Fifty Plus (50+) - The beginning and end all at once.

I am avid when it comes to riding but up until today it has been 100% classic and vintage machines for me. I love old bikes (my main ride was built in 1974) and never saw any reason to upgrade. Last night I located and purchased a newish (for me) Paramount with Shimano 105 stuff and index shifting. All I can say is Holy Moly! This thing stops on a dime and when you change gears it just clicks right in to the next cog, no dicking around to find the gear and keep it quiet.
C and V I used to love ya but no more. This Paramount is a 1994, 20 years newer than I was riding but still 12 years behind today.
Baby, I'm buying me a new ride soon, I can tell!

Mike

Yep. I love "classic things" (i drive a 41 year old car!) including bikes, but one ride with indexed shifters and I was hooked. Same thing for clipless pedals. I can't see myself really wanting downtube shifters or cages/straps ever again!

My '92 Bridgestone RB-1 came with indexed bar end shifters. I later swapped them for friction bar ends which I like better.

But my next new bike will be a modern road bike.

Never craved a vintage bike- but think that is because I started around 1990 and on mountain bikes. They had not been around for many years and those early MTB's were still on a learning curve. Front suspension was just coming in and aluminium had only appeared on the anciliaries for bikes and not frames. When I look at even the best bikes from that time- in comparison to modern bikes- they were not that good.

So As I have updated bikes over the years- It has been for improvement on ridability and not nostalgia. As I now class myself as a roadie-I still want to ride a bike that works for me. Compact crankset- high gears for the hills, and plenty of themm, and a bike that is not heavy for the hills.

I do not want 10 or 12 gear bikes set up for flat areas or downhills and with a weight of around 25lbs+. May be my misconception of what classic bikes are but I do prefer to have a modern bike that is not a struggle to ride.

Doesn't mean I don't admire some of them- but I will admire them from riding alongside them and not on them.

I have a vintage bike, but it was brand new in 1968 when I bought it, I ride it mostly on the local trails or just out for a short spin to get ice cream. I have a whole stable of newer bikes, and to tell the truth, the new ones are just too nice to ride the vintage on long rides.

I love my oldy but it is just to heavy, hard to shift, not to mention the gear ratio is pretty limited, to take out on long rides.

get ya a nice entry level bike, unless ya got the dough for something real nice, and make sure you get fitted by a quality shop. you won't be sorry and just use the vintage for those nostalgia moments

You really don't have to give up that vintage look to get a modern bike. My Simoncini although now about 15 years old has the rear dropouts spaced for a 10 speed cassett and the steel is top quality, infact the weight of the frame/fork is only about 1lb more than CF equivalent, it is classic geometry and lines, the fork ends and chain stays are chrome (not really - actually the whole frame is nickle plated so where there is no paint it looks/shines like chrome). It is a real classic look. Just rebuilt it last fall with a Campy compact carbon group and put some nice wheels on it and I keep up with other riders on their newer CF or Ti rigs. In fact I feel I perform just as well on it as I do on my CF Specialized Tarmac.

So if you like a vintage look - you don't have to sacrifice performance for it.

I think you will find using a mix of the old and the new the mos rewarding approach. I have a 20 year old bike with indexing gears and a new carbon fiber. I enjoy riding both, it depends on how I feel and what type of riding I might want to do. Get positive comments on both as well. Enjoy. :D

I have a 20 year old bike with indexing gears and a new carbon fiber.

WOW - where on your old bike did you put that lone new carbon fiber - maybe replaced a cable with it :roflmao2: