I was just ogling some of my collection, and came across a pair of the 1st Edit. SR brake levers. I didn't even remember I had these. I too was under the impression that these things probably never made it to production. My hunch was that these "long reach" SR levers that are depicted on bikes in frame manuf. catalogs (e.g. Raleigh, Benotto) were part of a pre-release batch (including the black anodized: chainrings, bb cups, headset, and seatpost parts) of the SR gruppo.
Well, whatever the true story is behind some of the decisions Campy made for their introduction of the SR gruppo, I can say that I am looking at a pair the 1st Edit. SR brake levers.
Some of my observations:
1) The holes appear to be drilled. The chamfer around each hole is more uniform and smaller than the "normal" SR levers.
2) Campy did not make the lever beefier to compensate for the holes as they did with the "normal" SR levers. These appear to be the same thickness as the "long reach" NR levers.
3) "Normal" SR levers have 3 vertical rows of holes with (10) holes in each row. 1st Edit. levers have only (9) holes in each row.
Marc Boral
Long Beach, CA