I’m all for cannibalizing old bikes for the sake of other more desirable projects.  I have even made all my bikes sign their organ donation cards.  It’s the right thing to do.  But this perfectly serviceable 1987 Rallye Ranger is going to the donation bank a bit too early.  Charles, the owner, has gone so far as to call it, “…a bike-shaped hunk of scrap metal.”  Excuse me?  That is just the kind of attitude we at the OTSG are working to eliminate!  I’m happy to hear he has a Free Spirit project that he feels is a deserving recipient, but why must he take from one with so much life left in her?  Aside from the moral issues, I believe next trend in urban and quasi-urban cycling is the non-mixte women’s frame.  Mixte frames are already soaring in popularity and this trend will certainly trickle-down to non-mixte frames such as this.  Mixte frames are the next track bike and conventional women’s frames (non-mixte) are the next fixed gear conversions.  Trust me people, if there is one thing I know—it’s trends.

This is a 1987 Rallye Ranger 10-speed women’s bike I found curbside a few days ago. It features cottered cranks, 26 x 1 3/8″ tires, a failed attempt to paint the handlebars & crank white, bent handlebars, badly misaligned caliper brakes, a flat tire, a broken rear derailleur, a firmly-stuck seat tube but a loose seat, and bent brake levers. Clearly a project bike or a bike-shaped hunk of scrap metal.
As I have no interest in resurrecting this one, I thought it would be appropriate to submit it to your gallery before it’s dismantled. It will likely provide some parts for an old Free Spirit that I have. I have a welder; I’m sure I’ll think of something to do with this bike. Love your site.

Thanks Charles