NAHBS 2017 Pix - Part1
03-17-17 | 10:22 PM
#26
I bow and genuflect in the direction of Tom Ritchey and Peter Johnson [I guess that's somewhere around Redwood City (?)] every chance I get...there's no exaggerating their talent or contributions to the art of the bicycle, IMO.
But enough fan-boy-ism, back to my ranting: where did he get those dropouts in 1975?
But enough fan-boy-ism, back to my ranting: where did he get those dropouts in 1975?
Last edited by unworthy1; 03-17-17 at 10:25 PM.
03-17-17 | 11:04 PM
#27
The Merckx with the Campagnolo shield embossing or incising on the mostly Potenza components was well done.
Valentino should consider similar for a production variant.
03-17-17 | 11:21 PM
#28
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From: Joisey
Peter Johnson did a presentation at the Classic Rendezvous Weekend last year, and for sure Peter was inventive and seminal and building from a very young age. There was also fer sure a rivalry between him and Ritchey. Peter builds beautiful frames, but it was never his fulltime gig, so good luck finding one.
If you're nice to him, he might build you one...
If you're nice to him, he might build you one...
I agree with all that, but you also have to acknowledge Peter Johnson. They were both riffing (or maybe ripping) off each other at the time. And their styles are pretty well intertwined. Pretty amazing for a couple of high school kids. But the wealth of talent (in riders and craftsmen) in that area at that time is phenomenal.
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03-17-17 | 11:25 PM
#29
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I've seen a few of those early Ritchey's with positive rise thread-less stems he made for them. I never liked the look of a positive rise stem on a road bike, but you can't argue with the weight savings and better performance of the design. They were definitely original pieces on the bikes I've seen, not a restoration error like the the cable routing on the Confente.
Threadless stems date back to at least the French constructeurs. There was no internet in '75, but some French rando/touring bikes made it into Cali, and there were copies of The Data Book floating around. So there was underground knowledge that they existed, both as a concept and in the flesh. Teenager Tom Ritchey decided to build some.
I went on a Ritchey rant on the CR list, I'll paste it in here since Ritchey and his road bikes has come up.
[soapbox]IMHO the '75 Ritchey should've won Best in Show. I think Ritchey's fame from mountain bikes, especially MTB componentry, keeps some of us from realizing his immense talent with a torch. Check out the detail on that frame, then realize that Ritchey's dad taught him how to braze, and he was just one year out of high school when he built it. At which time he had built and sold more than 200 frames!
Jim Merz' father-in-law backed Ritchey when Tom was still in high school, and Jim's brought a high school-era Ritchey to CR events. That frame is chock-full of outside-the-box thinking, at almost every joint and juncture. I think of the '70s as a time when young American builders leapfrogged the framebuilding orthodoxy they first learned and built some remarkable and beautiful machines. And Tom Ritchey belongs way up near the top of that pantheon. Ritchey originally hailed from Cherry Hill, NJ, too, so---go Jersey![/soapbox]
I went on a Ritchey rant on the CR list, I'll paste it in here since Ritchey and his road bikes has come up.
[soapbox]IMHO the '75 Ritchey should've won Best in Show. I think Ritchey's fame from mountain bikes, especially MTB componentry, keeps some of us from realizing his immense talent with a torch. Check out the detail on that frame, then realize that Ritchey's dad taught him how to braze, and he was just one year out of high school when he built it. At which time he had built and sold more than 200 frames!
Jim Merz' father-in-law backed Ritchey when Tom was still in high school, and Jim's brought a high school-era Ritchey to CR events. That frame is chock-full of outside-the-box thinking, at almost every joint and juncture. I think of the '70s as a time when young American builders leapfrogged the framebuilding orthodoxy they first learned and built some remarkable and beautiful machines. And Tom Ritchey belongs way up near the top of that pantheon. Ritchey originally hailed from Cherry Hill, NJ, too, so---go Jersey![/soapbox]
Interesting to that he used a longer threaded steerer for the head set, and I suppose just clamped the stem around the threads. Funny too that I now remember when a friend ordered a new P-21 from Ritchey and even in that year, he didn't offer it to him. The marketplace wasn't even into the A-head production and quill's were still the norm.
03-18-17 | 01:32 AM
#30
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Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 16,174
Likes: 9,551
From: PDX
Bikes: Merz x 5 + Specialized Merz Allez x 2, Strawberry/Newlands/DiNucci/Ti x3, Gordon, Fuso/Moulton x2, Bornstein, Paisley,1958-74 Paramounts x3, 3rensho, 74 Moto TC, 73-78 Raleigh Pro's x5, Marinoni x2, 1960 Cinelli SC, 1980 Bianchi SC, PX-10 X 2
According to Merz, those dropouts are custom Ritchey.
Thanks for taking and posting these pictures, wonderful to see them!
Now to stir a little controversy: Love seeing any of Tom Ritchey's vintage frames and that red/orange number is true eye-candy, but...1975?
With those short dropouts?
Unless I'm misinformed (no doubt about that) neither Campagnolo nor Gipiemme were selling that style of dropout in 1975, so could these be Tange "TR" dropouts and if so are they the very first run?
Or is the date incorrect?
I've been told that the first date that Campy versions were widely offered is '78 but MAYBE '77 to a very few special (Italian) customers...
And how about that STEM, what's the story on that piece?
Now to stir a little controversy: Love seeing any of Tom Ritchey's vintage frames and that red/orange number is true eye-candy, but...1975?
With those short dropouts?
Unless I'm misinformed (no doubt about that) neither Campagnolo nor Gipiemme were selling that style of dropout in 1975, so could these be Tange "TR" dropouts and if so are they the very first run?
Or is the date incorrect?
I've been told that the first date that Campy versions were widely offered is '78 but MAYBE '77 to a very few special (Italian) customers...
And how about that STEM, what's the story on that piece?
03-18-17 | 01:38 AM
#31
Senior Member
Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 16,174
Likes: 9,551
From: PDX
Bikes: Merz x 5 + Specialized Merz Allez x 2, Strawberry/Newlands/DiNucci/Ti x3, Gordon, Fuso/Moulton x2, Bornstein, Paisley,1958-74 Paramounts x3, 3rensho, 74 Moto TC, 73-78 Raleigh Pro's x5, Marinoni x2, 1960 Cinelli SC, 1980 Bianchi SC, PX-10 X 2
Sam Hopkins?
Jim Merz' father-in-law backed Ritchey when Tom was still in high school, and Jim's brought a high school-era Ritchey to CR events. That frame is chock-full of outside-the-box thinking, at almost every joint and juncture. I think of the '70s as a time when young American builders leapfrogged the framebuilding orthodoxy they first learned and built some remarkable and beautiful machines. And Tom Ritchey belongs way up near the top of that pantheon. Ritchey originally hailed from Cherry Hill, NJ, too, so---go Jersey![/soapbox]
Jim Merz' father-in-law backed Ritchey when Tom was still in high school, and Jim's brought a high school-era Ritchey to CR events. That frame is chock-full of outside-the-box thinking, at almost every joint and juncture. I think of the '70s as a time when young American builders leapfrogged the framebuilding orthodoxy they first learned and built some remarkable and beautiful machines. And Tom Ritchey belongs way up near the top of that pantheon. Ritchey originally hailed from Cherry Hill, NJ, too, so---go Jersey![/soapbox]
03-18-17 | 11:05 AM
#32
