Don't have much...literally OR figuratively!

   There isn't a whole lot to discuss this time around, but I didn't want to leave regular readers hanging too long between blog entries, and I wanted to mention a current bike listing, as well as a new project. I also wanted to complain about how poor my fitness was when I hit the road during a little tease of spring-like weather this week.
   This winter has just seemed eternal, with multiple doses of snow (although, thankfully just a couple inches at a time) and streaks of days with brutally cold temps, but I have remained fairly active, getting outside for skating, cross-country skiing and a couple of hikes. I have also gotten out a handful of times on my bikes and been on the indoor trainer fairly regularly, so I couldn't understand the level of "out-of-shapeness" I was feeling when I hopped on my Colnago and put in about 30 miles on on the Schuylkill Trail.
   Just a few weeks ago I went out with Sue and a few friends on the Chester Valley Trail and felt absolutely amazing - I have no idea what happened in between! I have had some nagging health issues that have caused some (more-than-usually) restless sleep, and I'm sure that can't really help.
   The most annoying result from the rides, however, has been some tightness in my lower back. I've had neck/shoulder problems in the past, but my lower back has not caused problems since I was in my mid-twenties. I've started to do some physical therapy, and I suppose I need to pay more attention to the core exercises that helped stabilize that area when I had my previous aches and pains.

   I'm a bit frustrated by how close I am to complete both the Gios-Torino and Peugeot bicycles, as I just need a couple (unfortunately crucial) parts. The Gios needs a bottom bracket, and I keep getting nipped at the end of eBay auctions. It seems that the Peugeot headset issue is that someone put a British-threaded headset on a French-threaded steering post. I have the appropriate part on order and just need to wait for its arrival.

   I heard from my friend Brendan, and we exchanged messages about a couple of possible future projects, including building up the Tommasini for which he had been gradually collecting parts. He also asked me to list the Benotto "Townie" bike on my FOR SALE page. Click here to see more detailed photos, but I've provided a quick pic below to refresh your memory:

   During my regular eBay searches, I found this really interesting early 1990s Columbus-tubed frame from a relatively unknown company, Scanini (the "U" stands for Ugo).

   The headquarters of the now-defunct company was in the small town of Beauvechain, located in the French-speaking province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium. I couldn't find out much more about the brand, and it's possible the company was started by Italian immigrants. However, it is more likely that, since many of the country's successful cyclists of that era were on teams riding Italian bikes, several of the area builders used Italian-sounding names. I am aware of Belgian companies Paganini, Cascarsi and Clemenso.

   Scanini shopped-out many of its racing frames - this particular version was assembled by Belgian Eddy Martens, whose "Italianized" last name became the company brand, Martelly. Scanini also contracted some frames with Italian company Billato, who also built for Ciocc, Battaglin and Concorde. The bottom bracket threading (British vs. Italian) is a simple way to distinguish the Scanini builder.

   I have a Campagnolo Chorus groupset, as well as a 3T stem/bar combo, waiting on the shelf for this one, and just need to acquire a headset, a pair of wheels and a saddle/post to finish this build.

Hopefully I'll have something completed by the next time around! 

 

Un Peu de Français

  I would really love to put Campagnolo Super Record gruppo on all my vintage bicycle builds, but those components are becoming harder and harder to find, plus they demand premium prices. I would like to keep my builds within a budget that is reasonable to me and potential buyers, so I have developed a few strategies to combat the expense of the Italian parts.

   I found that by stepping down a level or two to Chorus or Athena components really helps, as many of those parts have a decent amount of design features that have “trickled down” from the development of the company’s top-of-the-line products. I have also discovered that I can sometimes save money by buying a complete “donor bike” that has the components I want, then simply swapping the parts to my project bicycle and selling the bare frame. Occasionally I’ll find a donor bicycle that can become a project on its own, maybe because it had some mismatched parts or perhaps some that were inappropriate to the style or era of the bike.

   The bike I'm currently trying to complete is called a Gios-Torino Super Record for a reason, and I couldn’t really short cut to a lower level of Campagnolo parts this time around. However, it didn’t take long for me to become completely discouraged by the outrageous asking prices for the groupsets I had seen online. I did happen to see an interesting 1979 Peugeot bicycle that someone had equipped with mostly Super Record parts. At 58 centimeters, its size was a bit larger than I usually purchase, but I kept an eye on it for a few weeks until the price dropped significantly.

   When I made an offer at just a few bucks lower, and it was accepted, I began to look at the opportunity of doing a full French build on this classic PX 10/E, one of the company’s most popular professional-quality racing bikes of the 1960s-70s. Vintage bicycle fans have put together a few invaluable websites which feature old catalogs that had been scanned and uploaded, and I started to do some research on Peugeot machines to find out what parts they might have originally included. I wasn’t necessarily going to be exact, but I could use these resources as a guide to get as close as possible and achieve a bicycle build with a true Gallic feel.

   This particular PX 10/E came to me with stem/handlebars and seatpost made, respectively, by French companies Pivo and Laprade, so I planned on keeping those. Also included was a classic leather saddle by BIM, a quality French “Brooks-alike” product.

   I quickly turned to searching for the appropriate Simplex derailleurs, and found a set that was specially marked for Peugeot!

    St. Etienne-based manufacturer CLB had also put out a special Peugeot brakeset, but those are extremely rare (and I would guess pricey), so I settled for the standard version. CLB was second only to Mafac as the leading post-WW2 French manufacturer of brakes, and I really liked the unique shape of their GL-series calipers.

   I was really fired up to find a Stronglight (yet another French company) crankset with Peugeot engravings and “drillium”. The boring out of the metal is really meant as a weight-reducing measure, but it can be a real work of art if done by the right hands!

   A set of era-appropriate Mavic wheels with Atom hubs and a Maillard 5-speed freewheel rounded out the collecting, and other than a bit of polishing, the parts all came to me in really nice condition. During preliminary assembly, I unfortunately found that the adjustable headset upper cup included on the Peugeot had stripped threads. It appears the previous user had just cinched down the locknut to hold everything in (somewhat precarious) place.

   I contacted the seller about the issue for a partial refund, but I’m not sure which direction I want to go - replace the worn-out part or the complete headset. It is a Shimano Arabesque model, a quality product with very attractive markings, but it really requires a special tool for proper assembly, and it is a Japanese product not really fitting in with my overall scheme. I’ll have to wait for the seller’s response and weigh my options, as far as cost and what other French parts might be available to swap in.

Shimano HP-6200, 600EX Arabesque headset

   At the other end of the shop, the Gios-Torino Super Record is coming together nicely, as far as the collecting of parts goes. The Campagnolo group that I swapped out from the Peugeot will take a bit of cleaning, but it is in really nice shape.

   I sanded down some of the rough spots on the Gios frame in anticipation of touching up those areas. I ordered a bottle of blue paint that was recommended online as a match for the company’s famous blue, but apparently the key is applying the reddish primer underneath to get the correct hue.

   We keep getting teased with a couple days of reasonable riding weather, only to be followed up with some brutal cold and snow. The pattern is driving me crazy, as I am pretty sick and tired of the indoor trainer. I actually yelled “Whoo-hoo!” when riding with some friends up a hill near Valley Forge, so excited I was to be out on the road for a little while. I don’t remember ever looking forward to spring so much!