Bike update

worked late tonight, then made some pork chops. yum. after the temperature dropped below 100 (round about 9 p.m.), monk and i hit the garage to work on the western flyer and kill some time before Shinji, my roommate from my japan days, arrives to crash on his way across the country.


monk loves to help...whether he's doing anything other than parking it in the yard or not. i commend him for actually moving a couple times tonight. once when the neighbor kids came over to pet him. the next when my next door neighbor dropped by. i can't blame him though - the heat is horrible.

made some progress getting the three-speed detached from the hub (properly, after some informative reading and a couple near fatal attempts doing it the wrong way). cleaned the chain and rear hub, which was caked in grease and grime...it's still not sparkly, but you can see it. worked a bit on the cogs and then cleaned up the rims, tires. the tires look surprisingly good after a scrubbing...the tubes need replacing, but i may be able to eek out some time on the existing tires. it's amazing what soap and water and a little 409 will do...the bike is in great cosmetic shape - dust and sediment are gone, and a new shine is ready to be admired.

and though i tried to pry the chain lock off, it won't budge without the proper criminal arsenal. that's the major problem left at this point. i can't wait to ride it.