Before my dad bought his C-Record Merckx in the late 80's, the family stable consisted of mostly Shimano bits, with a light smattering of Suntour. All these components were things of beauty – after all, there is something of fundemental beauty in any bike part – but none of these trascended time. In a sense, I could imagine how each piece was conceived, and how it might be made.
During the procurement of that Merckx, we made several visits to De Grimpeur, the shop where he bought it. First to admire the frame after it had been picked up by the shop owner over dinner with Merckx himself; again after the gruppo arrived, and finally as the little bits such as the one-off Campagnolo saddle found it's way to the shop and the bike was built. I was wild with anticipation over the fact that this bike was going to have Campagnolo parts; the closest I'd been to a Campy component was reaching out to touch the television screen as Fignon attacked LeMond on Alpe d'Huez.
Seeing the bike built for the first time, the delta brakes changed the way I thought about components. They seemed otherworldly and I couldn't take my eyes off them. They looked as though they might have been crafted in the fires of Mount Velomis itself. But the gruppo's beauty ran way beyond just the brakes; each and every part had a quality that was missing from anything else I'd ever seen. Indeed, the shape and curve of each component seemed to be defined as much by its purpose as by its beauty, and that beauty was punctuated by the luster of the finish given to each component.
It's this finish, more than anything else, that sets Campagnolo appart from other component manufacturers. In fact, it's this finish that makes me feel a little bit dirty labeling Campagnolo as a “manufacturer.” It's this finish that causes me to bemoan the current trend of producing black components.
The delta brakes were prominent, but there was a more subtle component on the Merckx that I didn't discover until later: the rear hub. This was a thing of unequalled beauty; the way it flared out to the drive side in a luxurious curve of elemental sexiness is a sight to behold. Sunlight twinkled off the hub in that devine way which it can only do off a highly polished, perfectly curved, spinning surface. That twinkle occupied countless hours of my imagination as my dad and I trained together day after day.
As I set about building up my TSX, my attention turned to a set of wheels to match the rest of the bike. Box rims and a 3-cross laced spoke pattern obviously, but the hubs were a question. I have been spoiled by the ease of sealed cartridge bearings and crave their convenience, but modern hubs lack the beauty of the Old Glory Days; even the current Record hubs look to be made on a lathe rather than by magic, which is a bit sad. Phil Wood, American classic, Royce – they all have amazing hubs – in particular Royce – but they don't capture the imagination the way the old silver Record hubs do.
The truth was unavoidable: I needed a set of old 9/10 speed silver Record hubs. Since the new ones are black and too angular, the search was on. eBay has a healthy flow of these hubs, and although it took some discovery to learn to recognize the 9/10 speed hubs versus the older 8 speed hubs, my watch list was soon brimming with hub candidates. I let several auctions run out as I tried to get a feeling for the prices the hubs were fetching. I bid on a few and lost out. Then I found a mislabeled set built up with Mavic Open Pros. Because they were labeled only as Open Pros and the auction neglected to refer to the Record hubs, there was very little activity, and they were mine for a bargain.
The amazing thing about eBay is that the patient bidder can come across a dream product for a palatable price. The problem with eBay is you never really know what you're going to get until its in your hands. Mine arrived in absolutely perfect order. Aside from a thorough cleaning (they were rather dirty), they needed nothing aside from a set of tires. I turned to my old friends the Gommitalia Calypso, and have myself a stunning wheelset.
[dmalbum path=”/velominati.com/content/Photo Galleries/frank@velominati.com/Record Hubs/”/]
This Fall, I will tear these wheels down, service the hubs, and build them back up with the Mavic MP4 Tubs that Gianni sent me last year. The Open Pros will go to another wheelset that is in need of some fresh rims and the cycle will continue. In the meantime, I'm rather satisfied with the end result, though I have to admit that the Salsa Ti skewers seem a bit out of place at this point; they will eventually be replaced by some good ol' fashioned Campy ones. Everything in it's time.
As I close this chapter, I find myself moving on to the next question: when I rebuild the wheels, which tires will go with them? Vittoria, FMB? Thankfully, the possibilities are endless; it will take me at least a summer to make up my mind.
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Maiden voyage on the wheels. The hubs are mezmerizing to watch, and I love the sound the bike makes; the wheels and tires sound like a scene right out of Stars and Watercarriers.
All that aside, and I love this bike, but all the hype over ride quality and comfort I think is borne from people who haven't ridden an R3 extensively or a similarly performing modern bike. The steel under performs in comparison in every respect, from comfort to stiffness to weight. I guess that's why the pros are racing carbon bikes (and winning three Roubaixs in 6 years aboard R3s) and not steel. Even cornering - and the 3cross wheels are RAD in the turns - the R3 is unlike anything I've ever ridden; the rear triangle is vertically so compliant (forgive me the Huagnism) that the back end gets loaded like a ski and you can literally carve the bike through the corners if you lean into it right. Incredible feeling, a twisty descent feels like skiing.
Don't get me wrong, though, this bike is a complete kick to ride. Absolutely love it. One thing I guess that it does better, but it has nothing to do with materials, is the low BB puts it so nice and low to the road, like I remember bikes used to be. Not sure what the trend is with the higher BB's these days? Cornering clearance is all I can think of, but man, that low BB just puts that baby on rails. Maybe it's not as big a deal for smaller people.
In any case: Awesome.
I need to get a "Bikes" article together about my new steel bike. Long story short is that I have a modern hi-end carbon bike (not a Cervelo, a Scott CR1) and I have a modern high-end steel bike (including steel fork) that I built up specifically to be a dream to ride on the royally f-ed up roads we have in Mass (no need to go planning a special Roubaix-homage ride here; that's the only kind we have). What has happened is that I end up riding the steel a LOT more than the carbon, because it is just more pleasant (and it's a beautiful bike that gets lots of comments). The other thing that is really clear is that while I can ride a faster average for 50K on the carbon (especially if I can find some smooth tarmac to ride on), I can do a faster average for 200K on the steel, because I am fresher and more comfortable at the end. Oh, and the steel bike has 28mm tires (Rivendell) on 23mm rims (Velocity) laced with C-Xray spokes (28-2cross F / 32-3cross R) to Chris King R45 hubs. They rock. If I had to own just one road wheelset, I would take that one over the Zipp 404's on my Scott.
Sorry to hijack your thread, Frank!
@blaireau
Awesome! Write it up!
The point above, though, that I was making was specifically towards rides like the Scott or even the Cervelo S3 et al; as far as compliance, you just can't beat that R3's design, it really is amazing. Other frames are much harsher and in that case, absolutely, the steel would be more comfortable especially in the long term. But when you've got the R3 in the stable, the comfort delta just ain't there.
Can't wait for your article!
I'm not going to say carbon isn't a fine material - I'd love a full-carbon bike myself instead of the half-breed I currently ride - but I'd argue the peloton rides what they are TOLD to ride, and in recent times carbon has been the hot product pushed by the major manufacturers that supply UCI-approved bikes. I imagine profit margins are much better on carbon bikes than on bikes hewn from solid hunks of expensive alloys. Getting your potential customer base to drool over expensive carbon bikes all year then purchase them sounds like a smart business choice to me.
So, until we have a series of races where the whole peloton swaps their carbon bikes for full-custom, MODERN steel, I'm going to say that the pro preference has as much to do with business decisions by the bike industry and the UCI as rider preference.
But that's just my conspiracy theory.
Several of the pros I know have steel bikes in their home stables, but I doubt many would want to trade their carbon race bikes in. Until steel bikes can be made as light and stiff as carbon bikes it won't happen - the soulful feel of a steel bike is just for recreational enthusiasts like us.
As Brett already knows, I am about to take delivery of a 1994 steel Bosomworth I grabbed on TradeMe last Thursday. It was specifically built for the guy I've bought it from. He's a bit shorter than me, so I am praying it fits me. Assuming it does, there will be another progetto in progress - il mio progetto per l'inverno (Pedale, did I get that right?). I might even take a few photos for possible future publication. (Oli - I might need to come see you about cold setting the frame to accommodate a wider axle for an 11-speed cluster ...)
Sweet as, although you might need to wait until I have my core strength back - I don't want to explode all over your new Bossie!
Oooohhh I'm glad you got that G'Phant, I think I saw that one on Tardeme.
I have my bike frame sitting next to me at work. Banged a headset into it this arvo, hopefully get to build up the rest of it tonight.
Which one is it BTW? Does it have like 5 or 6 colours over a white base? And Campy?
Rode bespoke Ti for 7 years, couldn't imagine why I'd need another frame. Also own bespoke steel with s&s couples as my traveller. The Ti frame is a better bike than I'll ever justify and has done years of fantastic service without complaint, including P-R sportive and RVV route. The steel frame is a thing of beauty - thin tubes, a glorious paint job - although I am not sure I ride it enough to really appreciate any mythical "ride quality". Last year I finally gave into the siren call of carbon and bought a carbon frame from a German company that sells wholly over the internet and sponsors a pro tour team that has enjoyed a run of success of late. I went for that particular brand of carbon frame primarily because it was a cheap entre into the world of carbon, which I figured wouldn't be much different (and maybe worse) than the world of Ti. I have been completely converted. The carbon frame is better. Lighter, stiffer (especially the front end), faster.(Although maybe not better looking.) Ti still comes out comes out (and gets to wear tubs) when the weather is miserable and I feel the need for a true work horse. Steel gets pulled out when the sun comes out and I am not in a hurry to get anywhere other than round the next bend. But now days I pretty much ride carbon as a default.
@minion
No. It's white base at head tube and edges of the down, top and seat tubes, but airbrushed through grey into black in middle of top, down and seat tubes.