When it comes to keeping bikes as made vs. riding now, we have to be practical. I think for every day riding clinchers may be more practical, but to display, keep the ORIGINAL wheels and keep it authentic. Using fragile old equipment is not the best choice in my opinion, unless for short promenade type rides. I personally use sewups on any bike I have, never having used clinchers other than on a test ride. I'm comfortable with sew-ups, but it's not everybody's bag. When I see a great vintage bike violated with an abomination of parts trying to be passed off as restored, I'd like to give the miscreant a good swift kick in the ass. But that's me. It's difficult for many people to work with and use sew-ups. So, make it easy on yourself, show the sews and ride the wires. It's a win-win for preservation and ease of riding. That's my take.
> 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