Slang term for "reproductions" is all. Every now and then on eBay people sell a card of classic decals including Campy, Reynolds 531 and Columbus as well as old logo Mavic, Detto Pietro, etc. I picked one up for the Campy and Columbus and had some Basso decals made.

As opposed to the old water-slide these ar adhesive backed "stickers" but are nicely done.

So I'm putting it together. I have a pair of the proper vintage campy downtube shifters. They don't work! I finally gave up and put on a pair of simplex retrofrictions, which of course work much better and should be standard issue with any vintage campy grouppo, but anyway, what am I doing wrong?

The configuration that I think I should be using:

Aluminum lever stop. Flat plastic washer. Lever. Thin keyed washer. Concave keyed top cover thingie - sez patent camp...yattayatta. Wingnut deal.

Am I missing anything? Do I have too much in there?

Some pictures of the "almost complete" bicycle. Rode it today and it worked great! I still would like to do a few cosmetic things (like the panto'ed stem and maybe a chainring...) but I am really impressed so far. The bike weighs 20.1 lb on the super-secret bicycle laboratory scale, with sewups and that cushy Rolls saddle.

Thatz it, Why don;t they work? More specifics about what happening.

Bike looks great, and even more important, it will be a sweet ride.

What are you doing for pedals?

Is this gonna be a garage queen or a daily/frequent rider?

um, it seems like the shifter boss is too short; they will not tighten to the point of friction.

I put speedplays on it. They are the only pedals that my knees will tolerate. This pair is one of the very first ones, from about the right vintage. I've had 'em for years, got them from a friend who won them in a race and couldn't stand them. They were my first pair.

All of my bikes are riders. The ones that turn into garage queens get sold. Although it has been so hot and dusty lately that the mountain bikes aren't getting any use.

The bike looks great. I've enjoyed watching this frame go from its auction on ebay to its final build. The decals turned out great so the goofs you mentioned must not be too obvious. Now I want to replace the decals on my Montello. Can't help you on the shifters, my Nuovo Record shifters fit just fine. Did you put the thin washer between the outer cone shaped/recessed top cover and the "wing nut" screw? Maybe the screw is bottoming out? Sounds like we're lusting for the same panto'ed parts on ebay as well. Lost an auction for a nice pantographed stem recently by $1.00 because I didnt watch the end of auction. My bike is complete but Im not satisfied with the Cinelli Champion Del Mondo bars. I just dont like the deep drop. Looking for some 44-46 wide Giro d'Italia bars without cable grooves. Unfortunately I am unable to test ride my bike since I suffered a tibial plateau fracture in March. Im still on crutches and can only rotate the pedals back and forth from the 11:00 to 4:00. Physical therapy is getting my motion back though.

Here's my latest pics...

I'll pull my shifters off (come to think of it, they are off my C-Super already...) and measure the bosses, so you have something to compare. Doesn't seem right that the boss would be too short. Is it possible that the plastic washer might be too thick (not the stock washer)?
need to find my calipers... grumble...

Oh, thought you might be puttin on a set of 'vintage' quill road with clips.
Speedplay - nice stuff

After being on this forum for a month+ or so, I'm feelin real guilty about letting all my bikes become such mongrels. Wore out stuff and just replaced that with any old good stuff, based on what I thought would work best for me at the time.
The bikes are so confusing now that I'm never sure if I should stop for Pizza, Sushi or Gorp!

My originals are just that way - hotrodded. Something happened to my brain recently, and I got the urge to put a few back together just the way they left the factory. dunno why. must be an age-related deal.

I have a set of superleggeris and some kangaroo-skin detto's from the late pleistocene when I was a real wool-wearing racerboy... tried to ride with 'em recently. Like clamping my legs in an iron maiden.

Very nice, makes me think about rebuilding the frame I have, but it is not high enough on the project list and when set up I really could use more set tube set back and the top tube is too short.

be seeing you

When's the mash ready? Bike party at Lurker's house once the Pin is done...
" I have a pair of the proper vintage campy downtube shifters. They don't work! I finally gave up and put on a pair of simplex retrofrictions,"
Willey E. Coyote, you are a genius! I am, not surprisingly, in full concurence with you on this sentiment.
"After being on this forum for a month+ or so, I'm feelin real guilty about letting all my bikes become such mongrels."
Nothing like a Frankenbike... I've got a Gitane up for a rebuild sure to offend all purists anywhere... I say enjoy them and ride them!

Campagnolo retrofriction shifters were mounted on my Pinarello, was given the original Record pantoed shifters with it, there were a small number of retrofriction "old Look" Camapgnolo shifters around, kind of look clunky compared to the record C units... so one does not need to go to the French to have retrofriction.

The bike's looking great! What size stem are you looking for? I may have an extra in a week or so...I think that it'll be 110. If that'd work I'll let you have it for what I have into it.

How the heck did you do that to your leg?

with the wooden insoles? those things gave me bone spurs. was the best power transmission yo could find though.
Man...
just got a pair of Pearl Izumis with the carbon sole - light years different, and soooo comfortable. some things have gotten better.

hey shifter boss dims - measuring the entire boss, including the square base that holds the shifter stop, from the high point of the downtube (which would be center line with the center of the boss)
overall length is 12.5 mm, square boss base is 2.5 mm thick/long, the round shifter boss shaft is 10 mm, the length of the shaft that has the flat 'lands' that key into the washer and coverplate is 4.5 mm.
measurements are close, but not exact. They were done with a rule instead of my missing calipers. But good to within .5 mm, I think.
... hope this helps identifying any boss anomalies.

bosses aren't too short. the danged inside washer is too thick. I have 2 pair and they are both a couple of mm too thick.

"...Campagnolo retrofriction shifters were mounted on my Pinarello..."

Man, I'd love to have a pair. But they are too pricey for me. I watched a pair of Super LJ retrofrictions last night go over $100...I scrounged a pair out of my parts pile (never been on a bike!) last year to go on my wife's 770. I'm thinking maybe she needs more modern shifters...What was the year and model of your Pinarello?

Im looking for a 100mm GP panto'ed stem but dont want to pay much. The stem I was watching on ebay went for less than 20 bucks think. Dont really need another stem but the pantographed parts are pretty cool so Im always looking.

Broke my knee at work March 30th. I slipped off a 2" square railing about 6" off the floor and jambed my leg into the concrete floor. As I hit the floor, my ankle twisted to the outside locking my knee causing the fracture to my tibial plateau. Never felt pain like that before! It sounded like dry spagettii breaking. Thank goodness for workmans comp.

you can always take them down to size - they should be just about flush thickness with the inside of the shifter.
could be one of those wax-on/wax-off things to do with/on a file, while watching tapes of the TDF mountain stages...
i need to find my calipers... grumble...

I bought the black one with the rough finish - the guy pegged me $17.50 for shipping. The ano is gone - I was going to try to polish and fill the panto with black...let me see how it turns out.

good heck! I had the side of an excavation collapse four years ago and did a sideways slide into the hole, severing my acl. That sucked, but your injury makes mine look like a flesh wound. I suppose I was lucky, in a perverse sort of way...

I, um, don't have a tv. Have to watch the TDF at the sportsbar. Suppose they'd let me file washers there?