Originally Posted by
MikeWMass
I was one of the original naysayers. I was not and am not a hater. I ride an old bike, and even my "new" bike would be considered old by many on this forum. I am glad you like your bike. However, I still stand by my original statements that if you are going to put time and money into restoring an old bike, you might as well start with an appropriate one. You have a long stem and a long seatpost and the geometry works for you. When that bike was new, more than "a handful" of seatpost showing was considered excessive, and stems much more than 110 mm were long. You can make the bike fit, I am glad you like and enjoy it. I am (TRULY!) not criticizing you. I am just saying that, in 1980, that bike is not what you should have bought.
:-) Okay. I sure do respect your opinion. But here's the thing. For me, today, this bike feels tight, compact, and ready to burn. It just feels RIGHT, you know?
It might be the lower, longer frame. Or it might be the 38 cm bars. Maybe it's the replacement Cane Creek hoods that JCavilla suggested. (These really made the bike easier and more fun to ride.) Maybe it's all three. Whatever. Put them together with the supple steel frame and 1.25" tires and you've got a bike that is more concierge than machine.
What I know is this: My 56 cm carbon bike with its 42 cm bars and Ultegra gruppo was fit professionally for me, and I thought it was perfect for four years . . . until I finished the build on this one. If I'm not riding it, I'm looking at it.
EDIT: Mike, you also wrote: " . . . stems much more than 110 mm were long." Actually, the stem extension on the Nishiki is the original 70mm . Again, because of the long (56 cm) top tube length and by simply raising the bars a bit, it was a perfect fit; elbows slightly bent when on the top curve of the bars, near to or fully extended when riding on the hoods. The 100mm aftermarket stem I ordered for it is still in the box. I may put it on the 54 cm Schwinn, which has a shorter, 54 cm top tube. These old bikes are weird. :-)