Suntour Superbe Pro pedals with Campi steel toeclips (nah, no Christophe straps!) @ $5 @ the local twice-a-year bicycle swap meet on 4th Ave. in Tucson!
A handpainted ceramic wall plaque saying "welcome!" . . . showing a couple on a tandem @ $6 (seen 'em retail @ $40+) and still in its shipping carton!

That's NIB to us lug-lickers.

Woot! A grimy old Campagnolo Velox 10 spd rear derailleur! I'm sooo stoked, and I think USAZorro knows exactly what I'm talkin' about!

UPDATE: She cleaned up real nice, but I have a few questions. Being a (nearly) complete n00b when it comes to derailleurs, how should I remove the old and put in the new (well, actually older)? Thanks.

Mr. El, start by breaking (splitting) the chain with the appropriate tool. I like the cheap Cyclo (pic attached) for occasional use. They hold up better than the cheap one from Park.
Remove your chain; this is a great time to clean it, or replace it if it's old and stretched (worn, actually).
Next, remove your shifter cable from the derailleur that's on the bike now. Should be a single small bolt clamping it down on the derailleur. Next, remove the derailleur from the drop-out.
Attach the Velox where the old derailleur was, then, manually pushing the cage in to line up the pulleys with the big freewheel cog, set the limit screw so that the pulleys can't be pushed any closer to the spokes. Next set the other limit screw so that the pulleys are in line with the small cog of the freewheel. This is done by lightly pushing the cage & pulleys toward the spokes, and letting it go back to rest again to check alignment. The idea is to set the limit screws so that the pulleys line up with inner and outer cogs without the cable or chain on for now. Once that's done, push the right shifter all the way down, or forward, giving the cable all the slack you can. Attach the cable to the derailleur. The cable doesn't need to be stretched tight; just remove all slack at the derailleur, and tighten the clamping bolt. Next, install your chain using your cool chain tool. With the back end of the bike up (or preferably in a bike work stand), slowly pedal by hand, and try shifting up through the gears. Double check that the upper limit screw doesn't allow the chain to shift past the large cog (important!), or with the lever pushed home, past the small cog. You don't want the chain coming off between the large cog and the spokes (!), or the small cog and the drop-out. Adjust the limit screws 'till your sure! Ride your bike.

You can avoid a HUGE amount of frustration (if you're going to keep the same chain), by stopping before you knock the pinion completely out of the chain link. If you do knock it out, it is a royal P.I.T.A. to get it started back in. You can prevent this from happening by looking from the side to see when the plunger of the chain removal tool is as far down as the chain. Once I see it even, I give it another half turn, take the chain out, and see if it separates. If it doesn't, I repeat this process, going about a quarter turn at a time until the chain separates, but the pinion remains attached to the outside portion of the link.

If you're going to toss the chain - just go ahead and pop it all the way out.

Alright, thanks, Mr. The. I'll get that done sometime soon.

And by the way, I have another catch. As some of you know, I was looking for new brakes. Well, I got a pair of beautiful Gran-Compes, but alas, the arms were not long enough. So, I swapped them for a pair of not as nice Dia-Compe 610s, because when I took apart the front brake in order to remove the rusted pin, I discovered that I had 610s (not 750s as I had previously thought). But, to make matters worse, I didn't originally have a matched pair of brakes on my bike, so I had to go back down today to swap the back brake for a 750. Phew! I got 'em on today, and they stop beautifully. I'll ride her to school tomorrow, and I can really give 'em a run for the money.

Excellent score!! Way more mojo than the SunTour AR I was gonna send to you.

I had spied a nice little Cyclone when I was in yseterday, but figured I'd wait...Mistake! When I was back today, she was gone . Anyway, I went back to digging through the drawer of derailleurs, and found an old Shimano, a newer Shimano 600, and another Shimano (all made in Japan) before stumbling on this guy. The guy sold it to me for $8 and told me it just needed a cleaning and that she was "gorgeous" - definitely worth it, considering any of the Shims would've been the same price!

And the chain is pretty new, so I'll keep it. Thanks for the tip.

The EBay gods smiled on me today...I bought a pair of Weinmann 500's for a vintage restoration and they came with a brand new set of Campagnolo Record pads and holders!

OK... Here's my latest. Just this evening, I bought the frameset. Not a killer cheap deal, but I couldn't pass one up in a rideable size, especially since I have another of the same size and vintage that I love.
These are great frames for doing centuries on! Very comfy and stable, yet still lively and responsive enough to have fun.

It's an early '80s Woodrup Giro Sport. Reynolds 531 DB, and eyelets for racks, fenders, and 2 water bottles (1 under the down tube). This one's seen some use, but the seller says it's straight, no dings or dents, no crashes; he's owned it since new. It may not look that special here, but if you've had a chance to check out a Woodrup up close, they're very nicely built. These were made in England, and this one was probably imported to the States by Ten Speed Drive Imports.

Picked-up a nice Trek 720 in my size(25"). just needs cables ,tires and a chain

This catch of the day is a Raleigh Super Course that I rescued from the trash heap. Call it a Frankenbike if you like. I had never seen anything so filthy in my life. I don't think it has ever been cleaned or oiled in 32 years.

I cleaned it up = buckets of black water and it is now in working order. Everything was original except the seat. Unfortunately the Brooks was replaced with a plastic job. The derailleurs were shot (both front and rear), so I pulled some Suntour Heros off an old Schwinn that was also in the junk pile.

I have repacked the bearings in the wheels and headset, added bartape, new cables, new tires and tubes. The new seat was from one of my other bikes. The rack was also from the trash heap (came with a nice panier).

The total cost for materials was under $50. As for the value of the labor I put into it...well, let's just say it was a learning experience. The only flaw is a blip in the seat stay that you can see in the second photo. I don't know if this will result in metal fatigue, but it doesn't affect the ride at all.

Where is this trash heap? Sounds like one of the very finest in the land.

And the nicest thing about it is that the bike is exactly my size!

.......__o
.......\<,
....( )/ ( )

Unfortunately the Brooks was replaced with a plastic job.

Don't you just hate that? I picked up a '72 Raleigh Grand Prix last week that had a seat from an exercise bike on it.

Seventeen years ago I swapped this bike for a guitar. When I ran into the fellow again this fall I asked him if he still had it.
"Yea", come and get it you belong together", he said it was always a little too small for him (as I told him during the swap), so he didnt ride it much.
When the time for my reunion with the Falcon had arrived I was pleasantly surprised to find the the grease I had used 17yrs ago( I totally rebuilt the bike for the swap) still purging from the hubs! Same cables, bar tape... everything the way it was the day we swapped, and he just gave it to me didnt ask for a thing.
Im building him a replacement.

Yeah. My Super Course came that way too.

Not classic, not vintage, but my catch of the day--
Man I love living in a 5 college area,(there are 5 colleges within 10 miles of my house. Boy are they wasteful.

1999 Gary Fisher Wahoo

Catch: 1985 19" Trek 460 bike, excellent, all original except for old style look pedals, & complete, for $5.99 at the local thrift store--brought it from the back as I passed by the door--they didn't know what they had!

Wahoo! Cool catch!
I've been wanting a good mountain bike lately.
That looks like a nice one.

I'd let it go to you, (your a xl size frame too right?) but it fits me too well. replaced my way too small giant with it.

You guys are hauling it in-- great series of catches-- Woodrup, Falcon, Super Course, Wahoo-- excellent! Keep it up.

A while back I found a Trek 850 Mt Bike-- really the perfect Mt bike for a vintage nut, lugged, double butted Reynolds 531 steel. 1984, very early Trek Mt bike. A fine ride, I stuck fenders on it for rain riding.

Not a recent catch, but thought I'd post anyway. A couple years ago, picked up a lugged steel framed Cilo Swiss, full Shimano 600, non indexed 6 speed at an auction. Great shape, except the hub bearings. Looked like they had been wet, and were pretty much shot. Had wheels built with some campy hubs, and it's now a great ride. Best part.....$13.00.

I have a few catches from this week including two his and hers 1987ish Centurion Ironman Dave Scotts w/ Shimano 600 groupos and two 1975 Centurion Le Mans with Suntout/Sugino/DiaComp setups. Both sets of bikes set me back $100 a pair plus miscelaneous bar tape, cables, lube etc. Wife and I took them out this weekend (Ironmans on Saturday, Le Mans on Sunday) and they rode just great. I'm still trying to find a SR Semi Pro in a 52cm size so if anyone runs across one...

Poquemahone,

Thanks for the info. I found this bike today for €10.00. The rear rim and chain are broken, but especially the frame is very good (Dutch standards, Dutch climate). And as a Bianchi owner I also like it's color.

Maarten