Personally, I am a user of bicycles more than a collector. As such I would go with the clinchers. Your decision may rest with whether the bikes will be riders or museum pieces. Sew-ups can certainly be ridden, even on a day-to-day basis, but for general practicality I vote for clinchers. Guy Taylor, Anaheim CA
-------------- Original message from Donald Gillies <gillies@cs.ubc.ca>: --------------
> I have two newly repainted bike frames from 1974, and they are very
> close to "perfect" restorations (Raleigh International(s) - undoubedly
> they look better than original, and the colors are great, with not-too
> thick of a clearcoat). I just got the much-hoped-for truing stand for
> Christmas. Time to build some wheels.
>
> In the garage, I have some used original AVA wheels and rims, which
> are quite possibly some of the _crummiest_ tubular rims that existed
> in 1974 (these are the dreaded "washer" rims with no eyelets.) And I
> have learned that my skills at mounting tubulars are so poor that i
> could quite possibly go through all 14 of my budget tires before I get
> just one tire mounted straight ...
>
> So here are the choices for the wheels :
>
> - Campy High-Flange Original Hubs, and
>
> AVA Rims +
> Panaracer Practice Tubulars ( = Raleigh Nylon Extra 270gm, circa 1974)
>
> - or -
>
> MAVIC Open Pro Rims +
> - stripped of anodizing & polished
> - modern logo removed, maybe a retro "MAVIC" logo applied
> Clement (Thailand) Ventoux Clinchers, 220 grams +
> Michelin 70 gram tubes
>
> =====
>
> My goal is to have a good bike, and imho the campy hubs are more
> likely to get used by the next owner if the wheels are clinchers.
> Nobody is making new AVA washer-rims. I've noticed that on the
> vintage san diego rides, EVERYONE is riding clinchers, i.e. on the
> Colnagos, the Raleighs, the Cinellis, etc. I was the only one with
> tubulars (my Carlton PRO last month on our ride to Solana Beach ...
>
> - Don Gillies
> San Diego, CA