Broken bikes...
by Denise Sawicki on May 30, 2026
So, I had 3 broken bikes and no usable one really and I figured it was time to deal with the situation. Problem being I am about as strong as a wet noodle and NOT mechanically inclined.
The first two are what they call "BSOs" (Bike shaped objects), cheap crappy bikes that aren't expected to last long. They are both around 25 years old though so it's somewhat impressive that they're even still around. Well, they shouldn't be... Darrell's uncle Gary kept insisting on repairing them. He must have gotten the rims replaced on both of these with something that doesn't get dented with a slight breeze because I haven't had that problem in a few years.
The Roadmaster is the one I'd been riding most recently
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but the pedals came loose and don't work, seems like a bigger repair than a normal person would bother paying for on a crummy bike.
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Second is the Huffy,
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which rides like a dream but on which the rear tire is completely bald. I figure it can't be a good idea to keep riding it around like that.
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I think he said he swapped the rear tires on these two, which is unfortunate, since if he hadn't I'd have had one perfectly nice bike. I'm not going to ASK him for help, lol, I'm embarrassed enough when he comes up with these ideas on his own and insists on helping. I think he finally decided he is too old to be doing that stuff, anyhow.
Third, and somewhat irrelevantly, is this one, which seems to be from the 1960s, which Darrell's older brother Jorden gave us when he was going through a phase of being super into bikes.
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I figured it's lasted this long and was usable quite recently, should still be usable right? Nope... I did a 4 mile ride on this and it was awful, the tire has started rubbing the rim, not sure why that started happening since the last time I tried it. And for some reason it has no padded seat (did Gary swap that seat onto a different bike, too? I can't recall) and I didn't even bother to adjust the seat height, which is practically at child height. So, there was a lot of extra friction on the tires, and I felt like it was going to rip through the seat of my pants, and it was quite uncomfortable being so low.
So anyhow, my mission was to take the rear wheel off the Roadmaster and stick it onto the Huffy. So, I was fighting with this for quite a while and got black grease all over myself, checked a million youtube videos (I told you I wasn't mechanically inclined) but I think I finally managed it. I guess we shall see. I have a 6 mile bike ride to the take&bake pizza place to test it on (3 there and 3 back). Hope I don't die. Pretty sad how long that took me and how exhausted it made me but at least I have a bike again, I think. Lol. (I have money, I just enjoy not spending money, by the way...)
Two Replies to Broken bikes...
Denise Sawicki | June 5, 2026
The axle of the pedals is all wobbly causing the chain to drop off and you can see some gunk and ball bearings ( I think, it's not in front of me) at the point where the pedals connect to the blue part. The ball bearings or whatever that is are not supposed to be visible, they're supposed to be inside the bike. The issue doesn't photograph especially well.
Yup a bike shop could certainly do it, I just figured there's nobody else in the house who even wants a bike so I should be able to get one usable bike out of my spare parts. It seems to work OK. The pizza was good.
I am going through a talkative phase but have nobody to talk to who doesn't already know my boring stories, lol.
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Scott Hardie | June 5, 2026
I like the stylishness of the 60s bike! It doesn't necessarily look the most comfortable to ride, especially that seat. But there's something about the curves and the wheel guards that feels appropriately classic.
I can see the baldness of the Huffy's tire, and yeah I wouldn't ride on that either, not that I do much bike riding. But a bike repair shop should be able to swap that out for a new tire, right? I bet there's even a service that will come to you for repairs in your driveway.
However, I confess, I'm struggling to see the problem with the pedals on the Roadmaster. (At first I thought the logo said "Roastmaster" and I was trying to figure out what it had to do with insult comedy.) The worn-down handlebars look like the biggest problem to my inexperienced eye, or possibly what looks like a crease in the seat. I certainly take your word for it; a bike without pedals is just scrap metal with wheels.
How did the wheel replacement go? And how was the pizza? :-P