# A Sears Austrian built 10 speed



## dweenk (Apr 2, 2021)

I am going to pick this up tomorrow. All indications lead to a Reynolds DB frame and forks. It's been messed with a bit, but I think it is worth the price.


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## juvela (Apr 2, 2021)

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earlier discussion on this machine resides here -









						Does this look like a Reynolds decal? - Bike Forums
					

Classic & Vintage - Does this look like a Reynolds decal? - A local ad has a Sears ten speed for sale. I looked at it and thought I saw a Reynolds decal on the fork leg. Can someone on the forum confirm what I think I see? If is is Reynolds, I may have a new project.



					www.bikeforums.net
				





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## bikerbluz (Apr 3, 2021)

Cool bike! I have two of the earlier Higgins models, and they were advertised as being special steel instead of Reynolds decals. The higher end model is campy equipped and is Reynolds, the lower is not. Have another mid sixties Sears model also built in Austria and not sure of the steel on it, but it is a nice bike also. All are a smooth ride. Glad you are grabbing this one up. Enjoy!


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## Oilit (Apr 5, 2021)

Thanks for posting! I learned something new!


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## dweenk (Apr 6, 2021)

I gave the frame its first bath today. WD-40 to soften the crud on the dropouts and chainstays before dishwashing liqiud in water. It's better now and I can handle it without gloves. I still am unable to remove the top tube cable guides even after a good dosing of PB Blaster. I may have to resort to a Dremel cut-off wheel for that, but I had one of them fly apart a couple of years ago. It ruined a perfectly good pair of goggles, and was probably my fault.

Anyone have a recommendation for removing 30 year old electrical tape from seat stays?


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## bikerbluz (Apr 6, 2021)

I have soaked electrical tape with wd40 repeatedly and that seem to help. I am excited for your purchase. I feel like these early Sears bikes with the Reynolds frames were way underrate.


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## 3-speeder (Apr 6, 2021)

I don't like that electrical tape gunk.  I had a bike that the p o used electrical tape under the water bottle cage mounting clamps to prevent scratching. Well there wasn't any scratching but the gunk damaged the seat tube decals instead.  Neat bike you found.


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## dweenk (Apr 14, 2021)

I had to Dremel the top tube cable clamps - they were rust bonded. The wheels do not match - the front is something that needs more cleaning and work to identify, the rear has an Araya steel rim, a Normandy hub, and a Shimano freewheel.
I am thinking about making this a path rider and a town bike. Maybe 700C wheels, maybe 27" steel wheels, maybe 27" with a 3-speed hub.


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## Arnold Ziffel (Apr 14, 2021)

Ronson Lighter Fluid (the type that you use to refill ancient Zippo type cigarette lighters)   works great at removing adhesive residue.        As  a golfer who has  re-gripped  my  own  clubs  since  1970,   I have  used Lighter Fluid as that was the industry standard then and that is what the club repair guy used back then at the Country Club where I worked the Driving Range picking up balls when I was in college.      You'd cut off the old grip with a sharp carpet knife, or boxcutter type razor knife,  but you're left with a lot of grip tape/glue gunk residue and you wanted to get the golf shaft back to clean chrome before applying new grip tape, etc to install the new grip.     Lighter fluid removes all that gunk a lot quicker than scraping it with a sharp boxcutter.  Lighter fluid was used to WET and Activate the NEW GRIPTAPE when installing the new golf grip...........essentially double sided masking tape that you'd wrap candy cane style,  then peel back the protective paper backing to expose the other glue side..........squirt lighter fluid all over the grip-tape to wet it good.......stick your finger over the tiny hole in the butt end of the grip.....squirt some lighter fluid inside the grip....swish it around to get the inside of the grip wetted....and  then  quickly  within the next 90 seconds slide the grip onto the shaft while the wetted grip tape allows that..............the lighter fluid evaporates/dries and then the golf grip is Not Moveable......so you have about 2 minutes maximum to line up the grip once it is slid onto the shaft, before it gets harder to move around.       YOU CAN ALSO USE THE GOLF GRIPTAPE METHOD TO SECURE HANDLEBAR GRIPS IF YOU WANT,  but most of the basic old-style typical inexpensive hairsprays  will likely adequately secure most handlebar grips.    Fifty years ago, relatively speaking the prices of new replacement golf grips(the grips themselves..) was much more costly than today,  so  we would syringe good serviceable grips off and re-use them.  This involved loading a syringe with lighter fluid and then needle inject it about almost at the middle of the grip,  and  then push the rubber around with both thumbs as the lighter fluid unglued it, and then off the club.  This worked really well on relatively recent grips that were in good condition. It was somewhat dangerous as you were using a syringe and needle....and  there was always the worry that you'd accidently poke yourself.   You also used a significant amount of lighter fluid when injecting  golf grips for saving them for re-use.  I wouldn't do that today since the cost of a golf grip is not much compared to fifty years ago.


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## dweenk (Apr 23, 2021)

I used denatured alcohol and a swatch of old bath towel on the tape. It came off pretty quickly. I'd recommend it and use it again. The bottom bracket was easy to remove. It was oversized (wide) as juvela said and I have a couple of options in the proper size.
I have a pair of matched wheels in my stash that will work on this. They're not exactly period correct, but they'll do for now.


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## juvela (Apr 23, 2021)

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thanks very much for the update

wonderful to see it looking so clean    

look forward to following the assembly...


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## dweenk (Apr 24, 2021)

Thanks. I am not finished with the cleaning - the ESGE kick stand plate is difficult to clean - I'll be working on that this PM. Still thinking about the spindle lenght for a new bottom bracket, unless I re-use the old one.


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## all riders (Apr 24, 2021)

Arnold Ziffel said:


> Ronson Lighter Fluid (the type that you use to refill ancient Zippo type cigarette lighters)   works great at removing adhesive residue.        As  a golfer who has  re-gripped  my  own  clubs  since  1970,   I have  used Lighter Fluid as that was the industry standard then and that is what the club repair guy used back then at the Country Club where I worked the Driving Range picking up balls when I was in college.      You'd cut off the old grip with a sharp carpet knife, or boxcutter type razor knife,  but you're left with a lot of grip tape/glue gunk residue and you wanted to get the golf shaft back to clean chrome before applying new grip tape, etc to install the new grip.     Lighter fluid removes all that gunk a lot quicker than scraping it with a sharp boxcutter.  Lighter fluid was used to WET and Activate the NEW GRIPTAPE when installing the new golf grip...........essentially double sided masking tape that you'd wrap candy cane style,  then peel back the protective paper backing to expose the other glue side..........squirt lighter fluid all over the grip-tape to wet it good.......stick your finger over the tiny hole in the butt end of the grip.....squirt some lighter fluid inside the grip....swish it around to get the inside of the grip wetted....and  then  quickly  within the next 90 seconds slide the grip onto the shaft while the wetted grip tape allows that..............the lighter fluid evaporates/dries and then the golf grip is Not Moveable......so you have about 2 minutes maximum to line up the grip once it is slid onto the shaft, before it gets harder to move around.       YOU CAN ALSO USE THE GOLF GRIPTAPE METHOD TO SECURE HANDLEBAR GRIPS IF YOU WANT,  but most of the basic old-style typical inexpensive hairsprays  will likely adequately secure most handlebar grips.    Fifty years ago, relatively speaking the prices of new replacement golf grips(the grips themselves..) was much more costly than today,  so  we would syringe good serviceable grips off and re-use them.  This involved loading a syringe with lighter fluid and then needle inject it about almost at the middle of the grip,  and  then push the rubber around with both thumbs as the lighter fluid unglued it, and then off the club.  This worked really well on relatively recent grips that were in good condition. It was somewhat dangerous as you were using a syringe and needle....and  there was always the worry that you'd accidently poke yourself.   You also used a significant amount of lighter fluid when injecting  golf grips for saving them for re-use.  I wouldn't do that today since the cost of a golf grip is not much compared to fifty years ago.



If you're going this route, save yourself some money and buy a big can of  NAPTHA,. That's what Ronson lighter fluid is(has something added to improve odor) The can of naptha will say "VM&P NAPTHA" (varnish maker's and painter's)


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## dweenk (Jun 5, 2021)

Just an update. I'm going with 700C wheels because I have tires for them,original bottom bracket, seatpost, cranks, and derailleurs. I had to swap the front brake caliper for a long reach (still Weinmann - Raleigh branded).
Added a riser stem, VO porteur bars, VO city levers, MKS Sllvan Touring pedals, and old Suntour barcon shifters.
So far:


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## dweenk (Jul 30, 2021)

Here it is now.


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## juvela (Jul 30, 2021)

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very nice; thanks for this update!  😃

the barcons look like they would be more comfortable to operate it the bar's trail were parallel to the frame


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