DMart84815@aol.com wrote:
>
> I remember seeing an old picture of the USA 1968 (Mexico) Olympic Road Team
> posing next to their bikes. Some of these bikes were equipped with the
> Bivalent Hubs.
>
> I think its the
> threads on the aluminum body that have a tendency to strip. There are very
> few threads that the steel "male" spline engage into on the aluminum hub. The
> thing to do is to remove the spline ( there is actually a Cinelli tool for
> this, pliers will do the job with less glamour. ) and dap the threads with
> Green Loctite. Stripping a Cinelli Hub will ruin your day.
>
> Dave Martinez
> Fremont Ca
Yes there are few threads, but that is just on the first "three-piece" aluminum and steel version of the bivalent hub. The second all aluminum version was much more robust and would have been what was being used by 1968.
There is however, a continual problem with the spline interface wearing out. For today's collector the Cinelli Bivalent Hub System is the Holy Grail for its novelty and rarity, plus the fact that it was championed by Cino Cinelli. But as the owner of three complete pairs of the hubs and mounting hardware (one in use), I can see the reason for their poor reputation among racers of the time.
Chuck Schmidt
South Pasadena, California
http://www.velo-retro.com (NEW list of reprints and T-shirts)