LBS let me take a new Specialized Roubaix for a few hours today. Did 25 mi on it, first carbon bike I have ridden. Couldn't get over how stiff it was at first, til I noticed how effortless hills were. Full Ultegra, nice shifting.

Verdict? Not sure i require the more upright geometry, going to ride a Tarmac. Prob take a Trek Madone and a Cervelo out for a spin too.

Getting back on my 10 year old alu bike...it felt cramped, tired, and heavy.

It is a Cinelli stem and bar, but I am looking for a 3ttt Superleggera bar and 3ttt stem, to shave some weight.

The tape looks nice but is pretty hard. I guess I have soft girly hands compared to the real men who raced bikes in the 1970s.

I had Benotto tape for a few years. You get used to it after a while. While I never liked them but they do last for some time compared to cloth back then which I like a lot. I did it because everyone had them, and they get a little slippery when wet. I don't care what people say, but I like Cineli's cork tape. Today's grippy plastic/vinyl type tape is too sticky and gross feeling for me. It feels like sweat on plastic that made it feel grippy and sticky.

I ran Superleggera bars (Gimondi, Track style) and stem for years. One of my favorite, better then Cinelli, IMO of course.

John - are using the SR pedals and toe-clips? I'm starting to think I may do that on the Gitane. It's funny how it seems like sort of a radical idea today. But why not? It worked well for me from, oh, 1970 to 1990 or so! Just need some proper shoes. :cool:

Kuipers vs Hinault. Raleigh vs Gitane. :D
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1399196797.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1399196812.jpg

I put on some clipless pedals. Old Ritchey single sided SPD, 205 g the pair.

Oh, the bike shop let me root through their boxes of old freewheels and sold me these for $5.

http://i800.photobucket.com/albums/y...psfwp74eey.jpg

The left one is a Suntour Winner, standard steel six speed 13-19, 304 g. The right one is a Suntour Micro, all aluminum, 13-19, 162 g. I haven't decided if I'll use either - was really looking for a 13-23 aluminum freewheel like a Zeus 2000. The Micro will give me a low of 42/19, not as low as on my other fun ride bike which is 39/21. I can climb most local routes with 42/19 but there will be more suffering involved. Still, the price can't be beat . . .

That's a steal on those for sure. The SunTour Winner was the 'go to' freewheel. I had one of those alloy versions and like I said before, it only lasted about a season due to cog wear. It is a nice weight-saver though.

What I'm struggling with now is the price of vintage chains. My god! NOS Regina or Sedis Sport are $80 to $125 (and more).

BTW: here in the flatlands, I run a 53/49 :D

49? You da man.

Steal them both for 10 bucks. Use the alum. job for the very special occasions and ride the Winner for daily grind. They can take a lot of abuse.

the period correct shoe will be hard to find, that for sure. I remember a company makes a slotted cleat that will fit on modern shoes. Modern shoes are so much more comfortable then the old ones. I suppose one can get used to the buckle prassing up against the side your feet. There were many numb miles due to that stupid buckle. Especially in the winter, I was never if it was numbness from the buckle or the cold? MAybe it was both, but there were rides I did not feel my feet for the entire ride.

That was $5 for both . . . good to be friends w/ your local bike shop.

The Micro Pro can be removed with a two-prong tool, but it should be removed with a special six tooth tool, to minimize damage to the aluminum body. I don't have that tool, and it isn't easy to find. The bike shop has it, but I don't see myself running to the bike shop every time I want to change a freewheel.

I think either I'll a) install the Micro lightly for "weigh-in", then remove it (aka cheating), b) install the Micro and ride it until it croaks, c) keep it as a curio, and keep looking for a Zeus 2000, d) stumble across a six prong tool.

The Zeus 2000 has a steel body and alloy cogs, it isn't as light as the all-aluminum freewheels but is more practical and loose cogs show up on eBay occasionally. The cogs are splined so I could in theory make a CAD file and have a local water jet place cut me all the spare cogs I want.

Curt, I bought a lightly used Regina Superleggera hollow-pin chain for $50 on eBay. It is about 1/3 worn, so still okay to use. The NOS ones are crazy priced.

Edit: I see a used one w/ Regina Oro FW on eBay, pretty cheap, and a NOS one for $139 also on eBay via Boulder Bicycles.

Ya know, I was wondering if somebody made a cleat adapter of some sort. I'll have to do some searching around. Of course, then I'd have to keep switching cleats depending on which bike I'm riding.

49 is my 'wind gear'. Used to full effect this morning during a cold, windy, rainy ride :rolleyes:

With NOS chainrings, I guess I want an NOS chain so I don't get any weird wear patterns. My 1986 Alpineer Crit bike has a Superleggera - the bike was purchased at a garage sale for less than the cost of one of those chains! :eek:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1399247584.jpg
(haven't put the 49 inner C.R. on that one. Yet :D )

cold, rain, and wind? Where the heck do you live? We went out for a "Beat up the fat boy" ride today (I was the fat boy) around 8am. It was about 70 out and as we climbed for about 5 miles, I swear the temp had gone up to about 90. Thank goodness I hadn't put together my Time yet(standard 53x39 crank) so I took my Ridley. The Ridley has a compact crank on it and a 23 top gear out back. This is my first bike with a compact crank, I will have to say this, I needed it today on some steep sections. it was 18 miles of nonstop uphill to the top.

Curt, here you go

Bicycle Shoe Cleats for Toeclip Pedals $29.95 at Yellow Jersey

could you get a metal pipe and make one? trace the slot and start filing or machining. I rather do that then to use a two prong remover to screw up the freewheel body. That one there is worth its weight in gold if you ask me.

Back (way back) when I lived in the Keweenaw Peninsula of Mich, I had to modify my flatlander gearing on the cheap. There's some fairly serious elevation change up there. I put a 28 cog on the freewheel, leaving the 16-15-14-13 straight gears. The first year there, I got dropped on every friggin ride (not from gearing, from my rubber legs). But my friend was from Venezuela and a natural climber. He taught me how to climb and then it was a blast.

Here's the 19-pound Assenmacher Columbus KL bike. This was probably 1981-82. Not sure why the chain is sagging? Note the freak gear setup :cool: Early 4-hole SR front derailleur. Cinelli Unicantor saddle. Hi-flange hubs with tied & soldered spokes - I re-laced them with 1-cross in front and 2-cross in rear. Skeleton shift levers (shown in a previous post). Man, those Columbus-logo water bottles go for $100 each on fleaBay these days.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1399249886.jpg

Curt,

There are some Sidis out there that are all black and they actually look like shoe of the past with a pretty stuff carbon sole.

That bike also had Pino Morroni Ti skewers. Pino was a machinist from Detroit and made all sorts of trick stuff.Pino Morroni

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1399251136.jpg

Great pic, Curt.

I've heard of Morroni skewers. Sweet.

Look at Giro Republic shoes. Lace up, pretty trad looking.