on 9/22/04 6:49 PM, rhawks@lmi.net at rhawks@lmi.net wrote:
>
> Just to lend some perspective on the cost of the 'newly'
> machined binder bolt, I have a 1965 Cinelli and back in
> 1982 or so, a few years after I bought it, I broke that
> binder bolt. Don't know what I was thinking or doing at
> the time, but boy that still makes me cringe. At the time
> I was a starving student working in a bike shop. The best thing
> we could come up with was a stove pipe bolt and nut, trimmed
> off to fit. Well it worked, but it sure did take some
> luster off the bike. Later that summer, Ralph, the owner of
> the shop I worked at in East Lansing, MI was talking to
> one of the salesmen that was in the shop. The guy was into
> older (for the time) bikes and was able to get some of the
> harder to find parts. He had the part I needed. The only
> problem for me was that it was $20. Again, I was a starving
> student and this was $20 in 1982 dollars. I had no choice if
> I wanted to get the part, and on top of that I knew the price
> was being discounted as a favor to Ralph. I can't imagine that
> many of these pieces were made back then, and very, very few
> if any got into circulation as after market replacement parts.
> Given that, and the worth of a dollar today compared to that same
> dollar 22 years ago, I'd say that $50 isn't a bad price for what
> is so small of a piece, given my experience.
>
> rob hawks
> richmond, ca (a long, long way from East Lansing and 1982)
Yeah, I think $50 is fair when you consider the time it takes to make them.
I made these bolts a while back at Dale's request. An NOS one sold for $225 on ebay. Dale sent me a link to the auction and asked if I could make him a couple. As luck would have it I happened to have an original in stock to copy. I made a few extra in case anybody else needed one. They are made out of stainless steel to avoid having them chrome plated.
Jamie Swan - Northport, N.Y.