tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5712149480739203543.post413883569241739800..comments2022-11-22T16:32:04.628-08:00Comments on Bronze Gears: Fuji Kids' Road BikeJohn Ellsworthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14005172939345684120noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5712149480739203543.post-11370366414094373892009-09-12T19:29:43.363-07:002009-09-12T19:29:43.363-07:00Just browsed your post about your daughter's b...Just browsed your post about your daughter's bike and found the Kuwahara on your photostream without really looking for it. Should build up to a neat bike! Enjoy the build!<br /><br />JJohn Ellsworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14005172939345684120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5712149480739203543.post-37909264569580597392009-09-11T06:23:38.251-07:002009-09-11T06:23:38.251-07:00Borgbike,
That sounds cool -- enjoy rebuilding it...Borgbike,<br /><br />That sounds cool -- enjoy rebuilding it!<br /><br />24" wheels aren't as common as 26 or 700c, but you should be able to find some decent rims from high end recumbents, I should think. I was lucky not to have to rebuild the wheels.<br /><br />I'd given some thought to picking up a set of 26" rims downstream to let the bike grow with Juli, but given that I've since swapped the bars out to city bars, I'm not sure where I'll land on that score. Might be good to leave it as-is and get her something built around 26" rims when the time comes. If Ava and I were to give the Fuji a rebuild when that time comes, personalizing it to just her, that might be an OK substitute for her getting a "new" bike. Will cross that bridge when we get to it.<br /><br />I'm expecting the baskets I picked up for Juli's skateboard any day now. I'll post photos as soon as it's done.<br /><br />Hope your daughter enjoys the Kuwahara!<br /><br />JohnJohn Ellsworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14005172939345684120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5712149480739203543.post-90410144498885410072009-09-09T23:06:48.359-07:002009-09-09T23:06:48.359-07:00Very cool bike. Hope Juliana enjoys riding it.
W...Very cool bike. Hope Juliana enjoys riding it. <br /><br />We recently picked up a 24" inch wheel kids' bike for our daughter, a Kuwahara mixte. It is a nice steel lugged frame. Like you mentioned, probably not super light tubes but I still like the bike. The original pink paint and decals are in great condition.<br /><br />We were lucky to find this one because we had just missed out on a Fuji mixte on Craigslist. The Fuji, looked nice but our daughter wanted a euro-style mixte with the two small straight top tubes and not the single bent one as was on the Fuji we missed. <br /><br />The Kuwahara has all of the stock parts from the (I'm guessing) early 1980s. I would like to make similar performance upgrades to this bike and am impressed with the rear derailleur on the Fuji.<br /><br />My local bike shop had trouble sourcing good road wheels to replace the original steel ones. 24" tires are a challenge too. They are recommending that we wait until our daughter gets a little bigger and use narrow 26" wheels. I'll have to show them this Fuji and see if they have any ideas based on this. The only new ones they could find we steel.<br /><br />I say go with indexed shifters if you have to re-do the cable outers.borgbikehttp://www.tinygogo.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5712149480739203543.post-48925473167556887222009-01-03T09:33:00.000-08:002009-01-03T09:33:00.000-08:00All I'd like to say is how much I appreciated work...All I'd like to say is how much I appreciated working on the bike with my father, and that I'm looking forward to riding this summer.<BR/><BR/>It was a very fun project for me, and I hope other people will do something like that with their kids, too.<BR/><BR/>My favorite part of the project was wrapping the handlebar tape around the handlebars, and I also loved putting the bearings in the grease.<BR/><BR/>I can't wait to go riding with my dad on that Fuji!<BR/><BR/>Sincerely,<BR/><BR/>JulianaJohn Ellsworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14005172939345684120noreply@blogger.com