Originally Posted by linglingtom (Post 14807456)

You wouldn't happen to be selling this bike would you? I am quite interested in taking this off your hands...

Thanks!

Originally Posted by RobbieTunes (Post 14807596)

Mine is racing around Kadena Air Base in Okinawa. A fine young man purchased the frame and I stuck some bits in there. The shipper damaged it en route, but luckily, the USAF has some outstanding machinists who can fix a Facet or the slower F15's and F16's. He had it fixed and is enjoying it immenseley.

It was 2cm too small, as it was measured to the top of the seat tube, and that was 2cm taller than the way my Ironman bikes measure out.

Originally Posted by Giacomo 1 (Post 14807687)

Shame you had to sell her. I think he was really after the yellow speedometer.

She certainly was/is a beauty. But as a former F-15 crew chief, I can positively say with conviction that the F-15 will kick a Cenurion's butt. But I do think it's faster than that other single engined fighter you mentioned...:D


A Centurion for a Madone? Heresy! What is she thinking!

Originally Posted by RobbieTunes (Post 14807611)

I know where there's one for sale, probably a 50 or 52 cm. If I remember, it's got a mix of the OEM Suntour Sprint (including wheelset, with Weinmann rims) and 600 tricolor.

The lady that has it also has the matching pink and purple Centurion jersey. She bought a Madone.

Originally Posted by RobbieTunes (Post 14807611)

I know where there's one for sale, probably a 50 or 52 cm. If I remember, it's got a mix of the OEM Suntour Sprint (including wheelset, with Weinmann rims) and 600 tricolor.

The lady that has it also has the matching pink and purple Centurion jersey. She bought a Madone.

Originally Posted by linglingtom (Post 14818778)

That sounds incredibly inciting but 50cm/52cm is too small for me. :( I need a 55cm or a 56cm.

Originally Posted by Kanegon (Post 13609892)

You still got one? I just discovered it's got the doomsday derailleur hanger. From what I can tell, there's no way to fix or replace it if it gets bent, since it's part of the aluminum dropout and frame. There's not an ounce of steel in that frame, just TIG welded 7001. (Mine has a Look Carbon fork though...)

Originally Posted by Kanegon (Post 13593245)

My second Centurion and first ever AL roadie.

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...t/IMG_2840.jpg

Before that, I had been riding and maintaining the same Puch hi-ten 10-speed flat bar for 30 years. This excludes the hard-tail MTBs we've owned -- one of the reasons I was happy to rediscover skinny wheels and frames living in Brooklyn, but that's another story.

Got this off the local CL. The message only said it was a Centurion. A cursory check of yellow black centurions yielded some hits on an obscure aluminum model (probably posts and photos Robbie had posted). Everything about this bike, I've learned from a 4 year-old thread here in BF.

First things first: the aluminum frame.
http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...t/IMG_2801.jpg
It's softer than you'd expect. I've ridden AL frames on MTB and some of them are butt-busters. Anyway, with 25C tires and Selle Italia, it's not much worse than my chromo Raleigh. What I did notice was a huge difference in the lateral stiffness of the frame, especially when climbing. You can really feel it steering while powering uphill. More on the ride, weather permitting...

Here's what it looked like:
http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...18105753PM.jpg

It was worse than I anticipated, an after-dark parking lot light deal, which I swear I will never do again. Some things that got lost in the fog of CL impulse buying compounded with double parking:

1. The rear wheel was a Roval Aerodynamique tubular with a totally shot rim, although nice hub and bladed spokes. Couldn't even ride it until I replaced it with a ano Mavic MA40 which vaguely matches the ano Wolber up front. Anyone need a vintage Roval?

2. The Nitto handlebar had gotten squashed by the aero arm rest clamps. Had to saw it off! Replaced it with an SR RChamp, virtually the same dimension. Ahhh, much better.

3. Lots of chipped paint hiding under black electrical tape which the seller claimed was to "catch oil". Fortunately, the color is a close match of Ford's "chrome yellow", yeah the same color as recent model Mustangs.

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...t/IMG_2820.jpg

I also replaced the DiaCompe AGC with Shimano 105SC. The DCs are nice and classic, but those skinny hoods kill my hands. I think the puffy frame has found a nice match in the puffy Shimano brakes.

4. The seller insisted it had indexed shifting, and it did click, but the bike was setup so badly you couldn't tell what was going on. Turns out it's ALMOST a Suntour Accushift Plus setup, it has an AP chain, AP cog set and Superbe AP shifters but the rear Sprint derailleur is non-indexed. The regular Sprint RD will index up to about the 3rd cog before misaligning. I'm getting a Cyclone 7000 in the mail this week and we'll see if that works, albeit it will not be the later PLUS edition. One thing you notice about the Suntour AP is the lack of beveling on the gears and the chain, something having to do with Shimano's copyright at the time. I'm thinking an HG/SRAM chain should also help. Here's a video of someone else's Cyclone indexing with non AP freewheel and Shimano chain - very promising.

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...t/IMG_2793.jpg

5. I figured out how to repack sealed hub up front, but couldn't get them out in the rear hub. What's with these Nachis?

I think this bike is helping me get over aluminum phobia. In fact, it's piqued my interest in small diameter aluminum frames of the era. CV elegance, light and stiff? Works for me!

Originally Posted by rjhammett (Post 14821076)

In order to achieve indexed shifting the Suntour Sprint rear derailleur doesn't have to be indexed if the shifters are indexed. I have indexed DT shifters and a Suntour Sprint RD on my Miele bike. The indexed shifting works great. You can pickup a Suntour Sprint 9000 RD (indexed) on ebay for less than $20. I recently got a NOS Sprint 9000 for $18.

Send me the Sprint RD instead of throwing it in your parts bin. They are solid, very nice derailleurs.

Originally Posted by Kanegon (Post 13593245)

My second Centurion and first ever AL roadie.

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...t/IMG_2840.jpg

Before that, I had been riding and maintaining the same Puch hi-ten 10-speed flat bar for 30 years. This excludes the hard-tail MTBs we've owned -- one of the reasons I was happy to rediscover skinny wheels and frames living in Brooklyn, but that's another story.

Got this off the local CL. The message only said it was a Centurion. A cursory check of yellow black centurions yielded some hits on an obscure aluminum model (probably posts and photos Robbie had posted). Everything about this bike, I've learned from a 4 year-old thread here in BF.

First things first: the aluminum frame.
http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...t/IMG_2801.jpg
It's softer than you'd expect. I've ridden AL frames on MTB and some of them are butt-busters. Anyway, with 25C tires and Selle Italia, it's not much worse than my chromo Raleigh. What I did notice was a huge difference in the lateral stiffness of the frame, especially when climbing. You can really feel it steering while powering uphill. More on the ride, weather permitting...

Here's what it looked like:
http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...18105753PM.jpg

It was worse than I anticipated, an after-dark parking lot light deal, which I swear I will never do again. Some things that got lost in the fog of CL impulse buying compounded with double parking:

1. The rear wheel was a Roval Aerodynamique tubular with a totally shot rim, although nice hub and bladed spokes. Couldn't even ride it until I replaced it with a ano Mavic MA40 which vaguely matches the ano Wolber up front. Anyone need a vintage Roval?

2. The Nitto handlebar had gotten squashed by the aero arm rest clamps. Had to saw it off! Replaced it with an SR RChamp, virtually the same dimension. Ahhh, much better.

3. Lots of chipped paint hiding under black electrical tape which the seller claimed was to "catch oil". Fortunately, the color is a close match of Ford's "chrome yellow", yeah the same color as recent model Mustangs.

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...t/IMG_2820.jpg

I also replaced the DiaCompe AGC with Shimano 105SC. The DCs are nice and classic, but those skinny hoods kill my hands. I think the puffy frame has found a nice match in the puffy Shimano brakes.

4. The seller insisted it had indexed shifting, and it did click, but the bike was setup so badly you couldn't tell what was going on. Turns out it's ALMOST a Suntour Accushift Plus setup, it has an AP chain, AP cog set and Superbe AP shifters but the rear Sprint derailleur is non-indexed. The regular Sprint RD will index up to about the 3rd cog before misaligning. I'm getting a Cyclone 7000 in the mail this week and we'll see if that works, albeit it will not be the later PLUS edition. One thing you notice about the Suntour AP is the lack of beveling on the gears and the chain, something having to do with Shimano's copyright at the time. I'm thinking an HG/SRAM chain should also help. Here's a video of someone else's Cyclone indexing with non AP freewheel and Shimano chain - very promising.

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...t/IMG_2793.jpg

5. I figured out how to repack sealed hub up front, but couldn't get them out in the rear hub. What's with these Nachis?

I think this bike is helping me get over aluminum phobia. In fact, it's piqued my interest in small diameter aluminum frames of the era. CV elegance, light and stiff? Works for me!