Just finished this – my first bike build ever. I got this old Varsity about 20 years ago. Owner gave it to me when I admired it on a job site. I used to ride it to and from college about 10 miles each way. It was my first road bike and I was impressed with the speed. Very soon I wished for wider tires and wider handlebars. Now that's called a "gravel bike" and it's popular and I'm not surprised 'cus it's basically what I always wanted it to be anyway. I installed some used 700c wheels and made them tubeless with 40c Gravel Kings. And 520mm Nitto Noodle handlebars. About $500 for the build. A dream come true!
by Golgarivet
3 Comments
Yeah, that’s really nice. I can see how you’ve evolved to bike to suit your needs, which is awesome. And it’s a classic too.
I was just posting about how road bikes of this era can fit 40-622s, in another thread. And I started a similar project with a ‘71 Peugeot, a week ago.
Nice bike.
Looks like fun!
Watch out for that pump location if you ride in the rain much, though. The fine silt that tends to get flung up by tires from road water creeps into every nook and cranny, and I’ve had a compound stroke pump like that seize up from grime intrusion. It’s a horrible thing to find when on the side of the road w/o CO2.