Bike Restoration
MARCH 3, 2025
A couple weeks ago, I stumbled upon this 1995 Schwinn Searcher Express (100th anniversary edition :O) at SuperThrift for a whopping 3 dollars. I knew I HAD to pick it up, even though it was pretty beat up, rusty, and had a padlock locked onto the rear rack.
And thus began my bike restoration journey. After taking it home, I was able to assess the state of the bike more fully. Some components would need to be replaced: the grips were gummy and deformed; the left grip shift was actually fully working, but the right was totally destroyed, and the rear derailleur cable was missing; the saddle was in pretty poor shape, as you can see in the picture, but the seat post was thankfully not siezed; the chain was stretched enough to make it due for replacement, but it seemed like the chainrings and cassette were fine.
Most of the other components were more or less in working order. The front and rear derailleurs (sans cable) seemed OK. Once I reconnected their slightly frayed cables, the brakes became fully functional, though the pads were a bit worn. The rear wheel appeared to be the stock wheel, 30 years old, and the 700 x 38C tire still had decent treads. The front wheel, though, with its mismatching black rim, presta valve, and narrower tire (28 vs 38 mm), was evidently a replacement. The Sunlite rear rack was in decent condition, and a hacksaw made quick work of the stray Masterlock.
I set to work taking apart the bike and basically just went ham with the WD-40. I soaked most of the hardware in white vinegar overnight to get rid of the surface rust and old paint. Afterwards, scrubbing them down with aluminum foil is great since the foil will not scratch the steel. Lacking the special tools needed to take them apart, I left the bottom bracket, hubs, and headset as-is. They all seemed to spin without any problems.
I ordered a new set of brake cables, and used the road-bike ends of the cables to replace the frayed straddle cables of the cantilever brakes. I also replaced the brake shoes. After trueing the wheels, I was able to make the brakes nice and snappy.
I replaced the old chain with a new KMC one. Since I didn't have a chain tool, removing rivets from the chain was a challenge until I learned that you can use a cutoff wheel on a Dremel to delete the flared end of the rivet, which makes it much easier to hammer it out. Not wanting to buy new shifters yet, I decided to just run the bike as a 3x1. I adjusted the outer limit screw of the rear derailleur to keep the chain on the third smallest sprocket at the rear.
Up at the cockpit, I used some spare tennis racket grip tape to wrap up the worn out grips, and I even swapped the stem and handlebar with the ones from my family's old teen-sized cruiser in order to achieve a more upright riding position. I ended up having to replace the brake cables because of this, since the old ones were too short. I had another lucky score at SuperThrift, where I found a couple used saddles in perfect condition, so I threw this cushy Diamondback branded one onto the seat post.
With the restoration and tune-up done, there's nothing left to do but stare at it.
I am very satisfied with how the bike turned out. Rides smooth, and doesn't look half bad, if I may say so. Given that the bike is more of a low-end model, I don't want to pour too much more money into it, but there are still future upgrades possible: fixing up the grips and shifters of course, and I think a shorter stem with longer reach might fit me better. Fenders would also be a nice addition.
The Schwinn Searcher Express is a hybrid bike with a 3x7 drivetrain, riser bars, and a TIG-welded cro-moly steel frame. Given its production year of 1995, this bike was most likely manufactured in Taiwan by the factory that nowadays makes Giant Bicycles. All in all, nothing special, but its frame is certainly durable, and in the short time I've known the bike, it has already found a place in my heart.
Biking and bike restoration has basically consumed my entire life for the last couple weeks. If you feel the need to fall down the same rabbithole, be sure to check out Gary's Projects on YouTube and Instagram, whose restoration work and eye for style is an inspiration.
