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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle After |
This Schwinn Le Tour is in descent starting shape. It has had some component upgrades through the years along with a new wheel set at some point. The Le Tour will receive a total restoration along with new city handlebars, new brake levers, new handlebar grips, new bearings, new cables and cable housings, new brake pads and a new saddle.
I can't wait to get the red paint polished and touched up because red always shines so nice. The polished bright work will really pop against that red. It will be a great bicycle for years to come.
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle - Before |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Handlebars |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Stem |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Front Brake |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Front Wheel Hub |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Front Wheel Rim |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Stem |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Headset |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Front Brake |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Front Wheel Hub |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Shift Levers |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Down Tube |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Saddle |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Chromoly Decal |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Bottom Bracket |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Crank |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Front Derailleur |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Front Derailleur |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Saddle Area |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Rear Brake |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Rear Derailleur |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Before - Rear Wheel Hub |
I stripped the frame of all the components. It actually took some time and some strength. A few of the components where frozen or stuck in place so it was a good time for restoration before they got permanently stuck. The frame is very dirty and dull with a good amount of paint chips. The paint chips are not that big of a deal though because red is an easy color to match a touch up paint too. The frame should polish beautifully and touch up very nice.
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Head Tube |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Head Tube |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Head Tube |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Down Tube |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Seat Tube |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Chromoly Decal |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Bottom Bracket |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Bottom Bracket |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Bottom Bracket |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Seat Lug |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Chain Stays |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Drop Outs |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Fork |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Fork Crown |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Fork Crown |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Fork Blades |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame Before - Fork Drop Outs |
I am very mad because I can not find the photos of the frame alone polished and touched up. I may have forgotten to take them but I think I did. Below is a photo of the frame with the headset already installed. Also as you look at other photos below take a look of the frame polished in the photos. The frame polished beautifully, just beautiful! The touch up paint went fantastic and with a coat of sealer wax the frame just pops. I love how red polishes!!
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Frame - Polished |
The headset is a nice headset and the bottom bracket shows little wear except for the dirt and dried grease. I put the pieces into the crock pot for cleaning and then polished all of the pieces on the polishing wheels. The headset and bottom bracket polished beautifully! I love it!
I was recently given ten tubes of a grease to try out. I was told that I would never want to use a different grease again after using this grease. I will let everyone know the name of the grease after a go through a couple of the tubes and see for myself. First off the grease is white which I don't like mainly because when I come across old Lithium white grease it is usually sticky as can be and nasty. But just being white doesn't mean its bad. The feel of the grease is actually very very nice, it just has a good viscosity in the hand when packing bearings. It also has a very nice feel that does not have a bit of tackiness like white Lithium grease. So far I like the grease a lot. After a few tubes I will let everyone know what it is.
Check out that polished red paint in the photos of the bottom bracket and headset. Looks fantastic with all the polished chrome of the headset and bottom bracket.
I cleaned and polished the stem. The stem polished extremely nice, I am very happy with it. At this time I installed the new Nitto city handlebars and the new Velo-Orange city brake levers and the black handlebar grips. The handlebars are extremely nice handlebars, I am very impressed with them but then they are Nitto. Installed the handlebars unit looks just amazing and will feel amazing when riding. I love it!
I am not sure why but sometime in the Le Tour's life it got an very nice upgraded crank. The crank is a Stronglite crank that is very well made and very light. I cleaned all the pieces and then worked on the polishing. The polishing turned out amazing and the crank looks fantastic installed! A very nice upgrade and a fairly valuable crank.
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Headset & Bottom Bracket - Before |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Reflector - Before |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Headset & Bottom Bracket - Polished |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Pressing Headset Cups |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Headset Cups Pressed - Look at that polished red paint! |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Headset Bearings - Packed |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Headset - Complete |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Headset - Complete |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bottom Bracket Bearings - Packed |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bottom Bracket - Complete |
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| 1980 Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bottom Bracket - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Headset & Bottom Bracket - Complete |
I cleaned and polished the stem. The stem polished extremely nice, I am very happy with it. At this time I installed the new Nitto city handlebars and the new Velo-Orange city brake levers and the black handlebar grips. The handlebars are extremely nice handlebars, I am very impressed with them but then they are Nitto. Installed the handlebars unit looks just amazing and will feel amazing when riding. I love it!
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Stem - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Stem - Exploded |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Stem - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Stem - Polished |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Stem - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion New Nitto City Handlebars |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion New Velo-Orange Brake Levers |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion New Handlebar Grips |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Handlebar Unit - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Handlebar Unit - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Handlebar Unit - Installed |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Handlebars & Stem - Installed |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Handlebars & Stem - Installed |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Handlebars - Installed |
I am not sure why but sometime in the Le Tour's life it got an very nice upgraded crank. The crank is a Stronglite crank that is very well made and very light. I cleaned all the pieces and then worked on the polishing. The polishing turned out amazing and the crank looks fantastic installed! A very nice upgrade and a fairly valuable crank.
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Stronglight Crank - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Crank - Exploded |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Crank - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Crank - Installed |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Crank - Complete |
The brake calipers are nice Die-Comp calipers. They are very dull, dirty and gritty. I broke the calipers down and cleaned all the pieces. With the pieces cleaned I worked through the polishing wheels. Assembled and lubricated the brake calipers are better then new. The calipers just shine against the red paint.
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Brake Calipers - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Brake Calipers - Exploded |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Brake Calipers - Polished |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Brake Calipers - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Brake Caliper - Installed |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Brake Caliper - Installed |
The front derailleur is a Hurett derailleur, a derailleur I have not seen on a Schwinn before. I cleaned the derailleur and worked through the polishing wheels. The derailleur polished beautifully and function super smooth with all the pivot points flushed and lubricated. I love the way the derailleur looks with the crank.
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Derailleur - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Derailleur - Exploded |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Derailleur - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Derailleur - Polished |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Derailleur - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Derailleur - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Derailleur - Installed |
The rear derailleur I am almost sure is not original. It is a very nice derailleur made for early index shifting. I am pretty sure the Le Tour did not have this derailleur but it is a very nice upgrade. I broke the derailleur down and cleaned all the grit and grime in the parts cleaner and sonic cleaners. The pieces cleaned very nice and I polished all the pieces that are not painted on the polishing wheels. The derailleur turned out very nice and functions and looks great. I am very happy with the results.
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Derailleur - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Derailleur - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Derailleur - Exploded |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Derailleur - Polished |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Derailleur - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Derailleur - Installed |
The seat post is my favorite type, fluted. I cleaned the seat post and worked through the polishing wheels The seat post polished very nice, it does have a little marring from years of moving it with the seat binder bolt to tight. The saddle will be recycled as it is torn and rough. The owner will have saddle for it when they pick it up.
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Saddle & Seat Post - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Seat Post - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Seat Post - Installed |
The shift levers I have only come across one time before, The shift levers are very nice Hurett levers that function like butter. I broke down the levers and worked through the cleaning and polishing. With the levers lubricated and installed they look amazing and function like that butter.
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Shift Levers - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Shift Levers - Exploded |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Shift Levers - Polished |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Shift Levers - Installed |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle So Far |
The wheels where upgraded sometime in the life of the Le Tour. A Le Tour usually has chrome steel wheel rims, this Le Tour has beautifully alloy rims with very nice wheel hubs, a very nice upgrade! I broke down the wheel hubs and cleaned out all the old grease. With the wheels cleaned I worked on the polishing. The wheel hubs polished beautifully and the rims are amazing. I installed the new wheel bearings and grease and assembled the hubs. The wheels spin great and look great, such a nice upgrade someone did to the Le Tour!
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel Hub - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel Hub - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel Rim - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel Hub - Old Grease |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel Hub - Polished |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel Bearings - Packed |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel Rim - Polished |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Wheel Axle Pieces - Ready |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Wheel - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Wheel Hub - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Wheel Hub - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Wheel Rim - Before |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Wheel Hub - Old Grease |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Wheel Hub - Polished |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Wheel Rim - Polished |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Wheel - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Front Wheel - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Rear Wheel - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Wheels - Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Freewheel - Complete |
At this time I wired the Le Tour. I chose the lighter gray color over the dark gray color. I think the lighter gray goes much better with the red color. I wired the Le Tour and the light gray housing color looks great and the Le Tour tuned beautifully!
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion New Cables & Cable Housings |
I also installed a Schwinn saddle I have around just for the photos until the owner brought me a new saddle. I also installed one new tire that matched one tire the Le Tour had on it. One of the Le Tour tires was dirty but almost brand new.
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete |
It is a sad time of year for me around here as the weather changes to winter. It has been raining for a couple days and dark and windy so I took the final photos indoors. The worst part of this time of year is it gets dark out at 4:00 p.m. and was super dark all day. The photos below where taken at 2:00 in the afternoon with a big 8' x 10 ' west window just to the left and the photos are still dark. I know as you go farther north from here the days get even shorter but for a person that spends a ton of time out doors and riding it is a very hard time of year.
I test rode the Le Tour between rain drops. The Le Tour rides fantastic!! It is so smooth and so comfortable with the city conversion. Best off all is the looks of the Le Tour, the red painted polished like new, the touch up paint is perfect and the bright work just pops.
The Le Tour will make a fantastic practical all around bike for years to come. It will be great for comfortably riding all day and exploring, for running errands, getting groceries or stopping at the coffee shop. It will also be great for cursing the neighborhood. Just a beautiful great riding bike.
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Handlebars |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Stem |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Head Tube |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Front Brake |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Front Wheel Hub |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Front Wheel Rim |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Stem |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Shift Levers |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Top Tube |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Down Tube |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Front Half |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Saddle Area |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Crank |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Front Derailleur |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Rear Brake Caliper |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Rear Derailleur |
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| 1980's Schwinn Le Tour Restoration & Conversion Bicycle Complete - Rear Wheel Rim |
Thank you for the interest and the work!
John Z.
John Z.
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