Humble Schwinn Collegiate Becomes a Vic's Classic

I remember seeing ads for the 1984 Collegiate and thinking it was a cool bike. It featured a lugged CroMoly frame built by Giant with integrated fenders & chain guard. A 3 speed Sturmey Archer coaster brake hub was laced to chrome plated steel rims. The Collegiate also had a cup & spindle bottom bracket, custom alloy crank with pressed on 1/8th drive steel chain ring, rubber block pedals, a steel seat pin, economy steel caliper front brake & lever, and cheap plastic Sturmey Archer shifter.

Now lets do it my way.

First I stripped the bike down to the bare frame, retaining the frame, fork, fenders, chain guard, handlebars, stem, and the Sturmey Archer 3 speed coaster brake hub.

I replaced the headset with a new Tange Levin unit. I upgraded the original cup and spindle crank bearing to a SKF sealed unit - the new standard for premium crank bearings.

The drive train now consists of a Pake track crank and 1/2 link Pintle chain. A new nimbus unit replaces the cheap plastic SA shifter.


The steel seat pin is replaced with a Uno alloy pillar to support a Brooks B67 saddle and Brooks tool bag in Honey. A Jim Blackburn rack on the rear makes the bike a little more useful.

Lighting is provided by an Schmidt E6 on the front and a Spannigna Pixeo fender mount unit on the rear. Both lights are powered by the Sanyo H27 dyno hub.


Wiring is routed internally. The front wire runs through the right side fork blade. The rear wire enters the downtube just below the lower head lug, runs through the bottom bracket shell and into the left side chain stay, and exits through the rear fender. It then runs along the inside of the fender, sealed inside a silicone bead, to the tail light. (see images below - wire circled in red)

Then on to the wheels. Keeping only the SA coaster brake 3-speed rear hub, I've added a Sanyo dyno front hub and laced both hubs to Sun CR18 double walled alloy rims using 14 guage straight stainless steel spokes and brass nipples. Finally a set of ColDeLaVie tires by Panasonic provide a soft cushy ride.

This is not your father's old 3 speed. $1,200.

The Jack Taylor Tandem

The Jack Taylor tandem was handbuilt by the Taylor brothers in a workshop in England. Every bike they made was a classic and this tandem would be the highlight of any collection.

A steal at any price, $4,500.

Vic's Raleigh Fixie

This is my 1972 Raleigh Gran Prix fixed gear conversion. It has gone through several modifications since the initial build. I liked Paul's components and have been eager to use more of them in a build. Now in addition to the Paule's Racer brake and Love lever this bike features Paul's Crank and Hubs, Velocity B43 rims (wheels built by me and approved by the famous Perry) , Nitto Lugged Stem, Nitto riser bar, Ouri grips. with a half dozen fine bicycles to choose from (including 2 Rivendells and a Heron) this has become my favorite and most ridden bike.