end to a good day.

View Chain Of Lakes Trail+ in a larger map

From my GPS.
Home now.
I have the beater in the back porch on some plastic mats so the snow melts off it and it can dry off. Then back in the shed she goes.
Talked to Steve. He seems like a really nice guy who is genuinely interested in building bikes and trailers, and he said we could definitely work something out. Sent him my sketches and hope to meet with him soon.

Lazing around now in a bath robe. Going to cook some chicken soup soon.

Don't let the cold and snow stop you. Get out and ride the bike that you love.