Vern is fixin' to bring the ole mule from up yonder.

I have some spacers I'll never use, but I'm not sure what size they are.
They're "little."

OK, much as I should just pass this by, I can't help but to chime in here. Some of you know I'm working weekends at a local small shop in Falls Church, VA. Great place, nice folks, mom n' pop owners, and we're the "go to" shop for repairs in the area. It has been an education in many, many ways.

One of those ways is my reaction to these "these young 'uns don't know nuthin' about our classic bikes" threads. C'mon guys, if you had a pristine '72 Chevelle, would you expect the local Chevy dealer to stock the correct lifters for your engine rebuild? Would you expect them to then be inexpensive? For the tech to know how to set the dwell on a points-type distributor? The average shop tech these days has to know a ton more stuff than ever before. Take BBs for example. A competent tech needs to know how to remove a cottered crank, clean and adjust a "real" BB, install a sealed unit, correctly install an outboard bearing BB of 3 different designs, and correctly install a press in BB without the inevitable and inescapable creak. Don't even get me started on rebuilding suspension forks.

We know more than most current techs about our bikes. That's as it should be. Rejoice in your knowledge, share it when you can, and then learn something about newer bikes that you didn't expect to know. Try threading the cables into an internally routed CF frame without internal guides, or adjusting the new "true 22" SRAM front derailleur. You may be surprised how little you know.

Any time I think I know something about bikes, I look at my friend's new carbon full-suspension Specialized MTB.
I'm not sure I could change the tires.

Yeah, it's important to not get too smug.

A lot of vintage fans would be totally over their head working on modern suspension, brakes, shifting, seatposts, tubeless tires, carbon torque/grip paste/grease use...

I grew up on cutting edge mountain bikes and have learned when to just hand the thing over to the pros.

Precisely.

When my new Yeti mtb frameset shows up in January, I will be taking a box of parts, the frameset and a case of beer to my mtb mechanic guy.

Maybe even a nice bottle of Jameson.

He will call me when it's ready and I will be quite grateful knowing the bike is ready to kick b.......

This is correct operating procedure. Imho

I'm sure you would figure it out in world record time.

I'm sure he'd get it but mastery of tubeless tire setup doesn't come easy...

I'm reminded of a farmer, a shrewd old guy who never had a new car, pickup, or tractor. He bought all of his farm implements second-hand or lower. His best tractor was a '62 Oliver Super 88. purchased in about 1973; his "throw-baler" only kicked out via a cable rigged up to the driver's seat, so he had to watch the chute and drive at the same time. His "air compressor" screwed into a sparkplug socket on the tractor (took forever but worked). When his '58 combine with the 5-foot head caught fire, he let it burn.

When he "retired," the local farm dealer hired him "part time" to fix older equipment that the Voc-Tech schools omitted from their curriculum. While he could fix anything old, he left it to the youngsters to handle the high-tech stuff. He had no reason to, and no interest in, learning the new systems. On the other hand, the young techs loved to get knee-deep in older stuff, but not on paid time; they had to make a living. Eventually, a couple of them started doing the older stuff on the side, and the farmer could stay home and watch the Packers.

Exactly what poprad said, +100

When I was buying my Jamis in 2011, I had to ask how to work the brifters.

We just picked up the GT line; one of their entry-level hardtails comes with hydraulic discs. About half the ones I've built need to be bled. I spent about an hour on the phone with three different folks at the corporate office explaining why they needed to order bleed kits and send them to the stores.

Top

"I've got over $300 worth of tools and 8 years of bike repair! Crank pullers only come in TWO sizes!!!"

The dialog at my final attempt at finding vintage parts, tools or advice at a LBS.

I was in the local Cannondale store recently. One of the other customers was wearing a Faema cap. I mentioned to him (the other customer) how a friend of a friend is an over the top coffee and cycling snob. And how he has a beautiful brand new Bianchi Dolomiti with full Campy that he spends more time polishing than riding. The Bianchi guy explained to me how his $4500 Faema coffee machine (that he got for "only" $2900) was worth it because Starbucks is so expensive.

Anyway, I said to the older Cannondale shop-guy who was clearly eavesdropping (I say older because of the two employees, he was probably in his 60s vs the 20-something girl behind the bike stand) "You guys are probably more into Saecco then Faema around here right?" He looked at me like I was speaking Klingon. So I said "You know, Saecco... Cannondale.. get it?" Blank stare.

Faema guy just looked at me and smiled.

I haven't worked in a shop in a long time, but new bikes that need brake bleeds? I can't say I'm surprised I guess, but that's a pain in the ass, particularly on entry-level margins.

Avid/SRAM brakes I'm guessing...



Wait, your shop doesn't already have a bleed kit?

Good luck with that. You do realize that when those were last made, frames were (usually) made of steel, the tubes were totally cylindrical, they had enough crush resistance that you could clamp things to them, and the diameters were close to being standard. There's a reason this discussion is happening in C&V.

For perspective . . . Next time you look for parts for your 1977 LeTour, remember that when your bike was built, most bikes that old ended up in scrap metal collection drives to be made into bombs.

So there was only one drawer in his toolbox?

Were they making a lot of bombs in 1977? Why? I read that they're still using up the surplus from the Vietnam War.

I love my Saeco espresso machine. However mine is old and I have to tamp the grounds to my perfection. None of that new automatic crap for me.

mine too. there are several with qualified young people. but i never call them on the phone about this sort of thing. it's much easier to visit the shop ... on my bike. and, this way, i can show off my beautiful, old classic that the young kids drool over.

Do the math. The 1977 LeTour is 38 years old. Now envision a 38 year-old bike in 1977.

I had to look it up. I was familiar with Faema, but I didn't know Saeco made espresso machines. Thanks, guys, for the enlightenment.

I worked in shops in the 80s and 90s. Shops have always been hit or miss, always will be.

I was buying a SRAM chain the other day and made a comment about how I always throw the Powerlink in the trash. The kid looked shocked, then told me that you absolutely had to use them, that it was the only way to install the chain.

What?

Are you saying that bikes from 1939 would be scrapped for bombs in WWII & Korea so they therefore wouldn't exist in 1977? Or that they were being scrapped for bombs in 1977?

First time with brifters was a test ride Mona in 2011. They had to explain them to me. Now with my 2015 Surly Straggler I've had to learn about disc brakes. It refreshing.

I used to own a Saeco Rio Vapore (circa 1993).