It still doesn't sound like you've looked at the photos of the two bikes in question.
The Wilier job was just dumb, plain and simple. An expensive, unnecessary hack job done strictly from a (foolhardy, imo) profit motive viewpoint.
The Cinelli build didn't touch the frame or fork, so it's relatively easily reversed later if desired.
Two completely different projects: one is disgusting and sad, the other is kind of unusual, if one likes that sort of thing. Our discussion of them had nothing to do with rebelling, or tatoos.
Greg Parker Ann Arbor, Michigan
Date: Sat, 19 Apr 2008 15:55:26 -0400 From: Bianca Pratorius <biankita@comcast.net> To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Subject: [CR] Destroying old bikes revisited
Let me start out by saying that I didn't want to offend anyone in what I said. I was be more protective of the fixie guys than critical of the CR die hards. I have a brother who in the 70's was very much like the most extreme of the CR purists.
In the 70's my slightly older brother suddenly took on a nostalgic bent for the 50's of his birth. This included love and admiration of the clothing, movies and writing from that period. As to the clothing, he began to assemble entire wardrobes from the 50's, eventually collecting over one hundred suits (many NOS) from the period. There was a time in the early 70's in NYC when on Canal Street and on Hester, old shirts were being sold in the original packaging. Old suits came from one or two shops on the lower east side. My brother literally purchased every size 40 suit from the era that appealed to him and this was economically possible because the prices were very often less than 20 bucks for a perfect old suit that had not been worn or nearly mint. Each suit was expertly tailored to fit him (sometimes taken in by me and I got very good at it, but mostly by local tailors who marveled at my brother's growing fixation). My brother was a musician who played local gigs but preferred to take jobs from band leaders who allowed him to play alto sax in a suitable 50's fashion while wearing the clothes from the period (ie . the Bob January Big Band and others).
My brother took this habit to point of ultimate obsession, refusing to leave the house without gartered socks, matching 50's tie and proper wrist watch. He memorized the language and sentiment of the 50's through books and old movies and used my father's inside information to hone his custumery. He refused to wear colognes that were from outside that era and his hair was always neatly cut into the mild pompidour style with pencil line mustache and under lip goatee.
What I am getting at here is the need for a little perspective. Old bikes are fine and I even support riders who insist on straps and cleats and hairnet helmets ... whatever floats your boat. Life is short and people should be able to get together and reinforce their esthetic needs because this is increasingly becoming a world of mindless conformity and senseless modernism. That is why I joined CR too. I'm weird that way, but I want the world safe for all the weirdos including the ones who have a different take on the world. The bike world is big enough for the fixies with their tats and deep V's, love of beer and pot and rebelliousness. I love all the rebeliousness - believe me!
Let them have a few Cinellis to hot rod. There are more than a few 20 year old fixies I know who can have my #ss in a sprint or a spirited ride. Their tats and late nights don't yet seem to slow them down to my level. I rode today with 25% of the ride at 85 to 90% of my max heart rate and I felt that I was run over by a truck when I came home. The young rebels tell me that they ride full out like that any day without any undue effects and that along with unusual rebeliousness is all part of youth. I think much of youth is just as appealing as the best things about old bikes and maybe they are not that different from an aging rider's point of view (like me).
Garth Libre in Miami Fl USA