[CR]Paramount ride quality

(Example: Events:Cirque du Cyclisme:2002)

To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
From: <marcus.e.helman@gm.com>
Date: Mon, 16 May 2005 09:08:25 -0400
Subject: [CR]Paramount ride quality

I am looking at a 72 Paramount on craigslist. From the info on the Waterford site, this one appears to be a P-10. The Waterford site says: "P-10 - Deluxe Paramount - designed for non-competition road riding and included front and rear eyelets, 27 x 1 1/4" clincher tires and Weinmann center pull brakes. It usually came with Campagnolo Record components. You could order it with Campy side pulls and/or custom geometry as an option"

The bike has chrome lugs, and is certainly pretty. It's a bit pricey, especially with shipping. Having just had a less than successful experience with a Bob Jackson touring frame, I am leery of getting into a non-racing bike. Does anyone have enough Paramount experience to compare racing Paramounts with non-racing Paramounts? Or at least to describe the ride of these non-racers?

Waterford also has these production statistics. Note that 1972 is by far the high water mark in terms of volume. They were making almost 10 Paramounts a day. Does quality suffer as a result? |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1938-58 | 1000 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1959 | 270 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1965 | 420 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1972 | 3,300 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1975 | 875 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1979 | 360 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1985 | 883 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1986 | 1,183 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1987 | 1,504 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1988 | 1,400 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1989 | 1,200 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1990 | 1,083 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1991 | 892 | | | | |--------------+-----------| | | | | 1992 | 580 | | | | |--------------+-----------|

Best regards,
Marcus Helman
Huntington Woods, MI