-----Original Message----- From: OROBOYZ@aol.com <OROBOYZ@aol.com> To: M4Campy@aol.com <M4Campy@aol.com>; classicrendezvous@bikelist.org <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org> Date: Wednesday, January 03, 2001 10:55 PM Subject: Re: [CR]50 years from now...
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>Now, in the future, 50 years or so away, how will we identify all these
nasty
>(IMO) welded aluminum bikes?
>
>It is so true what Grant Peterson said about someone digging up a Rivendell
>in 100 years and telling what it is from the lugs! On the other hand, that
>oh-so light new Paramount (I hate to even call it that) will look just like
>the welded aluminum Giant or Trek or Jamis or Principia or yada yada...
>
>And a popped-out-of-a-waffle-iron-mold Carbon Fiber frame will look pretty
>much like a Kestrel, Trek OCLV, Aegis, or Giant etc etc.
>
>How boring!
>
>Dale Brown
Well, how many of those bikes will be on the road in 50 years? If you need another reason to like steel, consider the Raleigh International I just got back from the painter. The rear triangle had been biffed so that the seat stays and brake bridge were displaced 1-2 cm to the left, the seat stays had 2-3 dimples, and the top tube had been sandblasted. On a welded aluminum or carbon bike, the whole frame would have been toast.
But Matt Assenmacher charged me just an extra $50 for coldsetting and aligning the frame, spreading the rear triangle to 126 mm and filling the dimples before repainting. And even if the stays had needed replacement, that would have been a simple job, although a bit more expensive. I can't see the repair, but I thought I could just feel a ripple until my LBS guy pointed out the dents had been 6 inches lower. Now my 30 year old frame looks just like new, and is ready for building and another 30 years of riding. Try that with a beer can bike!
BTW, Matt also reworked the fork for my PX 10, aligning it and adding a new steerer tube to accomodate english threaded headsets. Now that gauche replacement Tange chrome unicrown can go into retirement. Total cost of fork steerer tube, alignment and repaint: $100. Thanks again, Matt. Lovely work.
And thanks to the generous list member who supplied a Zeus Alfa centerpull to give me a complete set of brakes. They look great on the bike, Nelson. The bike will be done Rivendell style (eclectic mix of old and new, with friction shifting.)
Does anyone have a source for the old style narrow cable housing that will fit the rear brake cable guides? Thanks!
Tom Adams, dying for good riding weather in Kansas City, and trying to decide which of the fleet must be sacrificed to make room for the newcomers.