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@lae
You can't wreck old 3-speeds, that's what so good about them.
I bought my girlfriend hers for christmas five years ago, it's been used every day and it's still running just fine. I have greased the BB and headset once, when I got it back from the powdercoater two years ago. The front wheel got replaced when a car pulled out on her, the rear got replaced when some bastard stomped on it (I salvaged the hub and I'm still using it). Frame and fork were undamaged both times. It's been sat in the rain (despite my protests), kept outside over winter, I've ridden it down stairs (!), loaded up the rack so heavy that the tyres rub on the chainstays, ridden it with people sitting on the handlebars... uh, it got locked up by the river in York and completely submerged when it flooded... I clean and lube the chain about two or three times a year, change the brake cables and pads, and that's it.
Mind you, hers is a Raleigh - I'm not sure if that counts for anything in terms of build quality since it's a late 80s model. The quality of the chrome is stunning though - barely a spot of rust on it.