Originally Posted by
StephenH
Personally, I have little interest in older multi-speed bikes, but whatevery floats other people's boats. Also, it seems to me that stuff 25 years old should not be in the "Vintage Category", more in the "Seems Like It Hasn't Been That Long Since It Was New" category ("SLIHBTLSIWN").
If you don't do it, periodically peruse through all the forums, not just C&V, interesting stuff gets scattered around. Cottered cranks in "Bike Mechanics" for example.
Production companies are not making any more of the nicer steel bikes, which automatically puts them into the "classic no matter how old" category. Older american bikes made of gaspipe with cantilever frames hold very little interest for me anymore. They weigh a ton, were produced in very large numbers, and wear you out to ride them more than a few miles.
I was following the cottered crank thread, up until the point when the guy gave up and decided to put the bikes out on the curb. A bike shop could have done the job for around $25, instead he opted to get rid of it. Go figure. It's not the first cottered crank post, I've read at least a dozen over the last few years on different websites.,,,,BD