I'm building a vintage weight weenie which has been an ongoing project for nearly 2 years. I've spent umpteen kazillion hours reading and starting posts in forums and other places, scanning catalogs, talking to local guys in the know trying to figure out what parts I wanted. The “vintage” part comes in with a cut off date of around 1992.
The craziness started when I finally had an idea of what I wanted parts wise to get to my target weight. I started searching for parts and being a thrifty fellow decided that it would be OK to compromise a bit on some of them even if I was gonna get a penalty for being a bit over weight with some parts. Sometimes you gotta draw the line somewhere on how much you’re willing to spend or how long you’re gonna look for a part right?
Well, first I bought a Zeus 2000 alloy freewheel and was pretty stoked as it is lighter than the Suntour Winner Pro which I love so dearly. Then I read about the Campy Ergals and just had to have one. Well they are a bit on the pricey side but in a saved search for Ergal freewheel I came across an Italian alloy freewheel by a manufacturer I'd never heard of before (something like machisimo?sp? I’ll dig it out later and update…). It is a 7 speed and weighs less than the 5 speed Zeus which is cool 'cause my frame is spaced for 126 out back. Then I happened upon 2 Suntour Microlite freewheels for a reasonable price (lighter still). Point is I've got a crap load of freewheels. I even bought some Reginas and other Suntours thinking the auctions weren’t represented well and maybe I'd luck out with an alloy version. Long story short….I could have bought a Campy Ergal or 2 (or 5) for the amount I have into this pile of vintage freewheels layin’ around here. I just tell myself I’ll need them someday.
I kinda did the same with stems.....I had a Cinelli stem lying around but decided it was a bit on the portly side for my likes so I then started hunting for and eventually bought a SR ESL which is very nice and certainly light but ended up with a Ti quill for cheap that weighs a bit less. The headset was an easy choice (although very hard to find)….A Nylfor. It weighs 38 grams! I also bought a couple of different alloy and Ti stem bolts just in case they are lighter than what my stem has.
The wheel build is where it gets real nutty. I went on a rampage buying all sorts of hubs trying to come up with a vintage wheel set that rivals the weight of new $3000+ wheel sets. Hi-E, American Classic, Paul, Mavic, etc...I've settled on the Hi-E's as the clear winner in light weight. Stupid light some of these things...Then I needed rims.....I bought a 24 hole Fiamme yellow label to match a hub set I have but have had no luck finding the match. Then I bought a very nice wheel set from a fellow with Campy NR hubs laced to 24 hole Fiamme Speedy rims but the angled braking surface makes me paranoid. Now I just scored a set of HI-E rims which are SUPER light but they are 36 hole and I only have one 36 hole Hi-E hub which just happens to be laced to yet another Fiamme yellow label! Not to mention I'm gonna have to source those pesky special washer thing-a-ma-bobs for the spoke holes in my Hi-E rims....So I'm about to freak out at this point.
The brakes were easy...CLB Spacelines (I bought 2 pairs for good measure and a set of Olympics just 'cause), Modolo Kronos levers and CLB duroLinox cables and housing. Some of it took a while to get especially the cables.
Shifty bits...I had a Huret Jubilee rear derailleur before this build but it was missing the special washer. I won one of those and bought another Jubille RD for good measure. Then I got it into my head that the drilled cage version must be lighter so I got one of those too. They're heavier FYI. I'm using either Modolo Kronos or Ofmega Mistral shifters and the front derailleur is a Rino but I'd prefer the 5 hole version of the Jubilee if I ever find one....
For the cranks I’ve got a fantastic set of Toplines and a White Industries bottom bracket with a Ti spindle and alloy cups. I’ve got some alloy crank and chainring bolts too. I haven’t gotten chainrings yet and I still need to get some AeroLite pedals.
Seat and post are either a Wound Up or American Classic with a Concor Lite.
So still on the list of to do’s…..Chainrings, bars, spoke washers, a 36 hole Hi-E hub (Or better yet 2 so I don’t have to take apart my wheel….Or maybe a 32 hole Hi-E rim.), quick releases, an alloy seat binder bolt, chain, pedals and I’m sure something I’m forgetting…..
Of course the bike will probably blow up on my first outing but I expect the whole thing to cave under my weight of 145 soaking wet. We’ll see…..Either way, it’s been a fun adventure but I really wish I could finish this thing!
So I guess the moral of the story is….If you’ve got a bare frame to build up and you have an idea of what you want. Stick to your guns! Or you’ll end up with enough parts to build 10 bikes or spend enough getting parts that you could have just bought a complete bike outright and saved yourself some serious coinage! What fun would that be though?
I just gotta keep telling myself the hunt is half the fun…..Right?
Kelly - great start to the blog. But, what's the frame you're building up? Scott Z.
ReplyDeleteOops....I guess I should have listed that! It's a "Dura All" which looks like a Vitus, SR or Alan lugged and bonded aluminum frame. I think it was in fact made by SR.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the compliment!