The Flying Pigeon Project

New Uses for Old Coins

 
You may be familiar with old Chinese coins... specifically the neat looking ones that are round on the outside (representing the perfection of heaven) and have a square hole in the middle (representing less than perfect earth). The examples above are the real deal, from theTepapa New Zealand Museum.

Stick a Fork in it....

When I first bought The Little Blue Hat, my impulse buy used delivery bike, it had a number of problems. Like a rear lock which could not be detached from the bike. This kept me from riding it on the spot. The boss of the Little Blue Hat delivery service was trying to tell me that something else was broken...as I soon found out, it was the front fork! After the lock was removed I soon found I couldn't keep the bike straight...or turn for that matter. Disappointment.

This, my friends, is what happens to delivery bikes that live a hard life...and in Beijing they all do. And this is why they are eventually put out to pasture. Notice that not only the rear tines on the fork are snapped but also the front tines are cracked. Now as you might imagine, this fork is HEAVY, and very, very strong. It's the kind of massive, blunt object that Col. Mustard might encounter in the Drawing Room. What did this guy stick his fork into that broke it? Nevermind, I can only guess...

 

Pimpin' Pigeon

I want to apologize for the look of the blog ahead of time. China now blocks all Typepad blogs, so while I can enter a post, I cannot see what it looks like. So I am typing blind.

With that out of the way, as regular readers know, one of my favorite pursuits is changing and accessorizing my Flying Pigeon. This weekend saw some major upgrading.

First off, I had the black sidewall tires, replaced with Cheng Shin gumwalls. Sure they say GIANT on the side, but of course both Cheng Shin and Giant are Chinese brands so it fits with the overall nature of keeping the bike Chinese. Plus the gumwall nicely compliments the yellow hand pinstriping on the fenders.

Next the pedals were replaced with a new set of  "Diamond Cut" pedals. These are actually about the cheapest pedals you can buy at a whopping 12 kuai. Despite being cheap, they do look great.

But in order to protect them, and to keep the diamond cut bars from rotating too much, I bought a set of pedal protectors at Panjiayuan. Many of the "old hands" use them.

At Panjiayuan, I also acquired the largest brass bell I have ever seen. Ring it and it will resonate for a full 12 seconds afterwards. It's the perfect combination with my exisiting Miller style brass bell like those used by Beijing cycle rickshaws. Two rich brass bells with two different tones.

Of course because brass looks so good with black paint, I installed brass washers and stainless acorn nuts all the way around the bike. This simultaneously takes off the the sharp edges and adds a bit of color.  I had to go all the way to the US to get these fasteners, and would have preferred that they be all brass. However, metric brass seems to be incredibly rare. If anyone knows of a source please contact me.

But I think one of the coolest scores of this week's haul was an authentic Beijing license from the early 2000's. Stainless steel with the number etched in, it attaches to the headstock. Beijing doesn't issue licenses for bicycles anymore, so these are increasingly rare.

The Bike Doctor is In

With so many bicycles on the road in China, you will have breakdowns, and somebody is going to have to fix them. In Beijing and most other Chinese cities you'll find regular bike shops that do repairs, but there are just not enough of these t handle the volume. Bike doctor to the rescue! On street corners and side streets you'll find these men and women with their carts or parts, read to fix a tire or replace a pedal.

If it is early, and the Doctor is NOT in yet, you can sometimes tell where they will be by some carefully placed tires.

But when the doctor is in, He'll be more than happy to help. Tube replacement costs about 35 RMB, or $5. Air is 1 RMB and to have a new cotter pin driven in is 2 RMB.

Of course, the bike doctor has other skills besides fixing bikes. Sometimes they watch a bicycle parking lot making sure nobody makes of with your ride. This will set you back 1/2 RMB. Seemingly, they often make keys and of course sell bike accessories. They will also fix electric bicycles and scooters. Check out the signage below.

Often they combine their trade with other street vendors, such as cobblers and food vendors to make an ersatz street corner Mini mall. In the picture below, you can see a street cobbler at work. Fix your shoes while you fix your tires! Now you're ready to go anywhere!!!

Doing Battle with Rust

Two facts:

1. My wife may not know it, but her Battle brand bicycle is also a brake rod roadster. Sure, with it's welded frame maybe it's not a traditional roadster, but it is a roadster nonetheless. It's got the same old reliable brake rods.

2. When acid rain falls on 30% of the country, you will experience rust and pitted chrome parts, no matter how well you care for your bike.

But how to counter that rust? It is simple: Use steel wool, WD-40, and a cloth. Really you should use copper or bronze wool if you've got it, but I don't, so I am using stainless steel wool. Also, you can use any kind of oil. I am also trying cooking spray.

So how do you use these tools to counter rust. I will use my wife's bike as an example.

Step 1. Spray oil on rust.

Step 2. Rub it down with the steel wool.

Step 3. Wipe the rust off with the cloth.

Step 4. Repeat if necessary. Works like a charm and leaves you with a very nice finish which while not exactly new chrome new, is shiny, clean and shows a nice patina.

As a final note, the cooking spray worked well, but is tougher to wipe off than the WD-40. It tends to smear a bit.

Also, leaving a little WD40 on the chrome surfaces will help repel water, and therefore rust, in the future.