Eight Is Enough – Bike Snob NYC
Whereas I’ll diplomatically seek the advice of with you as “readers,” you’re in actuality merely victims of irrespective of my latest fixation happens to be, and in the intervening time that’s the Inexperienced ‘Noner:
Or is it blue?
It’s like that Internet robe the place no particular person can agree what shade it’s:
[See this dress? Some people think it’s black, but it’s actually yellow with purple polka-dots.]
Since Friday’s moist journey I’ve had additional time to judge the state of the drivetrain, and due to my very personal images I discovered one factor:
See how that ferrule on the derailleur cable housing isn’t seated throughout the cable stop?
That’s what happens when you pull a motorcycle out of a subject of newspaper and don’t take the time to look it over sooner than utilizing it. Plus, it was raining, and moist conditions always make soiled drivetrains perform even worse. Nonetheless after hosing the bike down, readjusting the cable, and test-riding it on a dry, sunny day, I really feel maybe the drivetrain not as far gone as I assumed, and I’m hoping a model new cassette, chain, and cables will possible be ample to revive it to an acceptable stage of effectivity for a non-racing semi-professional bike blogger. Really I’m not anticipating it to run like new:
[From here.]
Nonetheless I similar to the shifters and I’m hoping they’ve purchased a bit additional life in them:
Actually older Campagnolo shifters are famously rebuildable, as a result of the Campy-philes under no circumstances tire of reminding you, nevertheless good luck discovering the elements for 8-speed shifters. Within the meantime, not solely does Shimano proceed to make 8-speed built-in shifters to at the present time, nevertheless must you’ve purchased an outdated bike you want to spruce up you’re going to get one for like $50 or one factor:
Sure, no particular person will get passionate about Claris, nevertheless I’m guessing it actually works at least along with the high-end 8-speed shifters of yesteryear, and is perhaps a reasonably first fee different in your outdated Ultegra shifter or irrespective of must you’re not hung up on names. Within the meantime, Campagnolo has prolonged abandoned 8-speed, and it’s correct up there with Uniglide as far as component availability (or lack thereof):
[Via Sheldon “Sheldon Brown” Sheldon Brown]
Certain, not like Uniglide, there’s nonetheless like one agency that makes Campagnolo 8-speed cassettes, though it’s not Campagnolo. Nonetheless at least with Uniglide you’re nonetheless throughout the Shimano universe, which makes mixing and matching easier. Nonetheless using Campagnolo is type of like being on an island, and using 8-speed Campagnolo is type of like being on a teeny-tiny island within the midst of a lake surrounded by sharks (they’re latest water sharks, okay???) on that larger island.
Fortuitously regardless of what variety of cogs you may have or how they’re related to your hub there’s always an easy and trendy decision:
Nonetheless proper right here’s the issue with the ‘Noner: not counting the bikes ridden by completely different family members or owned by Conventional Cycle, proper right here’s how my current shifting state of affairs breaks down:
Cervino
[Old Campy antennae]
Faggin
[Silver]
Milwaukee
[Silver]
Homer
Platypus
[Silver2]
Jones
[SRAM wide-range clickety-click]
That’s in the intervening time my solely bike with an listed shifter, though I even had a Silver2 shifter on that one for awhile–and it labored pretty good, too, notably considering it’s not alleged to:
Like utilizing commando in jorts, that’s a lotta friction.
The friction-ification of my bikes occurred on account of not solely do I like the feel of them, nevertheless not having to rely cogs or concern about matching shifters and derailleurs is profoundly liberating. (I recurrently swap forwards and backwards between a 6-speed freewheel and a 9-speed cassette on the Cervino, and there’s nary a criticism from the 42 year-old drivetrain.) Even so, I don’t want to do the equivalent issue however as soon as extra with the ‘Noner, and wish to benefit from it in its fin de siècle last-gasp-of-the-steel-race-bike glory, Ergo shifters and all. Moreover, if you’re totally free from having to stress about stuff like cog spacing and cable pull due to friction shifters, it’s type of pleasurable to dork out over it a bit and ponder the little accidents and workarounds of listed shifting compatibility when it’s fully non-obligatory:
[From here.]
As an example, a Campagnolo 8-speed cassette has the equivalent spacing as a 7-speed Shimano, which I assume means must you’ve purchased an 8-speed Campagnolo bike with a foul shifter and good each factor else (and in addition you’ve purchased an aversion to friction shifters and/or paying basic Campagnolo elements prices) you would possibly always stick a 7-speed Shimano shifter and Shimano derailleur on there and use seven of eight cogs:
[Via Shimano]
And whereas Shimano shifters aren’t theoretically rebuildable, one thing can be overhauled must you’ve purchased adequate time in your fingers:
I had adequate time on my fingers to take a look at up until he revealed the shifter’s innards, which was pretty cool:
Then [dripping blood letters] The Algorithm [/dripping blood letters] served me this video of Jerry Seinfeld talking about his favorite points. Whereas he didn’t level out Campagnolo (at least I don’t suppose he did, I didn’t have time to finish the video) he did level out this Italian coffeemaker:
He then well-known that the company that made it went bankrupt, and remarked, “That’s Italy: make one of the best issue on the earth and nonetheless screw it up.”
That’s about almost nearly as good a summary of Campagnolo as I’ve ever heard.
