Sally's Bike, 1988 Peugeot U.S. Express

Three weeks ago I located a bike for my sister-in-law through Craig's List. It's a 1988 Peugeot US Express, one owner, barely ridden, with index shifting, 18 speed - all for 40.00.

The frame is in great shape - that's unusual for the age of this machine. It had been stored in a garage.

I love the pretty color and nice graphics.

The head label and white cables are attractive.

I hand-sanded some surface rust on the derailleur, wheels, and a few bolts. I discovered that 150-grit sandpaper works very well. Because the bike had sat so long in the garage, I lubricated every bolt, joint, pivot point, and chain until the shifting worked smoothly again. I also re-greased the wheel bearings and freewheel (had the bike shop remove the freewheel). The brake pads were still fine - I only ran some sandpaper over the pads. There wasn't any chain-stretch, but I reattached a disconnected side of a link. The wheels were perfectly true with tight spokes. The only thing I didn't mess with was the crank, other than running a rag along the cogs

I am a big fan of cantilever brakes, mostly because I understand the mechanics and feel I can adjust these on the spot. An interesting feature of the rear brake is this pulley system. I think it's there because of the frame angles and the brake needs to pull upwards, but maybe someone else can comment about this. I discovered that to adjust the seat (does not have quick release) I loosen and re-tighten the right hand bolt. This affects the brake positioning because the bolt is connected to the pulley - something you wouldn't see with modern cantilever brake systems. Sally and I figured that once the seat is in correct placement, it's a minor adjustment with the left-hand bolt to reset the pulley and brake pads. It's odd, I know, but she'll most likely never adjust her seat more than once.

She already has a nice rattan bag that I gave her last Christmas, but I couldn't resist this one too. Again, I added leather dog collars (cut to correct length, punched out more holes, and  Krazy-glued the cut ends to prevent fraying) to attach the bag to the handlebars or rack.

The blue flowers on the bag coordinate well. I replaced the spongy hand grips with black leather ones. I think it adds a bit of class.

With new, narrower tires she'll have a quicker ride. My sister-in-law is not an avid cyclist, but with their home now near a bike path, she's been riding considerably more. I added a back rack, water bottle holder, and fenders from our stash of bike parts.

Total Cost = 81.00, breakdown below:

• Purchase of bike = 40.00
• Leather grips = 8.00
• Tires (Nashbar, two pair) = 24.00
• Remove freewheel = 5.00
• Bag and straps = 4.00

 Merry Christmas, Sally!