not what the guy trying to catch up to you said, after he caught his breath an blurted: you're pretty fast with those panniers!

Why not just save the money that you will be using to buy the uprated components and then sell the Lemans and combine that money together to get an all together better classic bike. At least you raise the potential of ending up with a much better bike in the future if you do decide to get a CF fork for it later......
JMOs

Chombi

If I had the parts lying around, I'd probably do a build like that for laughs. If I had to buy new stuff I wouldn't.

Now that I think about it though, If I knew I could be fast enough to back it up I would TOTALLY do full Ultegra on my Continental. Lace up some Shimano hubs to 27" tubulars and just rock.

update: Cyclone GT front/rear derailers on, barcons on bullhorns check, brake levers mounted, brakes mounted, aerobars mounted,crankset mounted, cable are run, dropped a very smooth little threadless BB I had for another project in and it's dreamy how that turns.. I requisitioned a wheelset from my pile, shimano 600 front with araya 27 suzue rear with 27 araya.. I'm considering putting my shimano 600 headset on this puppy to replace the oem one.. (I also happen to have it laying around) so I need to tension all the cables/final tighten all the mountings, a new tube and tire for the front which I happen to have both and we're on the road..

I'm not sure, but I'm guessing your 600 headset is ISO and your fork takes JIS. If I am right, you would have to mill the fork. I could be wrong though. I would probably just leave the headset since it's already frankenbikish anyways.

Sounds like a strange build. I'm kind of scared/excited to see it.

I know this is going to be a really cruddy argument due to the unique situation, but have you ever been in a group of twenty riders who've cluster u-locked their bikes together? Or what about when everyone throws their lock onto the same couch in the same Co-Op? I've been there...and it's sorta hard to figure out which key goes to which lock. Additionally, I've worn through the cover on one of my u-locks, which makes those new covers a good idea.

On hipsters: there is no such thing as a hipster, because no one wants to be one.

bar wrap and pics tomorrow.

Yes: https://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product...2_174894_-1___

It is your bike. To me cycling is as much about what I'm riding as much as the riding of the bike.

I have a vintage Cannondale ST800 that was probably the perfect build in '86. Gorgeous Anthracite metallic paint with the front/rear racks and all three water bottles painted to match. Suntour Superbe Pro group with the GT long cage rear mech (only place it exists is on this build), the legendary Superbe Pro pedals with leather Cannondale straps for the clips that matches the honey Brooks saddle it came with. Nitto Randonneur bars, and Dia-Compe NGC 982 cantilevers in black (also as rare as hen's teeth). In my opinion its everything a Rivendell aspired to be, with nothing that a Rivendell actually is that doesn't actually measure up while riding it as opposed to reading about it. The Cannondale is stiff, but not overly stiff. Not at all flexy at the BB like a steel frame. Even with the F&R racks and fenders on it will flat out outclimb and outsprint anything steel. It just flies, which for a touring bike is just strange. The only way I can describe this bike is that it is what people believe their Surly Long Haul truckers to be, yet is still fantastically light, and fantastically fast and fun to ride. The lugged steel fork is just a perfect match for this bike, I don't know why.

Yet, while having that treasured ST800 I have two ST400s that are blah for paint (lowest model in the vintage ST line but all have the identical frames) and blah for components. My latest find, an '87 ST400 has Suntour alpha-3000. Works great. Shifts fantastically, perhaps even on par with 8-speed Shimano, believe it or not. I like this bike a lot. I don't love it. I'll ride the snot out of it.

It doesn't capture my imagination the way my ST800 does with the Superbe Pro touring group does. It doesn't capture the love affair I have with my 'tout Mavic' SSC tandem. However, its just a great bike that I like to ride.

Maybe it takes having driving your Ford to truly appreciate ones Mercedes or Porsche, I dunno. I'll probably completely rebuild both ST400s and repaint 'em to be ST1000s or ST800s someday. However, in the end it just fits and there isn't a damn thing wrong with it. Nothing wrong with a bike that just fits, is fun to ride, and didn't cost much, is there?

Don't ever let anyone else tell you what to collect or to ride. What's the point of joining a cult only to have them tell you what to think? My bikes reflect my outlier size needs, and my interests, not others. Most people have never even seen the components that are on my bikes 'cause they are vintage and just rare kit. I get a kick out of my touring builds that use components that won Paris-Roubaix and a TdF (Mavic SSC build), and that were Pro's pro and competed in gran tours (Superbe Pro). That doesn't make 'em better than someone elses ubiquitous Campy, just different. However, I enjoy collecting these bikes, as well as riding 'em. In the end that makes for a pretty great hobby don't you think?

So enjoy your bike, smile when you ride it, and take whatever pleasure you do from that bike/build even though I don't understand it. It is, after all, your bike, not mine. I think we'd all be better off as a society if we cared a little less about what other people thought and were actually capable of crafting original thought individually. In the end pass the bike off to someone who would love it for what it is, if you only like it, and get yourself one more of something you do love (or transform it into that). In the meantime just enjoy your build. I've had to learn that not every bike is a lifetime commitment. Sometimes we can just use them for a time, and that is part of why they are "great" even when they are not. I have no idea if any of that actually translates for you, but enjoy.

Welp sorry I didn't get back to it, I did manage to wrap up the project very shortly after this thread just never got to putting up pics, took one of the cockpit today.. and so I took a bunch more for this thread here goes. (And yes I know my wrapping job is terribad.)

That looks like it will ride well.

What are you going to do with those pedals? I find it uncomfortable to pedal on the bottoms of quill pedals.

Likewise Tom, but I've actually got some clips and straps that fit those pedals. I had just done a tuneup before the picture however and on incremental test rides I really don't want to be strapped in. And she does ride very well, but admittedly heavier then even my mountain bikes...