So back to the 1981. How does it ride? This is a comparison of sorts, after all, and you want your money's worth. The '82 ended up being a true sweetheart, and really danced when I got up onto the pedals, and this with 170mm length crank arms and not 175mm (5mm in cranks makes a big difference in bikes out of the saddle, at least for me). I changed out the 27" wheels for the 700Cs on the '82 (with the Conti tires), so a bit of an apples to apples comparo. Saddle went up and bars went...nowhere, max height on that short stem. Oh, and I took the standard reach brake calipers from the '82 as I needed ones that reach...and also because those brake pads have a good stopping relationship with those rims.

On the stand and in person, the all-black tires look remarkably good on this. I was not expecting that, but certainly appreciate it for future build/aesthetic composition flexibility. So the front end/bars look a bit low--all business. Ride is fine, steering is lovely, out-of-saddle--now that I have my normal clipless pedals installed (like I'd done on the '82)--manifests an interestingly "tight" or stiffer rear triangle with these 170mm cranks and low-set and narrower bars. Very interesting. Reminds me of several Columbus SL/SP road/race bikes I've had. Do I like it? Not in my 531 Treks. Compared to my first '81, these are very much their own character, but I truly think that a similar build of this '81 to my previous would close that gap.

Compare this:



To this:



Hilariously, I have most of the parts to replicate this build. But here we have, in my experience, the critical differences of a more highly elevated brake/shift lever position, wider bars (42cm vs 39-40cm), longer 175mm cranks, and slightly larger tires (30mm "33s" vs 27mm "28s"). The wheelset is also nicer, but that may not really be a factor given my more recent experience. The previously mentioned differences are enough to really alter the out-of-saddle character of the bike.