well, not a suprise but in my late years I focused on work, family and fishing so, I'm way outta shape, I went to a regular health checkout and Doctor said I need to get out of the house more and get more active.. pronto!!, sadly going fishing dont count :'(
I'm not much into running, walking can get really boring here so, I decided to buy second hand bike to try to do some cardio and feel the wind on my hair like in my youth days (I loved be on a bike with my bunch of friends) well, I found a nice one on a garage sale for $40.
I was outta the biking world for at least 35 years, now I really surprised on how the bikes have changed, dude !! is worst than the fishing scene, LOL, maybe equall or more expensive :o
for my luck the bike I found is from a good brand and it can be upgraded as required or use it as is until is time to get a newer bike, I already used it two times and liked it a lot, I cleaned and greased more of the bearings and rotating parts and now it feels pretty good.
I have some friends that are hardcore roady bikers and told me that my bike is a vintage hibryd bike and that make it the perfect model to excersice because of the straight sitting position of the bike and also because it can be used rode it on a city streets and mild gravel roads.
it came with rear rack from the factory, so, I might install a milk crate there and some PVC pipes and make a DIY fishing set up, my local pier is not that far from my home, well kinda, buts is doable.
PS: Already put some "special" decals on it and the rear rack is being painted
it still need some new pedals, better grips, fix the fork shock suspension and get some bike tools, brake pads, night light, a carry on bag, air pump, etc, etc. :-X
It's a good start , just a couple miles a day will make you fell better . Sitting to do rod wrap or in front of computer all day really bad for your feet
We all need exercise Alex. Good for you to get moving again. Dominick
:) Glad to see that it is not a E bike ! The folks around here think that it counts , when they do laps around the neighborhood .
"specialized" is a good company, to the best of my knowledge. Good find.
Alex my friend I'm gonna issue you a challenge, partially to motivate myself because I have very similar aspirations.
The "race" is who is first to:
1. Successfully attach a rod holder to their bike.
2. Ride that bike to a fishing spot
3. Actually catch a fish there
No prize other than pride.
Quote from: oldmanjoe on March 26, 2026, 08:26:46 PM:) Glad to see that it is not a E bike ! The folks around here think that it counts , when they do laps around the neighborhood .
haha, I wish it was an E-Bike or at least a newer model with disc brakes and electronics for the shifter, etc, or at least with full suspension frame, the streets of my town are full of holes everywhere, seems that I will need a Mountaing bike instead of a urban bike, some guys already gave me the "looks" because is an old model with break pads to the rim, but what they dont know is vintage/retro bikes are the new trend 8)
Quote from: JasonGotaProblem on March 26, 2026, 08:39:32 PM"specialized" is a good company, to the best of my knowledge. Good find.
Alex my friend I'm gonna issue you a challenge, partially to motivate myself because I have very similar aspirations.
The "race" is who is first to:
1. Successfully attach a rod holder to their bike.
2. Ride that bike to a fishing spot
3. Actually catch a fish there
No prize other than pride.
challence accepted
the hard part will be catch a fish, my local beaches are sandy beaches for miles, the good fishing spots from shore are 1hr south, but sometimes guys have luck catching triggers and corvina from the pier
Don't give up , your butt will hurt first few days . I'm still using a 40 years old bike and just like fishing reel ,new dish brake and electronic shift are harder to maintain . If the road is not too much uphill or downhill consider using single speed bike
Sounds like fun Alex. I'd suggest getting some toe clips of some kind, that way you can be pulling up on one pedal as you're pushing down on the other. Works a few other muscles is more efficient. A comfortable seat is a big plus too
Not recommend toe clips unless you used to get in and out toe clips . It can be dangerous
Quote from: quang tran on March 27, 2026, 12:23:09 AM. I'm still using a 40 years old bike and just like fishing reel ,new dish brake and electronic shift are harder to maintain .
yep, I understand what you're saying, Im good with that bike, at least for some time, with my experience on fishing reels and working on good quality old reels, I pretty sure that could be applied to old bikes too, a good clean up and lube plus few replacement parts and this old bike will make it be 2x-3x better than $200 bikes from wally world, just like a good jigmaster or 113h reel Vs new tech graphite reels from aliexpress/temu
Quote from: Swami805 on March 27, 2026, 12:45:36 AMSounds like fun Alex. I'd suggest getting some toe clips of some kind, that way you can be pulling up on one pedal as you're pushing down on the other. Works a few other muscles is more efficient. A comfortable seat is a big plus too
thanks Sheridan, I will have them in mind, first I would like to made few miles with normal pedals get used to the new excercise.
Good idea Alex, but you will want to replace the brake pads with Carbontex and upgrade the handle.
Quote from: steelfish on March 27, 2026, 01:08:49 AMa good clean up and lube plus few replacement parts and this old bike will make it be 2x-3x better than $200 bikes from wally world
This is true. Specialized is a good brand, and that is a very nice bike for $40. It looks like it has aluminum alloy wheels, with click release. Alloy wheels are better than chromed steel because they are lighter and the brake pads grip them better when wet.
The front shock absorbers will help, but when you go over potholes you can stand up on the pedals and use your legs as shock absorbers.
Enjoy the bike! Anxious to see who wins the challenge, you or Jason :fish
Quote from: work2fish on March 27, 2026, 02:25:30 AMQuote from: steelfish on March 27, 2026, 01:08:49 AMa good clean up and lube plus few replacement parts and this old bike will make it be 2x-3x better than $200 bikes from wally world
This is true. Specialized is a good brand, and that is a very nice bike for $40. It looks like it has aluminum alloy wheels, with click release. Alloy wheels are better than chromed steel because they are lighter and the brake pads grip them better when wet.
The front shock absorbers will help, but when you go over potholes you can stand up on the pedals and use your legs as shock absorbers.
Enjoy the bike! Anxious to see who wins the challenge, you or Jason :fish
thanks for your information, every time I read something about this bike it made me feel like when I found a Baja Special reel along with others old reels tossed on a milk crate and I got it for $30 dlls.
you're right both wheels are alloy and the tires have plenty of life, it seems the OG owner didnt use it that much because he was the OG owner since the bike was bought from Specialized Store in Canada.
Quote from: oc1 on March 27, 2026, 02:20:35 AMGood idea Alex, but you will want to replace the brake pads with Carbontex and upgrade the handle.
Funny. Have to acknowledge humor or it gets lost. Very clever. Dominick
Quote from: oc1 on March 27, 2026, 02:20:35 AMGood idea Alex, but you will want to replace the brake pads with Carbontex and upgrade the handle.
well, the upgrading the handle was already on my - to do list
not sure about the carbontex pads, tho, dont want to go the route of need to upgrade the wheels, then upgrade the fork, but in order to upgrade the fork I need to upgrade the frame first, surely I will need another sadle post and new sadle for the new frame, the factory tires will not fit on the upgraded wheels so, I have to get new tubeless tires, the current rear rack might look ugly on the new setup so, I would need to get a new graphite rear rack, but dont forget to get a new drive train and new Titaniun chain, after upgrading all those parts for the old bike with the left spare parts I have, I might be able to build another bike exactly as the one I had in the beginnin,
I THINK I HAVE SEEN THAT MOVIE BEFORE !! ^-^ >:D
Bike of Theseus.
Great Alex! Now something I have not seen mentioned, and keep in mind I am old enough that I grew up in a time period where such things did not exist, would be to invest in a good helmet. I know, we are all indestructible. But a buddy of mine (our age) had an unintended mishap (does anybody go out ever planning to crash?) and the fact he had a helmet meant he walked away with some really nasty abrasions - but he walked away, which is the important thing.
OR - maybe use some AT.com ingenuity and turn a stationary bike into the power source for your rod wrapper/rod dryer? Pedal while you wrap? (Just kidding!!!!) - john
2nd the helmet recommendation. All the crazy stuff I did long before helmets were a thing when I was a kid, I guess I lucked-out. Not totally lucky, though, a Flexi got me when I's 6 yrs. old. Turned around to look behind me speeding downhill and knocked myself unconscious on a car bumper. Permanent brain damage? Hmmmm, that might explain a few things...
I bought one new at a bad time in the market during the Pandemic with high demand/low supply prices. Was leery of those fussy derailer gears in the back(5-speed), but so far so good. Got a little tool bag mostly for tire-tube changes. A couple of miles from home sucks with a flat.
When I was in college, biking to and around campus was a big deal. That was during to original Japanese "bike explosion" period, although the variety of bikes involved ranged from Japanese Sun Tour equipped Bridgestones, to USA Schwinn, to British Raleighs and an endless list of French Peugeots, Italian and even German bikes. It didn't matter to me then, because I wasn't much into biking and had no money for any kind of bike anywho. But, after joining the workforce, I got hooked on recreational biking (and had a spouse who shared the passion) and also tearing apart bikes and repairing/rebuilding/maintaining them. If you think about it, bike rebuilding is a lot like fishing reel R&R-- a lot of disassembly, cleaning, re-lubing and tuning up of mechanical parts.
A couple of years ago, on this AT site, we had a nice set of posts going (I think quang tran started it) and there were posts of a few fishing "bikes" that hauled gear to and from fishing holes. Still have my old "Mojave Gulch" so-called 'off road" bike, complete with rack and attached "milk crate" as a fishing gear cargo hauler.
Frank
HA!....This discussion reminds me of the old Confucius adage: 🤔 Man who ride bicycle run like Hell just to give A_$ (BUTT) rest. 😂 🤣
Quote from: Midway Tommy on Today at 05:56:29 PMHA!....This discussion reminds me of the old Confucius adage: 🤔 Man who ride bicycle run like Hell just to give A_$ (BUTT) rest. 😂 🤣
Yes It will hurt your butt for few days or few weeks are the most . I grow up riding bike 8 miles to school and ride bike to work in the US for few months until I fell from ice up on road .We all need some exercise and biking is more fun to me ,you can walk ,lift weight ... all good
Great find! That bike will be way better than any dept store bike at 10x the price.
I need to get into it for the cardio/endurance side.I started weight lifting recently at 42, luckily I am making pretty quick gains so I guess it wasn't too too late. I started creatine recently too and I can't recommend that enough.
Regarding bikes, I have lucked into some good ones for cheap over the years. A Haro BMX bike in a trash pile in our neighborhood needed only new tire tubes and brakes to get through 7 years and 2 kids. My oldest outgrew it, then nursed along a couple dept store bikes until we found a made-in-USA Trek 9X00 for $30. Again, a couple of tubes, a tune up and lube job, good to go.
I got a '90s era GT RTS-1 (and 3 other bikes!) for $5 in an estate sale last week. It's in good riding shape. Have to decide if I keep it and ride it, or sell it and buy another used Trek.
Bike work is, as was mentioned, more like reel work than car work.
Bike work is, as was mentioned, more like reel work than car work.
Not always , I once try to remove a seat post i have to turn the bike upside down ,pour liquid plumber in there for few days to eat all the rust to remove it