Campagnolo Mixed Group - SR and NR

Grabbed this off the Los Angeles CraigsList the other day. The seller was a former bike shop employee and this gear was covered in grime, but had very little shop wear. Grime can be your friend, as it often protects components from the elements and buffers against abrasions. Plus, I just love bringing out the chrome polish and restoring the original luster of old Campy gear. 


Collection included SR and NR brake levers and one set of calipers, SR crankset with extra set of NR chainrings, spare pair of Campy skewers, extra Campy brake pads, Zeus high flange hubset (haven't polished them up enough to see if they are the Gigante Road or the Criterium), SR seatpost, extra left crank arm, Cinelli Giro de Italia 40cm bars, Cinelli 120mm stem, English thread BB, two complete headsets, Cristophe toe clips and straps, SR front and NR rear derailleurs, shifters, Campy Superleggera pedals (at least I hope they are; the Super Record with titanium spindles were lighter, but prone to failure). 

Campagnolo Brake Hood Repair

This has not been road-tested. Just made this repair this morning and am giving it 48 hours to fully set. I kind of like the "scar" this created. :)

There were some colorful words spoken as soon as I realized I'd ripped this.

Any gel-type super glue should work fine. I'm fairly certain that I also bonded a small part of the hood to the lever. I'll worry about that at a later date.

I held this tightly for at least 90 seconds.

It was still holding tight an hour after being glued. I'll create another post as a follow-up after I road test this thoroughly. 

The Art of Bicycle Storage

This is not a "real" problem. It's an inconvenience, and I have to keep reminding myself of that whenever I feel the need to complain. Having too many bicycles and not enough space is like complaining that you simply have too much gold to fit into your purse. No one, except another collector, should give me any sympathy for this. 

That being said, space IS becoming an issue, and I'm actually enjoying finding creative ways of storing my bikes. I found a cool Web site that has many bicycle storage solutions. You can visit that HERE.


I've got several hanging from their wheels, propped up. 


What ways have you found to store your bicycle(s)?

1985 Centurion "Cinelli" Equipe

Even with a microfiber cloth lining the shop stand jaws, the Equipe logo disintegrated. :( Lesson learned, and WHY didn't Centurion clear coat these decals?

Test ride of this bike HERE.

I've decided to concentrate on collecting unique bicycles, for now, anyway.

This Centurion certainly qualifies. Popular "expert" opinion estimates the number of stock Equipe bicycles may be as high as 50, but probably fewer, and this one is pretty darn close to stock. The brake levers are not stock, as the original, Universal AER levers were replaced at some point with Modolo Speedy levers. I've got an eBay search for the originals, so it's only a matter of time. Just put the Dia Compe 204 hoods on the Speedy levers and they fit perfectly.

The original Cinelli seat was falling apart, and I have another Cinelli Volare on a different bike that I'll swap over as time permits.

The Ofmega Sintesi pedals are long gone as well, replaced with period-correct (well, within a year or two) Campagnolo Chorus pedals. [6/30/13 Update - I bought a pair of NOS Ofmega Sintesi pedals and installed them on the bike. They work well, but the bolts for the toe clips are a real pain to keep tight.]

I'll let you read up on the history of the Centurion Equipe HERE on the Cinelli Only blog. The owner of the site, Angel has good info there and is restoring another variation of the "Equipe" which you can read about HERE. 

How does it ride? Smooth, stable, tracks like an arrow and is ready to jump into action when needed. The component mix, except for the brakes which don't stop worth a darn, is excellent, and the frame is light and responsive. Sew ups are such a joy to ride on. More on that in an upcoming post.

Enjoy the pics above and see more HERE.

Test ride of this bike HERE.

Touring Bicycles and Such

"Touring Position" Graphic borrowed from zombikombi1959 on Flickr

I KNOW this site is all about racing bicycles, but I love this poster and had to share. Plus, it's my Web site, so I can do what I wish. :)

Seems we used to see many more touring cyclists, especially in the summer, loaded with gear and heading up or down the coast here. Not sure if that's the case in other areas of the country, so chime in and let me know your impression.

Eroica Cicli - Italian Vintage Bicycle Restorations

Just stumbled across the Eroica Cicli site and am really enjoying reading up on their restorations and treasured classic bicycles and parts. Enjoy!  http://www.eroicacicli.com/

Typographic Bicycle

Learn the parts of a bicycle the fun way. Borrowed this from HERE. Click on image to enlarge.