Originally Posted by markwebb

I can remember back in the summer of '74. I had ridden my first Century in May (Vandenberg, now called the Solvang Century) on platforms/ no toe clips, and with the original plastic Simplex derailleurs that came with my UO-8. I saved up about $30 as I recall and bought a new Suntour rear derailleur and bar end shifters. I leaned bike up against the wall in my parents garage and installed the new stuff with a set of 4 wrenches and a few screwdrivers. I then wrapped bars with black cloth tape (the new cable housings for bar end shifters made me invest in a new roll of tape) and then I was set, let me tell you. I went Suntour because I could not afford the Campy at the time. The Suntour worked great. I even invested in a set of toe clips and black Italian leather cleated shoes.

Never even considered Campy - the only time I saw that stuff was on the Paramounts and Italian frames I passed while climbing in races