Consider the exchange between our fellow connoseurs (spelling) Steve Barner and Todd Kuzma, in which Steve said,
"Todd,
I was speaking specifically of Paramounts in the vintage of the '73 on eBay. Quality varied, depending on the year of manufacture or luck of the draw. As I stated, Paramounts compared well when held up next to the other mass-production manufacturers' top line models. My observation is that the '70s Paramounts were not in the same category as the Masis, Colnagos, and even the Cinellis of the period. And they couldn't be considered even remotely as being in the same class as the budding American frame builders of the era. They were well-built, wonderful bikes, but you just have to look closely at them to see the difference in workmanship. My point is that their popularity with the masses made them an object of disdain with some connoisseurs.
"If anyone wants close-up photos of examples of less-than-excellent workmanship on '70s Paramounts, I will be happy to suffice. It's all cosmetic stuff that doesn't detract from the great ride of a silver-brazed 531, classic geometry frame." -------------------------- In my mind's eye, I clearly see the '65 Paramount, the 70s Medici, and the early 70s Cinelli in the garage, and slightly less clearly see the other Paramounts I've owned. I'm going to assert that for my general road riding, my Paramount is as nice-riding a bike as I've ever owned. Just plain well-balanced, accurate in its responses, and a pleasure to ride. I think that our 2003-era criticism in part is a matter of style, which is implicit in Steve's message. The early 70s Paramounts belong to an earlier tradition, in which lugs weren't thinned and their edges weren't sharpened to perpendicular. The brake bridge was joined with a generous fillet instead of a small diamond plate. Paint was glorious in its thinness, not its thickness (I still remember the late 60s Paramount, in their wonderful silver, in which I could read "butted" stamped on one fork blade."
To me, Eisentraut and his successors, from Kellogg to Sachs, changed the measure of class to one that often emphasizes details that suggest much more hand-work. Thinned lugs, sharp edges, etc. It's different from the earlier style. Until investment cast lugs came out, it always denoted great amounts of love and time, and led to a different look. I wonder what the fellows who built my Cinelli or my "Roma Sport" with cast lugs would say about folks spending that much time on something that isn't going to affect performance? To my eyes (as I have said before) these are "engineer's bikes," distinguished by performance more than looks.
Just to be argumentative, I've never owned a Masi, but I took down my Medici yesterday to wash it and get it ready for Cirque. Incredibly nice, clean, detail work. Great drop-out joins. Almost everywhere. But, as Richard ("no relation" Sachs says, "Imperfection is Perfection," and I found two brazing "holidays" on the Medici. Tiny, but there.
So, I'll keep celebrating the diversity of solutions and the joys of riding them.
Harvey Sachs McLean Va
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