Old Ten Speed Gallery

Today’s old ten speed is an OTSG First. A Vista Carrera 7 sent in by Edward S.
Ed, a well done transformation! I have a soft spot for mixtes as it is, and this beauty just calls to me.

This mixte Vista Carrera 7 (SN K1015139, but the 9 might be a 0) cost $15.50 at Goodwill. It was rough, but all the original parts were on it. I disassembled it farther than any other bike I’ve
restored and shined it with Turtle Wax car and chrome polish and Brasso. I put new whitewalls and the cheapest grip tape I could find on it along with some new cables from Walmart. The frame is butted and brazed with gold paint at the joints. It was made in Taiwan and has a heart brazed on the bottom of the downtube. It has neat Shimano aluminum wingnuts on the front wheel. The Internet, surprisingly, has very little info on Vista.

Thanks again Edward

Finally, a women’s Schwinn Varsity!  Courtesy of Bill.

All those men’s Varsity bikes and no women’s Varsity bike to go with them.

My LBS told me to take this Campus Green Varsity with me or after I left he was going to throw it in the dumpster. It seemed good, just missing a front tire. Not one to argue, I grabbed it and took it home.

All it really needed was the standard consumable stuff: tires, tubes, brakes, cables. Well, that and a bit of cleaning, adjusting, and lubrication.

I removed the ratty downtube stickers after buying some vintage originals off eBay. The replacements pretty much disintegrated when trying to apply them. down the drain.

So this will, for now, remain a Stealth Varsity.

Thanks Bill

After much discussion, we have determined that this Crescent is not a 1973 as previously stated, but instead a 1950s era.

Today’s OTS comes to us from Viktor T. in Sweden.  This is a 1973 Crescent Pepita (“little seed of squash”?). This  old timer has some interesting features. 1) Note the front derailer’s shift lever is connected directly to the derailer itself—on the seat tube. 2) Note the front chainrings are reversed with the smaller ring to the outside.  Viktor indicates these are Simplex (hardly surprising).  Anyone with any expertise or knowledge of this system?

Pictures from wintry Sweden!
This beautiful Crescent Pepita was passed on to me by my father, who bought it when he was thirteen. It’s in mint condition. It has an original Peugeot Simplex gear system and is somewhat oddly built, note the gear levers on the frame! My apartment is too small for me to take decent photos of it, but enjoy those I managed to take.

Thanks Viktor

Josh F has sent in another fine 10-speed for us all to enjoy. I’m truly flattered when he says:

“I got online and didn’t see any on here thought it may be an OTSG first so i had to have it.”

Found this old ten speed at a flea market in Kentucky. I got online and didn’t see any on here thought it may be an OTSG first so i had to have it. Possible a Korean made bike but i am not sure cant find much on it, anyone that knows any thing about it year or where it was made let me know.

Thanks Josh

A few weeks back, I received this submission from Lu in China. Yup, China! I’m not sure exactly what he might telling us, but I’m glad to hear from him.

“I have come to China to bicycle enthusiasts.”

“I come from China. Hello to all you bicycle enthusiasts.” or
“I come from China land of bicycle enthusiasts.”

“I have just received the car. I am not against these very well.”

“I just received a car and don’t like bikes very much anymore.” or
“I just received this “Car”(brand) bike. I’m not against it, so I’ll go ahead and keep it.” or
“I just received a car and no longer need this bike any more.”

“Help me look at it? What is the age,”

This one is pretty easy.
“Please take a look at it and tell me the age.”

Sure, we’d love to look at your OTS, but I’m not sure how much help we’ll be with the age.

This OTS appears to have the “Arabesque” Shimano 600 which ran from 1978-1981ish. That’s my best guess.

Hello: I have come to China to bicycle enthusiasts. I have just received the car. I am not against these very well. Help me look at it? What is the age, thank you.

LU

Thanks Lu