RiddleOfSteel

Any and every friction shifter not named (or of the architecture) Retrofriction.

Hajo

Campagnolo Delta brakes. They might look nice, but the braking power is poor. Don't get the hype on them, with crazy proces being asked. Love the Monoplaners instead!

Trakhak

(1) Grease both bolts. (2) Leave rear bolt loose; tighten front bolt (with special tool or just fingers) until saddle looks level when you press down on it at the rear. (3) Tighten rear bolt. (4) Repeat 2 and 3 (usually takes two or three tries) until saddle is at correct angle and secure.

I'll take a 2-bolt Campy seatpost over any 1-bolt seatpost I've ever encountered.

Wileyone 

Clincher Tyers

Especially panracers.

randyjawa 

I, honestly, do not like down tube shifters..!


Anything else, mounted on the handlebar is soooo much better, in my opinion and from a comfort/safety point of view...

Narhay

Simplex Retrofriction
Brooks saddles
Velo Orange anything
campy nuovo record
Panaracer paselas
Centurion ironmen
Bridgestone xo-1
red italian bikes, especially sl or Slx tubing
lined, low compression housings
stainless cables and spokes - galvanized is far superior
Ok I'm just trying to get a rise out of you all - Carry on.

conspiratemus1

I took @thinktubes’s dislike of “gravel” to apply to its use as an adjective for something new you are supposed to want to buy. Nothing wrong at all with gravel roads. But “gravel-ground” coffee? I totally get it.

T-Mar

I'll echo the comment on Campagnolo NR and SR rear derailleur ( and any other Campagnolo derailleur between 1970 and 1989, except Crocé d'Auné). Performance was mediocre and there were many better derailleurs at the time. Chorus worked well but the approach to slant parallelogram was over engineered and made it look pregnant. I also agree with those who dislike Campagnolo Record seat posts and Delta brakes.

Here's some other Campagnolo parts that are relegated to wall wall hangers;

Campagnolo Record cranksets. To many cases of stress cracks and failures.

Campagnolo SL pedals. Too high a wear rate on the aluminum cages.

Campagnolo C-Record crankset. Beautiful but dedicated extractor tool.

Camapagnolo C-Record hubs. Dust cap removal tool.

Campagnolo tools. Durability (and cost).

Camapgnolo rims: Too many issues with stress cracks.

Campagnolo SGR pedals. Oh wait, this might be a Campagnolo product that everybody hates (even more than Syncro)

Other items on my personal dislike list, that seem to have a large following of admirers:

Mavic Starfish cranksets. Bulky looking.

Cinelli XA and 1R stems. Too many failures.

Freewheels. Relegated to wall hangers. I don't need bent axles.

MAFAC centre pull brakes: I'll concede that they can be made to work very well for their era but it's far easier for a novice to totally screw them up. Comparatively long set-up time and learning curve. The only reason they could perform so well was because of the oversize pads.

Benotto Cellotape and other plastic handlebar wrap: Nice looking but no cushioning and very slippery when wet.

Metric tubesets: Most members adore the wonderfully resilient and comfortable ride characteristics but they were too flexible for me.

conspiratemus1

Ha. I was actually halfway there with you until stainless steel spokes. Then I caught on.

niliraga 

heh. I cursed them for years, despite a cheap version of The Special Wrench. but then with one of those modern ratcheting box wrenches, the Campy 2-bolt becomes the infinitely adjustable wonder it was always hyped to be. also, additional theft deterrence for saddle (assuming you sealed the seatpost bolt).

Edit: now that the coffee hits, I see I am one of many handling the 2-bolt with a box wrench

Bianchi84

"Wider Tires" trend, padded bar tape, presta valve caps.

Pompiere

I don't share the love for all chrome bikes. While I do like chrome lugs, chrome tips on the fork and rear triangle, and chrome accessories, a fully chromed bike frame doesn't do anything for me.

Wildwood

What a bunch of picky rascals and primadonnas!

I better watch this thread from the sidelines.

jdawginsc 

I love them, actually... Especially the Eclypse...but even the old model that looks lugged...and has an embossed "Stop" on it.

Non-preferred
Schwinn Paramounts, Raleighs and most Treks...
Non-straight MTB bars
Working with Shimano brifters...

BFisher 

I have to say, I never got the appeal of vintage Treks. To my eyes they all look boring- never cared for the font/typeface choice on the graphics, or the headbadge. They just never caught my eye. It's like I'm looking at a forest green Subaru Outback.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Wileyone 

650b

gugie 

Simplex Retrofriction shift levers. I'm supposed to like them, but they seemed to ghost shift on me often. Tighten down the bolt, goes away for awhile, then comes back. Switched to ratcheting shifters (old SunTour or modern equivalents), problem went away.

They are damn smooth though.

ofajen

I must be easy to please. I’m having a difficult time coming up with anything.

And I’ve used a Campy NR two-bolt post for about 40 years and never had a problem. When necessary, I’ve always adjusted it with a 10mm open end wrench.

I suppose I could say single bolt seatposts, since both my bikes have two-bolt seatposts. I won’t accept one that isn’t easily and continuously adjustable.

Otto

Mr. Spadoni 

Okay, does the Silca Impero pump qualify as a component? Yeah, you could get them to match your frame, or they could be painted but they have this nasty habit of ejecting the barrel while in use if the threads wear. Also there was the need to do the aftermarket alteration of HB tape at the edge of the handgrip to keep it from cutting into the barrel. Plus the ones that weren’t frame fit? Needed the clamp that always needed to be right over the tubing decal. The decal never survived that fight.
And despite that, I still own two of them.

cudak888 

Any derailer drivetrain (give me an IGH!)
Any barcon
The Raleigh Super Course. The perfect jack of all trades, but I just can't get excited about them.
Any seatpost that isn't 27.2mm.
Brooks B.72s (If you're going to give me a fat saddle, give me a B.66)
Simplex Retrofrictions
Nuovo Record cranks (sure, they look nice, but I'm fed up with my crankset determining what chain I can run for reliable downshifts)
"Schwinn chrome" (When referenced to Schwinn knurled rims. What a joke. Nothing in comparison to 1950's Raleigh chroming)
Any Schwinn Krate

-Kurt

The Golden Boy 

Shimano 600 Arabesque. Yeah, it looks pretty with all those squiggly etchings... But the crank, shifters, RD, levers and brakes are poop... none of it really shifts or brakes well. I like the hubs well enough.

KMC Chains- I honestly don't remember what I didn't like- I don't even know if I still have it... but I bought a SRAM to replace it.

Shimano L600 "fingertip control" bar end shifters. Neat concept... but once you use the Suntour versions- they're nicer.

Salamandrine 

I love all the little bike components equally!

It's actually hard for me to think of one. Brifters maybe, but that's a modernish thing, and I don't hate them, I just don't think they're God's gift to bike componentry or some sort of huge advancement.

Hmm, I suppose a lot of folks really like the old 'arabesque' parts, but I always thought they were hideous, and were at best adequate with regard to actual function. OTOH, I'm glad they were made, maybe just nostalgia.

This thread would be easier if it was Components Everyone Hates, (Except You). I have lots of those.

EDIT Dang, the Golden Boy beat me to it while i was typing! hilarious.

sheddle

Barcons. I think they just tend to protrude off the bars in an ugly way, and much prefer Suntour Command shifters, or Gevenalle shifters for a touring bike.

Salamandrine 

FYI. It used to be a fairly commonly held view that galvanized spokes were superior and stainless spokes were for dandies or something. Believe it or not!

There weren't stainless cables in the old days, but the nice thing about galvanized cables it that it was easy to solder the ends. Cleaner look than cable ends.

ascherer 

^ This. Entirely different than the rest.