Hi Gents,
I also recall the same scenes in the aforementioned films. Eddy definitely was doing some painful-to-watch fidgeting to loosen and re-tighten his seat binder - with a wrench.
Putting that heavy weight on a bike would certainly seem inconsistent with a super weight-obsessed Merckx. We've probably all seen photos of his chainrings (which he'd personally drilled out by hand). I've also seen an illustration (in "Le Monde De Daniel Rebour") of one of his 1972 Cinelli handlebars, perforated like a Swiss cheese, which even I would be afraid to ride... and I just Love to drill my own bars for cable routing. I can't imagine him putting on that additional hunk of steel.
I do still have and actually use one of those Q/R bolts. I mount it on any newly built-up bike when I first take it out for a long test ride and also when using a new or unfamiliar saddle or pedals, etc. Handy for making quick adjustments on the road,... but then I replace it with a standard bolt.
Another completely reasonable use for the Q/R bolt would be to quickly remove an expensive post and saddle if you have to leave a commuter bike locked outside. For the same reason, DO NOT leave a post & saddle on an unattended bike with that Q/R fitted.
Depending on the original posters intended use of his 74 International, this could be both a period correct and a legitimate piece to consider keeping on the bike. Sure, that 85 grams feels heavy in the hand. But, it's perhaps fitted on a 23-24 pound bike [catalog claims 22-1/2 - with tubulars] and not a modern carbon fiber Time Trial featherweight bike. So, I think you can go either way depending on what you find most practical for your own usage.
Regards, Bob Hanson, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Edward wrote:
Charles & Jerry, I think that was definitely the cause. After the derny crash his back was never the same. But, re the Merckx film. It may have been Sunday in Hell but I think it was in La Course en Tete. He calls up his car during the race and they hand him a wrench or allen key and he adjusts the saddle while descending a hill. Definiitely no quick release but a wrench. then he moves the saddle back and forth till he got it right and tightens it up. There is, however, a scene in Sunday in Hell were he is on the way to the start and stops at another teams car and asks to borrow a wrench to make a final adjustment. This after spending what seemed like an eternity with his mechanic to get it just right.
Edward Albert Chappaqua, NY
jerry wrote:
Not so sure. In one of the classic Merckx films, Eddy had a QR seat binder. I assume it would have been Campy. Eddy was a fanatic about having to have the seat height just right.
Regards, Jerry Moos Big Spring, TX
Charles wrote:
I remember being struck by Eddy's obsession with getting his saddle/bar/stem relationship just right in "A Sunday in Hell." Was it not the case that after his back injury he was always fiddling with these adjustments, to stay out of pain?
Charles Andrews
SoCal