View Single Post
Old 04-03-10 | 08:12 AM
  #11  
JML's Avatar
JML
Senior Member
15 Anniversary
 
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 157
Likes: 2
From: Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Bikes: 3Rensho SR Export

The model name is "Super Record Export," which was applied to the chainstays of the bikes brought into the US, apparently.

The first set of wheels I had on the bike were build on Campy NR hubs with Mavic MA40 rims, and they needed truing more than I had hoped, although they were built by an excellent builder. The second set was built on Campy C Record hubs and Mavic Open4CD rims (the black rims in the pictures), and after 25 years, the rubber seals in the hubs went bad. It's the death knell to what was otherwise a great spinning set of hubs. They swell up over time, and bind. Whether they bind or not, you can't service the hubs without tearing out the rubber completely. There are no replacements -- Campy never made any, and the rubber was glued to the hub. While the hubs could be repacked with new grease, there was nothing much preventing dirt from entering the races. I guess I got my money's worth out of the old ones.

The new wheels are Phil hubs with Mavic Open Pro (silver) rims (32-hole) and DT double-butted spokes, cross-three. They were built by a great wheelbuilder in Pittsburgh, Scott Wickham. The Phil rear hub has the required 126mm spacing, and takes a freewheel; it was also available when I bought the bike long ago! The only other thing I could have done was search for NOS Campy hubs, and I couldn't find any NR 32-hole hubs; besides, the Phils are just about the best, smoothest, and longest-lived hubs ever made, even if they're a bit heavy. The wheels are just great.

Last edited by JML; 05-05-10 at 06:29 AM.
JML is offline  
Reply