I am a new member who has been lurking for a couple of weeks. Art Smith's query re: rebuilt classics, however, deserves a reply.
Only one of the bikes I own is in anything close to original, collectible condition (an as-yet unridden mid-80s Behringer Aero equipped with Suntour Sprint components) and it's that way because I just got it put together. No doubt once I ride it, I'll will find something that needs to be changed and the downward spiral away from "originality" will begin.
My 1979 Schwinn Paramount P-13 has been the main subject of my rebuilding efforts since 1982 when I had it repainted and a bunch of braze-ons added. I've used it as a racing bike, sport tourist, loaded tourist, audax bike, "grant peterson" bike, and most recently, a kind of halfwitted "mountain" bike. (As you guys probably already know, the geometry and low bottom bracket of a classic '70s road bike is not well-suited to singletrack. I found this out on my Paramount Memorial Day weekend).
At any rate, much of the fun I get out of cycling is trying different set ups on my "classic" bikes. As a result, I don't have any real "classic" bikes, but the trade off is worth it I think.
In regard to a recent thread here I would nominate Cecil Behringer to the "great unknown builder" shrine. He was a pioneer in titanium and built bikes for Anton Tkac, the Stetinas, and other top racers, but he certainly is unknown today. The fact that he had too many interests other than framebuilding probably got in the way of him establishing a bigger reputation as a framebuilder. I am still grateful that one of his outside interests was a beautiful, ill fated, 200-odd meter board track that stood outside his shop for a couple of years in Shakopee, Minnesota, and that I had the good fortune to ride.
Also, in regard to the female Paramount brazer thread, I have heard rumors that Schwinn farmed out its Paramount work to other framebuilders in the late 1970s. My Paramount was one of the last P-13s made and I have always suspected that it had some sort of bastard history. One reason: the lugs look like they have been filed and thinned. The lower head lug in fact looks like a drunk or confused person filed it -- the point is of a curious, non-symetrical shape. Any insight on the identity of non-Schwinn Paramount builders?
Thanks for all the interesting posts so far.
Mike Hagburg
Bismarck, ND