If you are trying to determine the genealogy of your bicycle by it's features, go to our Vintage Bicycle Price Guide
which details bicycle features, wheel sizes, brake types, etc., as well as showing a price estimate for your old bicycle.
If you are trying to determine the make and model of your bicycle, go to our Vintage Bicycle Picture Database
which details bicycle features, wheel sizes, etc., as well as showing a price estimate for your vintage bicycle.
| Hello I have a 1974 Sears Free Spirit street bike. When pedaling uphill or sometimes downhill the chain will slip off its current gear to another one, what should I do to prevent this? |
| Sounds like you need to be sure that the rear wheel is lined up properly in the frame. |
| I have in my posession several antique bikes. I would like to restore them and sell them. I have A bicycle ministry where I collect and repair old bikes. I have come into posession of several that are antiques. I dont know what is allowed in restoration and what is not. I would like to hear from some with this knowledge that could help me out. Thanks in advance. Ray |
| first thing is to make sure the tension on the shift lever is adequate. Tighten the screw in the center of the shift lever 'till it has a heavy drag. |
| I want to restore an old bicycle my grandfather gave to me years ago .I need HELP identifying it so I can come up with a colour and reproduce some name decals .Thankyou!!! |
| I just bought an 1950's J.C. Higgins. The frame is in good condition but the tank, fenders, fender skirt etc have minor rust and no luster. The rims are totally shot, and the spring is alos very rusty. I cleaned with the kit available here and it helped but not much. Soooo, does anyone live in Massachusetts that can recommend places to do the chrome, paint and the rims. For the rims and spring I was thinking of sanding down myself and spray painting , would this last and look good?? Finally, where would I find a serial number??? Thanks!!!!!!!! |
| Chroming is really expensive, and sanding and painting bad chrome doesn't work. Maybe you should look on eBay for some used parts in better shape? |
| I have a 1955 Phillips rod brake roadster that is in need of crank pins and a front rim. The rim damage is slight enough that the bike is ridable but the front brake is unusable. Is this reparable or is a new rim in order? Is it possible to build new wheels using modern rims that will work with the rod brakes? This bike is gorgeous looking and quite comfy to ride with the original leather seat! Thanks, James |
| You might want to put this under the English Roadster topic, there are a lot of Phillips experts there. Sometimes you can tap dents out of a rim, and then re-true it with good results. Modern rims probably don't have the correct profile for rod brakes. |
| Help! I had about a dozen replies when I tried to sell my circa 1972 vintage Phillips Deluxe racer for $189, but fortunately the buyer backed-out --- and now I have decided to restore and keep the bike myself! This is the bike I received for X-mas as a kid and I do love it and I'm happy I am keeping it, but I have NEVER EVER worked on a bike beyond light tune-ups. The bike has not been ridden in twenty-five years due to a kinked rear rim and is dry and dusty but only the chain is rusty. Do I need to disassemble, clean, lube and reassemble the entire bike? Are there parts (plastic washers, springs, etc.) I will inevitably need if I do attempt this? Can a lightly rusted chain simply be cleaned and oiled?? Can I still get the lightly-kinked rear rim straightened, smoothed, and balanced by a bike shop, or do they not do that anymore...??? I am a mechanically competent person, but a full bike restoration is a bit of a challenge.... Thanks in advance for any help you can give, and I'd be pleased to send a pic of the old girl if you'd like to see it. |
| That's a great cycle to restore, both sentimentally and value-wise. I'd also post your question under the English Roadster topic. There are a lot of Phillips experts there. One thing I can say, do not re-paint it unless it is a complete pile of rust. |
| Is that your 72 Phillips with the saddlebag in the Picture Database? |
| Yes, by George, that's it! Apparently thanks to Vin.... and what a great site this is! As for the paint, I'm an architectural historian and preservation specialist, and the basic motto is ---roughly -- " retain and preserve as much historic fabric as reasonably feasible", and thus I've always believed in keeping the original "patina". I've never understood --- for example -- these characters who would take a good, original 1960s "muscle" car and completely replace every single element, so that there's not a shred left of the evidence of that trip to the drive-in in 1967, or that street "fight" in 1969, etc. etc. The frame of my Phillips has a few good gouges in the top tube from the loosey-goosey cable retaining clamps, but is otherwise in pretty shape, and all original --- everything you see in the photos --- saddle bag, Pirelli rear tire, Wright saddle, Huret deraileurs and mint chainguard, --- even the water bottle and original toe clips (not installed) are original to the bike. And that's the original brochure by the front rim. Only the right brake lever is not original. It was a low-cost bike and is certainly no Raleigh Professional, but it's probably as rare... |