Toni Theilmeier wrote:
>
> Well, Chuck,
> you write that most pro riders used handlebar tape to fix brake cables to tup tubes in the very old days.
>
> Thing is, there were much nicer and much more functional things around even in the thirties, like rubber straps that could be undone in a sec, or the famous Rosa metal clips that were even available specially made for small dia dual cyclo gear cables on one side and a fatter brake cable on the other, all in one clip.
>
> Can´t think why they should not have used them but stuck to sticky tape. Matter of fact, you do see those things on old photos, too.
>
> Regards, Toni Theilmeier, Belm, Germany.
Toni,
I think a pro race mechanic from the 1950s and before would tell you that taping the cable housing to the top tube was fast (easy to do) and functional.
There was a whole "tape culture" with the pro race mechanics back then (judged solely from photos and Rebour drawings). They taped the front of the toe clips, the fastener that attached the toe strap buckle to the toe strap, the folded over end of the toe strap, the brackets that held the gonfleur (CO2 cylinder) to the frame and the gonfleur too, the bottom of the handlebar water bottle cage to silence the rattling of the aluminum bottle, the bottle cage screws, the seat post and stem to mark their positions, the brake cables where they emerged from the brake bodies, the brake hoods, and the brake levers themselves. Sticky tape to the rescue...
Chuck Schmidt South Pasadena, Southern California
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