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Post by charlien on May 11, 2021 19:37:58 GMT
I am an original owner of an early sewnup tire model. I bought this at the Bicycle Cellar in Simsbury Conn in early '73. I can not say it is 100% original since I changed out the shifters and the rear rim was replaced due to it taking a thump. I drilled the original chainrings which is something I have found I like to do especially now when helping customers build sub 10# commuting bikes. When the letter arrived to get new forks, I carried the steel ones out of the shop in my hand, searched around and bought the set of alloy forks that are on this today. If I recall I rode some more years on the originals, and for what it's worth, I rarely have the rear wheel on the ground when I am slowing down. I had repainted the frame in the early years, it was originally white. As I was just whipping the dust off this I was sad to find the bath towel on one pass took the white paint off the downtube sticker, oh well. This bike was ridden allot for a decade, life got in the way for years in the '80s and just intermittent use int the past 20 or so. I seem to ride one of my Litech Magnesium frame bikes since I live in a gravel road world now.
CharlieN
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Post by charlien on May 11, 2021 19:40:08 GMT
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Post by wheelson on May 11, 2021 20:23:18 GMT
I am an original owner of an early sewnup tire model. I bought this at the Bicycle Cellar in Simsbury Conn in early '73. I can not say it is 100% original since I changed out the shifters and the rear rim was replaced due to it taking a thump. I drilled the original chainrings which is something I have found I like to do especially now when helping customers build sub 10# commuting bikes. When the letter arrived to get new forks, I carried the steel ones out of the shop in my hand, searched around and bought the set of alloy forks that are on this today. If I recall I rode some more years on the originals, and for what it's worth, I rarely have the rear wheel on the ground when I am slowing down. I had repainted the frame in the early years, it was originally white. As I was just whipping the dust off this I was sad to find the bath towel on one pass took the white paint off the downtube sticker, oh well. This bike was ridden allot for a decade, life got in the way for years in the '80s and just intermittent use int the past 20 or so. I seem to ride one of my Litech Magnesium frame bikes since I live in a gravel road world now.
CharlieN
Welcome! Great story and nice job on the “drillium”. I’ve thought about that for one of my Viscount builds. There was a lot of that going on in the ‘70s. Austro Daimler used factory drilled black 1st generation Dura Ace chainrings, a very neat look indeed. Best, John “wheelson”
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Jem
Viscount
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Posts: 3,390
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Post by Jem on May 11, 2021 20:48:13 GMT
Welcome to the site charlien - great story, and great looking bike! Thanks for posting up. Stay around if you can, things are quiet at the moment but lots of wonderful members with lots of interest in these 'old' bikes here
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Post by charlien on May 11, 2021 20:51:16 GMT
Thank you John, Yah I did my share of drilling back then. I need to shoot a shot of the shifters cause those are filed out as well. The rear shifter cage I started to drill but looks like I put it back together and never got back to it. Probably got distracted with a rare British car I had just acquired at the time. Now I have two milling machines so my drilling is a bit more refined in what I probably should not have done.
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Post by charlien on May 11, 2021 20:56:33 GMT
A fresh shot of the drilled and filed shifters.
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Post by oldroadietehachapi on May 12, 2021 5:11:41 GMT
Welcome to the forum! Great bike and what a history!
Ride Happy Jim
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Post by franco on Jun 6, 2021 12:20:00 GMT
A really tidy job you did on the chainrings.
A friend of mine inherited his grandads Aerospace Sport a few years ago and he had also drilled the chainrings.
Welcome to the forum.
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