I feel bad. Would one of you kindly donate a dork disk to gholian.

Thanks

Same reason they put lawyer lips on forks.

I like the way you think. :D

Thanks for that, I agree. I think they are really nice looking bike. Particularly nowadays when compared to the cheaper asian stuff.

I think they are gross looking. And unnecessary. Just set the limit screws on your derailleur right and you have already done everything you need to protect your spokes. It's not like your limit screw is going to catastrophically pop out, sending the chain into the wheel when you shift to the big cog. So the vintage wheels will be fine and shouldn't need any additional protection. If you think it looks good or are worried for your wheels, leave it on.

If it wasn't for the fact that the Continental was specifically intended to be an "all original" build, the first thing to go would be those turkey levers, followed shortly by the dork disc, garbage Atom freewheel (which I am replacing with an Ultra-6 for the new owner, for safety's sake), and steel rims.

I don't know if I'd have the heart to replace the mag crankset with anything other then an equally bulky Nevar off a Sports Tourer - it really does "make" the bike...

-Kurt

They aren't necessary, no, but they are a good backup. Just like the chainring protectors. You can wear bike pants, shorts, or put a nerd strap on your cuff and you don't need the chain protector. But if you happen to end up on your bike wearing jeans with no nerd strap, the chainring protector helps.

You don't need a spoke protector either if everything is adjusted right, but if something goes out of adjustment it saves the spokes. When might your derailleur go out of adjustment? Well in my case I have a bike that I swap out wheelsets on- I have a "good" wheelset for weekend rides, and a "commuting" wheelset that's banged up a bit. Going from one to the other, I have to adjust the derailleur. If I had a dork disk (I mean spoke protector) it would make the adjustment less necessary. I prefer not to have the protector on there but I admit it's simply because I think it looks cooler without it.

Modern bike builders agree apparently, since clear plastic spoke protectors are the norm these days.

If Campagnolo had labeled them with a patent logo, or Shimano had one labeled Dura-Ace, or Lance had used one in France, they would be on every bike you saw today, and certain models would be sought after. There would be marketing wars concerning the benefits of titanium versus carbon fiber, and of course the retro-grouches would defend their chromed steel...

There would be discussions in this very forum discussing when Campy Record moved from 4 holes to 5 on their spoke protection device. We would drool over the drillium modified versions from the late 70's and know precisely when the "non-vintage" plastic era started.

By the way, another source is Loose Screws: http://www.loosescrews.com/index.cgi...d=584146221716

And I do think they looked much better when they were shiny and chrome. The plastic ones just never look as nice, especially when they get old and scratched, but there are certain time periods when chrome is not the proper fit.

The Shimano clear protectors that come with contemporary freehubs, I may keep on depending if the wheel has black spokes. As stated, it's not necessary in the ideal situation, but it's worthwhile when something goes wrong. Like when the bike gets tipped over, someone's front wheel bumps into your RD in a pack, etc. Same reason these days we ride with a helmet on. That was considered very dorky looking too back when they were introduced.

I think it would be funny if someone mounted one onto a CF wonderbike, with a pic or message on it.
:)

I never said I wore them.


I think Shimano did make one relatively high in the lineup at one time. That, and IIRC, either Cambio Corsa or Paris-Roubaix came with a Campagnolo-badged dork protector.

-Kurt

Count me as among those who removed them back in the day, along with the insanely ugly wheel reflectors that appeared by law in the early 70's. If I were restoring a Schwinn, maybe I'd keep them, but not on other makes.

The only dork disc I approve of is the one that is maybe 1/4" in diameter larger than the largest sprocket on the freewheel. Schwinn used to use those until the mid sixties.