Classic & Vintage - campy mix and match

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View Full Version : campy mix and match


urodacus
05-06-08, 04:13 AM
obsessing over the derailleur on your otherwise-perfect 1970s Italian lady? this post from Fyxomatosis may solve some of those nsty sleepless nights you've been having... why do i have an SR cage on an NR body? why is the pulley wheel the wrong width?



'I believe I have 'fair dinkum' busted open the mythology surrounding unusually dated Campy rear derailleurs.

We have all seen the 2nd generation SR units dated pre 1979 and NR units with 1st generation SR plates. Were these secret prototypes that originated from the development bunker under Campagnolo HQ? The prices that have been paid would led you to expect as much......

Now my little tale....

I recently received a package from a close friend who lives in northern Italy and it consisted of about a kilogram of small rear derailleur parts and a Campagnolo stamped hand held punch set. The parts are a mix of NR, SR1st and 2nd gen components. My friend lived in a town close to the Campy factory, went to school with the children of Campagnolo employees and played with them out of school. It was common practice, and knowledge for some employees to take small components from the factory and make up rear derailleurs at home in the evening as a 'sideline'. The village barber, an ex pro racer, had a glass showcase in his shop where he not only displayed these but sold them as well.

When you think about it, what perfect sense this makes. So much easier to stuff into your pocket than a crankset - and a reasonably high value item to boot. I would say that there would be a lot of BB sets and headsets out there as well that never had boxes. These guys would not be a pedantic as us about dates and the details we agonise over....just get it together and make it work! I imagine that the 'blue collar' Campy workers of the '70s were only on basic wages and stock control would have been fairly elastic. Obviously Campagnolo Pty Ltd would have done something about this had they known, and this problem of staff theft is still one of the largest security issues that exists in modern business.

I'm glad I didn't invest in a funky collection of mismatching rears when the urge began to take hold a while back...now I can make my own!'


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2013/2145466298_c2270f3b3c_b.jpg

http://www.fyxomatosis.com/news.php?readmore=1183

while you're at it, have a look at some of the beautiful Italian ladies he has on display in that thread. mostly Colnago close-ups. bellissima!


Torchy McFlux
05-06-08, 04:31 AM
Yesterday I read that in 60% of retail business failures, shrinkage was a significant factor.
I can picture some Romanian guy with a Record gruppo hanging from the inside of his trenchcoat trying to flog it in the backalleys of Bucharest.

cyclotoine
05-06-08, 11:17 AM
SO jealous! I want I want I want that pile...


el twe
05-06-08, 11:28 AM
I saw that earlier. So cool! I'm gonna just pretend that my '83 SR rear der. was pieced together by some grumpy old Italian factory worker.

caterham
05-06-08, 12:45 PM
We have all seen the 2nd generation SR units dated pre 1979




the 2nd gen super record rear was released in 1978.

anywhoo.... interesting theory that doesn't likely have much current impact or relevance outside of a few isolated pieces acquired from northern italy. i won't say it never happened but most date code irregularities are simply innaccuracies of reconstructed timelines and the irregularity & quirks of campagnolo's sporadic catalogue issues. campagnolo at the time did not release product according to model years. often the official release of a component would be many months and as much as a full year or more *prior to* or *after* the latest catalogue was printed and distributed. the bulk of the remainder of oddball "mixed"components can usually be attributed to owner performed "upgrades" and repairs.

luker
05-06-08, 08:51 PM
"Ma'am? Would you mind posing on my bicycle in your skimpy little skirt? I collect these pictures, see..."

"Get away from me, you filthy old hippie wino! I'm calling the cops!"

Nah. I ain't gonna start my own foto gallery...

cudak888
05-06-08, 09:03 PM
Well, believe it or not, I do have a second-gen SR RD, pat '83, that came from one of the LBS's complete with a cheap drillium NR outer parallelogram arm. The drillium didn't strike me as unusual as the fact that someone was able to piece together the replacement arm onto the SR derailer with stock Campagnolo components, and make it appear factory besides.

-Kurt

urodacus
05-08-08, 02:12 AM
"Ma'am? Would you mind posing on my bicycle in your skimpy little skirt? I collect these pictures, see..."

"Get away from me, you filthy old hippie wino! I'm calling the cops!"

Nah. I ain't gonna start my own foto gallery...

you callin' yourself out as a filthy old wino hippie?

i mean, i drink wine, my clothes are a bit different, and I'm old, and i sometimes smell, but those four words strung all together like that just have a certain something about them...

andy does like his bikes. and they're normally pretty stock and well-restored; he rides road bikes too. besides, i think he probably takes less photos of other women now he's married.

jeffieh
05-08-08, 02:34 AM
"Get away from me, you filthy old hippie wino! I'm calling the cops!"

Filthy old hippie winos on bikes.
I always knew bikeforums.net was for me!
Even better, the acronym spells fohwob. That's gotta be something.

luker
05-08-08, 09:15 PM
Oh heck yeah. Best freakin' acronym I've heard all week.

I certainly qualify. fohwob.