Schwinn Varsity back from the dead (at Walmart!)

tcar5

The varsity has a threadless headset and an ahead that could also double as a tank drive train component. I looked at it last night trying to figure out a way and there just isn't any room for movement. I am uploading a pic, anyone see any way to get this higher?

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e0richt

hopefully, Im using the terms correctly.
the part that holds the handlebar is that the AHead?

assuming it is... the part that the AHead is attached to is the stem?

I would think that you could get a longer (higher?) threadless headset...
it looks like you could re-use the AHead (don't know if a headset comes with that or not...

the only problem left would be does the brake cable housing allow for the
rise?

tcar5

Yes, the ahead is the angled tube that connects the handle bar with the steering tube. The steering tube is connected to the fork and is cut at an exact length so there is no extra steering tube sticking out over the ahead.
To take what you have now, the final height no matter what you add is decided by the steering tube. There are some adjustable aheads that can increase the height with angle adjustments. I will upload a pic of one that I found on ebay for $15 - $27 US.
The ahead that is on the varsity is pretty agressively angled already so I am not sure how much your going to gain by getting the angled ahead option. You may end up only gaining a 10mm rise which is most likely not enough to make your back stop hurting.
If you replace the fork and ahead (try "vincolo" on ebay) then you can use spacers and increase the height a few inches. I think an uncut steering tube is a standard 12" in length. Thats plenty for whatever you want to raise it to.

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tcar5

Oh and the cable housing is fine. I doubt that you will extend it beyond the extra play that you already have. But if you do then a replacement cable set is only a few dollars and that will have longer, uncut cable and cable guides.

bigsid

Thanks guys for the suggestions, I ended up getting a Delta Stem Extender. Worked great, and I decided to go on my first real road bike ride. Houston is not exactly bike friendly but I found a decent bike path(about 36" on the right of a super busy highway). The only problem was it was littered with debris and I got a flat about 20 miles into the ride. I got so frustrated I walked the bike home (5+ miles),loaded it into my car and returned it to walmart. My MTB tires seem to hold up better on the shoddy bike paths around here. I am going to regroup and do some more homework, before I buy a road bike.


Here was a test I performed: I am able to sustain 16.5 MPH (middle sprocket)at 85% max heart rate on my MTB. I was expecting to be able to hit about 19+ MPH with same effort on the road bike and I would only avg 17-18 MPH(big sprocket).

Is it the bike?

Sid

tcar5

I'll be damn, I didn't even realize that stem extenders existed......Well time to go home, I have already learned something today...!
As far as the bike speed, there are too many variables to count over 1 or 2 mph. Wind, energy, grade, ride position and so on. I can average 25 mph on the Schwinn for a little while, but last night I was riding into the wind and just happend to notice that my computer was lying. It was telling me that I was riding along at a whopping 5 mph. Battery was weak.....
Anyway, I would not worry until you have had a few runs and take the average.

e0richt

well I have had the Dawes Lightning sport for about a month now. I have put
88 miles on it and have had no problems with the shifting or the brakes. If I can sneak out a bit early today, I might be able to go for another run today but, I will have to see...

Last time I went out I did put another seat on it because I thought the seat
that came with it was mildly uncomfortable (it was harder than the one that
I replaced it with...) but am probably going to put the original back on...

other than that no problems and truly enjoy the bike.

I have gotten around 25.5 on the flats but I tend to average 15 mph as a
general rule... I guess that makes me kind of slow... (better than my hybrid though...)

e0richt

hey tcar, I just did a search on Amazon's website. I couldnt remember the
model of the bike between the Denali and the Yukon... it was the Envoy. Not sure what the difference was but while there, I noticed a few more Schwinn
bikes that are similar to the Varsity.

one was the Katana, (never heard of it before...). Does anyone know what kind
of derailer the Shimano A050 is? it also looks like it has the top bar shifters (levers not that revo-twist stuff...)

and there was a "Speedster" model with the "flat roadbars"...

I suspect that what you could get on amazon is something that will be available
(if its not already...) on wal-marts website...

tcar5

OMG, its the rebirth of the GMC line. I need to search for trailblazer also, maybe Chevy has a line. Sounds like the Dept store has caught onto the Road Bike hype and is getting in full steam. Last year all they sold were mountain bikes. Hey are we in the middle of a Paradigm shift and road bikes will hail again as they did before the MTB hit the scenes.
I have no idea what A050 is other then according to the Shimano website, its apparently part of the SIS line. If you search A050 you will get a hit on the Shimano site and there are no pics but they at lease list it. I'm sure its marketing trying to avoid the SIS name in the hope of getting more serious cyclist to take notice. Now when walmart starts throwing on Dura-Ace we will know that the Paradigm shift is complete and walmart has finalized its position to rule the world. LBS will only stand for Last Bike Shop and there will be the Mad Max's riding flat black Pinarello's with gun holsters and rotary cannons. The bad guys will all ride the newest Corvette, Porsche and Cadillac branded bikes.
One positive to this all is that it will eventually drive the price down. Once walmart starts playing (even though right now its a very different playing field in terms of quality) the prices will come down and I will no longer have to shell out $220 for STI shifters again.

e0richt

actually, there are other lines... for example there is the "PT Cruiser" bike which is a "land cruiser" type of bike...

and Mercedes is producing a line of bikes (both electric and fitness). Supposedly, this is more for promotional items for prospective buyers but I would assume that one could order it from them...

tcar5

Well no one ever offered me a GMC Envoy bike when I bought my 2005 Envoy....I read another thread where people were poking at the concept of handing out a bike when you bought a new car. They could have offered me a bike for times when I can no longer afford gas...!
Oh and Colnago has a Ferrari line, however that is a very different level.....!

e0richt

I also found a "chevy" bike but that seems to only be marketed in Japan and its a folding bike.

I also noticed on amazon that the Yukon IS sub 300.00 (without shipping...) it must have come down within the last month because before it was a bit under 400.00... I also noticed the good reviews for the product.

Hmmm, I might have to consider it, as it does look cool with the yellow/black...

you can never have too many bikes right?

tcar5

How many bikes do you have?
I have the following:
Real Vincolo full carbon / Ultegra
Replica Vincolo / Ultegra (made from Schwinn Varsity)
Specialized S-Works / Ultegra
4 junk road bikes slated for demo or upgrade / repaint.
No MTB yet, but I am in the market....(last MTB was from Target (Magna), 8 years ago and the right pedal sheered the threads on the crank).

e0richt

I have a Trek 7100 hybrid... (21 speed, technically thats my wife's bike now but she doesnt ride that much so I could "borrow" if I needed to...)

I saved a motobecane mixte frame road bike (12 speed). Not sure why but
it called to me and I couldn't let it go to the junkyard (it was still in good condition...)

I have a Dawes Lightning sport road bike (14 speed) my current trusted
steed. (I love that bike...)

I purchased a Raleigh Talon CX MTB bike from a yard sale and am in the process of converting from "rapid fire" shifters to above bar thumb shifters. I was going to originally try to convert it to a "road bike" but now want to leave it as a MTB bike for use as a "beater bike" and it has "road slicks" rather than the knobby tires...

I also have my wifes old Huffy mtb bike that she got from "Jamesway" (which is an old extinct dept store that died over 20 years ago...) interestingly enough though is that I noticed almost no wear on the bike (obviously she
doesn't like to ride that much... she complains that it didn't fit her but I think she bought it expecting to use it on the road but found the knobby tire to be a pain). I am saving the bike for its components at this point possibly for my Raleigh (you never know what you might need until you need it...) and I couldn't sell it for more than 10.00 anyway...

Except for the Trek and the Huffy, I got the rest during this season. I got the Trek about 2 yrs ago started really riding it around the May time frame and was dissatisfied with its performance in terms of speed. so then I saved the mixte thinking its free, and to try a "road bike" out to see if it really was any better than the hybrid. I saw the "walmart varsity" thread, and determined from you that I didn't want to go that route so I ended up getting the Dawes. The Raleigh I picked up because I wanted to give the Trek to my wife since she liked the geometry of the bike at the LBS and the salesperson told her that the frame
would be appropriate for her... so there you have it...