George R. "Syke" Paczolt wrote:
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I'm finding a real desire to pick up a couple of base, second or third line European bikes - I still like cottered cranks, they ride just fine for me, and somebody's got to save them before future generations get the idea that everybody in the 70's rode a custom built Reynolds/Columbus/Campagnolo top of the line bike. My big bug is that the frame has got to be fairly pristine, however. I'm not really interested in completely restoring every bike I own.
The big downside, of course, is that it's just as expensive to restore a bottom line bike as it is to do a top of the line one, assuming that all the original parts come with it. And in the end, you don't have the investment. Then again, you can paint it in the garage and it'll still look just as good as when it came out of the factory. +++++++++++ George, in our polite little group we refer to some of these "bottom line" critters as "Funky," and I'll guard my reputation as the CR Funkmeister. I actually brought a '65 Sears Ted Williams Sport Racing to Cirque one year, and rode it. Gaspipe by Puch, but with Weinmann parts and Campag record derailleurs. Listmembers have posted exquisite restoration photos of a Schwinn Varsity... In my case, the Sears is a duplicate of my first 10-speed, and my collecting instincts were unsatisfied until I found it and brought it back to pretty much original kit.
Nothing, in my mind, to be ashamed of, and it does get ridden occasinally. Baseline comparison for judging performance?
harvey sachs mcLean va (I'd still be riding my '74 Sears, full 531 db, and the crudest such frame I ever had, except that it buckled in a collision with a large bike-mounted park ranger.)