Sometimes a rebuild is personal, and for bike mechanic Rusty Earl, giving his little sister a childhood bike proves that mechanical projects can truly be a labor of love.
A Blast from the Past
For Rusty Earl, restoring antique bicycles is more than just a job; it’s a way to bring some love into the world. He demonstrates that in a special episode of his YouTube Channel “Cool Bike Projects,” where he revamps a 1960s JC Higgins bike — the kind his sister had growing up. She had been dropping hints about it for years on the YouTube channel, where she would regularly leave comments requesting a bike “just for her,” so Earl decided to surprise her with a restored bike of her own.
The 1960s JC Higgins model’s design was chock full of character relative to the more industrial-looking models that became common later on. So, when the original owner of the bike was unable to give it the TLC needed to bring it back to its original state, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to bring his sister’s childhood back to life. Besides, it’d be a shame to see such beautiful craftsmanship go to rust.
Examine and Assess
You never know just what you’re getting into when you bring an old project back to life. Rusty wasn’t sure what to expect when first acquiring the bike, but thankfully the frame of the bike was in solid shape overall. It had several dents and scratches across the frame, as well as a severe patch of rust across the rear basket (the pannier). However, the bracing and the rest of the frame were in surprisingly good condition. It also needed new tires, grips, pedals, and a seat, as well as an overhaul of all the bearing surfaces, but with Rusty’s expertise, he knew he could do the job.
Starting Off
Any time you have to repair a classic, you have to balance a tradeoff: maintain the item’s authenticity by only using the original parts — and lose some functionality in the process. Or, you can sacrifice originality by replacing broken parts with more modern components, even though you might get a higher-performing final product. Thankfully, while the original light was too corroded to salvage, the bike had many parts that just needed some cleaning and polishing. That meant Rusty was able to maintain that original look by staying away from newer parts.
Getting to Work
Rusty’s team started off by sand-blasting the frame of the bike to strip off all the old paint. They did this for two reasons: first, they wanted to see how much body damage they were working with, and more importantly, they were going to change the bike’s color from blue to yellow — his little sister’s favorite color. They applied a spray-on smoothing putty to fill out the scratches and dings across the frame, and with some help from his dad, he applied a body filler to heal up the rusted-out patch on the pannier.
After some primer and some canary-yellow paint, the frame of the bike looked as good as new — but it was important the paint stay in place and not to run. Surprisingly, all they needed was some parchment paper to do the sanding.
Regarding mechanics, it’s important to make sure all the spokes are in tension since they may not have had proper maintenance in decades. Adding some lubricant to the threads on the nipple of each joint can help you fit each component together and get you moving again.
Rusty also had to repair the clutch and brake system, as the different materials (hardened steel and brass) inevitably break down over time. The braking assembly used in the 1960s is far more durable and comfortable than today’s components, as the hardened steel is less likely to fuse with the brass, so he was able to give his sister an even better product by staying true to the original craftsmanship.
Another challenge Rusty faced was identifying all the fasteners older American bikes use. They found up to nine different-sized fasteners needing replacement and tracking them all down can be a chore. It also requires tools diverse enough to fit any size and handle all of those stuck nuts. Thankfully, he had the Capri Tools set of sockets and wrenches to get the job done. He needed some air grinders, a buffing wheel, and a fair share of steel wool, but Capri Tools was always at his side.
Working with the Experts
Despite his desire to stay true to the bike’s original design, there was one place where Rusty wanted to deviate from how the bike would have looked in the ’60s. He thought his sister would appreciate some pin-striping and scroll work on her bike, similar to the kind you’d find on some cars and trucks.
Since being a skilled restorer doesn’t just mean doing all the work yourself but consulting with experts whose specialty is outside your scope, Rusty knew exactly who to consult. He found a local artist who does pin-striping and scroll work all the time, and Rusty knew he could take on the task. His name is Brooke Passey, and if you don’t see him doing much advertising, it’s because he doesn’t have to — customers end up finding him.
Passey went with some classical black pin-striping across the frame, lending it a clean, sleek, bumblebee-style effect. As always, Passey exceeded his customer’s expectations, and Rusty found him a delight to work with, too.
After a final coat of paint to seal in the pin-striping, all that remained was putting the bike back together. Thirty man-hours later, Rusty would get to surprise his sister with a blast from her past.
The Big Surprise
It’s always satisfying to see an old item looking and working as good as new, but the best part of this project was seeing his sister’s smile. She lit up just like she was a kid again and couldn’t wait to hop on the bike. She took a trip around the block and back down Memory Lane, and all on a bike that was just dinged up metal 30 man-hours before. Every second was worth it.
For Rusty Earl, restoring old bikes is more than a career — it’s about breathing new life into something you once thought was dead.
Rusty says that restoring old products reminds him we can all improve with some work. “We might need to dust off the cobwebs of inaction in our lives,” Rusty says, “but we can all get moving again and bring back the best in ourselves.” That’s wisdom we can all live by.
Capri Tools is proud to supply restorers like Rusty Earl with the tools they need to turn would-be junk into treasure, and we’ve got the tools you need to make your next project a success.
Watch the full process here!
