rosefarts

A little background, when I was a pretty little kid, a friend of my dad's bought a new bike. In small town Wyoming the idea that someone could spend $2300 in 1985 sounded crazy.

He liked nice things. I can't fault someone for that. Judging by the chain, pulleys, and tires, the bike probably has 500-1000 total miles. Also one wreck.

Its sat for probably 30 years. Indoors, in a basement.

10 years ago, I offered to buy it for $300 as a joke. He of course turned me down. Every time I saw him or my dad did, I'd remind him that the offer stood. A few years ago, he learned he had terminal cancer, it's not nearly as much fun to low-ball someone with limited time so I gave up.

He passed a couple weeks ago and it turns out that he left it to me. I might be the only guy he knew who'd appreciate it.

I replaced the tires, brake pads, cables/housing, brake hood covers, and bar tape. I greased all the bearings, even though they all looked good. Most of my time was spent scrubbing, 30 years in the basement of a heavy smoker had left a yellow film on the whole bike. A magic eraser and dish soap revealed a pretty brilliant shine.

It fits almost perfect. I can't say I'm in love with old skool handlebars. I'll try not to switch to modern ones. I'll go for a ride on Wednesday, I'm looking forward to it.

Now pics

*Is anything ever truly finished?

rosefarts

mstateglfr 

Wow, really neat that he left it to you.
Does the bare cable run thru the frame without a housing stop in the 1st pic? If so- interesting design. It's usually a cable stop and bare cable running in a brass tube inside the frame, or it's full housing thru the frame.

rosefarts

That was super weird. Bare cable but there are thin tubes inside so you don't have to go fishing.

It's bare cable from the shifter until the rear loop. On the front, no housing at all and the cable pops back out just under the FD.

I noticed the inner guide tubes when I had the BB out.

Cougrrcj

I'm trying to figure out how having tubes inside of the frame saves any weight over conventional cable routing.


Still, a nice bike and nice score!


.

rosefarts

Well, I'm not sure how much 6ft of 3mm steel/brass/plastic tubing weighs. No idea what material the inner guides are made from actually.

I would be afraid to ever change cables on a bike like that without them.

For weight, it's 21.94 lbs. Considering it's got clinchers and toe clips, that's not too bad.

BFisher

Great bike and interesting story.

Thanks for sharing.

mstateglfr 

I see from the full driveside pic what is going on, thanks for posting that. I was commenting before you had posted the pic, so it helps explain what I was asking.
Makes sense to not have a cable stop since its bare cable coming from the downtube shifter. I was thinking it was housing from the STI shifter down to the point where the cable enters the frame and couldnt figure out where the housing would stop.

Really interesting design as it isnt something I can remember seeing. And most likely the guide tube inside the frame is brass- its easily manipulated for curving inside the frame and it will braze in nicely with silver(since silver melts at a lower temp than brass).
The ports for routing cables into the frame(chainstay and top tube) also dont have a visible reinforcement brazed on, but it looks like there is a brazed on reinforcement on the downtube where the cable enters the frame. Again, interesting how brazed on reinforcement is selectively used.
Those spoon shaped stays are really prominent too!


Such a cool frame- great details.

KonAaron Snake 

I'll gladly give you $301 for it

Really cool bike, and I dig that he sent the bike to an enthusiast. Love the paint here, and you did a great job cleaning it up. Looks practically NOS. Tom/Jeff aren't taking new orders now, and Spectrum is pretty much done, which makes me sad.

What kind of bars were you thinking of changing this to? I wouldn't call drop bars an "old" style/technology as they're still prominent on most non-MTBs/commuters.

SJX426 

Drive train is not from 85 more like early 90's. Great looking bike, drool.

TiHabanero

Rosefarts, you are a caretaker of that machine. Enjoy it, honor the memory of the original owner, and pass it on to another caretaker when you are done with it.

clubman 

One of the nicest understated paint fades I've seen. Classy bike.

rosefarts

6 speed Uniglide DA 7400? Dead on at 85'

Also would have gotten extra gears, STI, and dual pivot.

As for the question about handlebars. I don't plan to change them but modern ergonomic drop bars and aero levers are a lot more comfortable to me.

I don't care for the toe clips. I've got some track cleats in the mail. I'll try them. If not, I've got some very old (early 90s) Delta's I could use and keep it generally accurate.

T-Mar

As shown, the bicycle is period correct for 1985. New Dura-Ace (7400 series) with SIS was commercially introduced in late 1984 for the 1985 model year. It had been race tested in 1984 by the Cilo-Aufina pro team and Urs Zimmermann had won the 1984 Tour de Suisse using it. The May 1985 issue Bicycle Guide actually had a red version of this bicycle on the cover, showing a close-up of the New Dura-Ace SIS shift lever and the brazed-on down tube cable ports. I was disappointed that the issue didn't actually include a review of the bicycle.

1985 was the end of the aero era (unless you were Campagnolo, in which case it was just beginning) but it's influence was still being felt, especially on high grade bicycles and those marketed towards the emerging discipline of triathlon. Besides being more aerodynamic, internal gear cables provided a cleaner aesthetic and were a feature to justify higher prices. It was even found on some mid-range models, such as the 1985 Nishiki Tri-A.

Curiously, Shimano didn't immediately introduce a new aero brake lever for New Dura-Ace, instead offering a new non-aero brake lever as the stock item with the New Dura-Ace group and carrying over the old Dura-Ace AX aero brake lever as an option.

SJX426 

Well I require calibration every year or so. Thanks!

himespau 

I was always told that it was to make things cleaner and less likely to get gummed up (and occasionally someone said something about more aerodynamic), but I hadn't heard lighter.

rosefarts

Thats a great riding bike!! Regardless of the year. Surprisingly spry on the climbs considering 42-24 low gear. Maybe I was just excited.

rosefarts

Cougrrcj

OK. I'll bite - how does an internal routing make it less likely to get gummed up if the cable housing is continuous? Well, on the subject bike, the rear brake housing looks continuous... But shifter cables? They are bare on a DT-shifted bike, so how does the slight bend and exposed cable guide at the BB contribute to 'gummy' if the bike is even moderately maintained?

I'm sorry, but I prefer my frames NOT to have any holes in them that may weaken the integrity of the tubing or act as a stress riser to crack at a later date... OR allow water to enter... And yes, frame tube cracks has been known to happen in the early internal-routed framesets from several manufacturers... That's ONE of the reasons that I chose a '86 Miyata 710 over an '87. Yeah, I would have preferred the '87s splined triple-butted tubing over the regular triple-butting on the '86, but...

rosefarts

Um, this is the C&V forum. As in, nothing is new. I was 6 when Greg (original owner) had Tom Kellogg put this together. I would have opted for much flashier colors, mounts for a second water bottle, and tubulars. I can't complain though, since I got a nearly brand new Spectrum 35 years later.

I really dig the clean lines of the internal routing. It's a speedster, not a touring rig, it's not going to break in half.

If you want perfection, I'd suggest contacting Jon Tallerico in San Diego. He works in steel and made the favorite bike I've ever ridden. He's still active and amazing, I don't think Tom is going to come out of retirement for you.

Cougrrcj

I'm NOT dissing your bike at all. I'm trying to understand how an internal routing is 'better' somehow. You say clean aesthetics. Fine. I like aero brake levers on my classics to help 'clean up the cockpit', too.

I can see that the cables on your are hidden, but what does that REALLY do that is a real advantage over conventional routing? Back in the mid '80s, after several internal-routed frames failed or cracked at the holes for internal cable routing, many manufacturers had to put doublers brazed onto the tubing to help dissipate the stresses where the holes were cut into the tubing. That is proven fact, NOT conjecture. NOT me being in any way negative.

No, I'm NOT a racer. No, NONE of my bikes are customs. I'm just a average-Joe cycling enthusiast for more than 40+ years...

If I have offended you in any way, I apologize.

Flickz

She's a beaut .

T-Mar

I'd like to expand and add some context to one of my previous points. Perhaps it will help, maybe not. In 1985, high end American bicycles like Spectrum were being being bought primarily by one of two market segments; the competitor or the yuppie. At the time, things like internal cables and SIS had little appeal to most competitors. However, they did appeal to the American yuppies who wanted to participate in the mini bicycle boom of the era. Any feature that set the bicycle apart from the crowd, was technically advanced and justified a higher cost, made it more desirable to the yuppie, provided it was aesthetically pleasing and didn't add too much weight. They were less concerned about practical advantages than the visceral sense of superiority provided by a more complex and costly feature. Internal gear cables checked all the boxes.

rosefarts

I loved the guy but you just described the previous owner to a T.

mstateglfr 

Woah- man I didnt think I would come back to this of all threads to a back and forth with tons of CAPS.
Anyways, I think there is a narrative for marketing and there is real life application. Real life application often doesnt line up with marketing. I view internal routed cables from the 80s as just one of hundreds of examples where marketing doesnt line up with real life when it comes to cycling.

Sure, cables not on the outside will reduce wind drag- that could be tested and shown. So it goes as a marketing sales point, but when I ride a bike, that internally routed cable isnt whats keeping me from averaging 19mpg, its my weight to power thats keeping me from being a god among men.
Real work didnt line up with marketing.
Even some current aero bikes that were actually tested in wind tunnels have results that arent as reproducible on the road.

I like internally routed rear brake cables because of the look. Thats it- just the look. Some love fastback stays, some love sloping fork crowns, etc etc- its all just the look and I happen to like the look of an internally routed brake cable. I have one on a late 80s road bike that uses full housing thru the frame and when I got to take a class a couple years ago to build a frame, I put a brass tube in the top tube to route the brake cable internally. I have 0 fear of water getting in the tube and destroying the frame because the fit is tight at both cable stops, the stops are oriented where water would just go in and instead would drip off, and because I dont extensively ride in the rain.

Yes sure- Ive read some frames from the 80s that werent reinforced had developed cracks at the entry and exit ports of internal routing. At the same time, I have a 1988 Schwinn Premis frame hanging in my garage stripped of paint waiting for me to braze on new cable guides because 2 of the original guides rusted off. Point being- external routing is far from perfect.

Anyways, internal routing isnt 'better' in practical application. Its just another way to get cables from point A to point B, but sometimes marketed as better. Shocker- marketing isnt always accurate. You know what else isnt faster?...a DuraAce aero seatpost, but that doesnt mean it isnt cool looking.