In the late 70s I bought a used Gitane "Tour de France" with nice gumwall clinchers, but IIRC they were 700c. During my brief "touring phase" I traded the clinchers for the sew-ups on my own Tour de France for durability sake (so I mistakenly thought).
I switched back to sew-ups when I got my USCF license and bought my Raleigh Pro Mk. IV in 1977 - they were Vittoria silks and their ride was truly AWESOME! I didn't miss my clinchers once I'd tasted the feel of silk.
I flirted briefly with clinchers again in the early 80s when I bought a set of early "aero clincher" wheels for my Austro-Daimler Superleicht, but they were 700c - not 27-inch. The ride was good - but still not quite as good as a training sew-up. I haven't ridden a clincher since.
I guess what I'm getting at is that I really don't recall seeing good quality 27-inch wheels (alloy rims with decent hubs) since the early-to-mid 70s. After that everything seemed to go to 700c. Go figure.
Steve Whitting
Prairieville, Louisiana USA
http://ciocc-cat.angelfire.com/
From: Bill Talbot <bulldogsrule@graffiti.net> Subject: Re: [CR] Modern gumwall clincher To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2009, 8:05 PM
CRers and Gary,
I would say that you are slightly off here. My 1973 Gitane Gran Tourismo, a full Campy bike with Reynolds 531db frame is hardly a low end or even mid range bike. They were built with 27" wheels, perhaps for the American market. With the new style treaded Pasela tires she rides just as sweet as can be. These are by far the best tires I've rolled on in a 27 x 1 1/4 size. While maybe not at the Veloflex Pave tire level, they are far from even a mid range tire and an absolute steal at around $20 each.
This bike can be seen on my Wool Jersey site, when it is up and running again.
Bill Talbot New Hartford CT USA
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