albrt 

The worst that can happen is that the moderators will move the thread to a different forum.

If the bike is more than 10 years old, or if it is a modern steel frame of "classic" proportions, it will probably be fine here.

d_dutchison

I draw the line at brifters, but that's just me.

BikePower

so only pre brifters? what year did they start approximately?

randyjawa 

Asking us what constitutes a classic and vintage bike not going to prove helpful. Generally, the group cannot agree on the concern. In my mind, classic describes a style (mountain bike, road bike, etc). Vintage, on the other had is defined by elapsed time. In my mind, a vintage road bicycle is one that is 25 years old or older...


Some suggest that a Brifter equipped bike does not qualify. I disagree. This classic/vintage discussion has surfaced more than once, on Bike Forums. Though I might be mis-remembering, there was a time when "indexed" shifting was the component disqualifier when vintage was the issue...


At this time, I am building a Marinoni Special fitted, as issued, with a Shimano 7 speed Brifter set-up. I am unsure if this Brifter is the first model but it does seem to me that it/they have earned their place in bicycle history. The Marinoni is pretty darn close to my 25 year appraisal and I do tend to think of it as vintage...



This Marinoni, that I will be getting next week, might be too new to qualify as vintage in my book...

Crystallh

does anybody know about this serial number we 19750

reroll

A book published in volumes could be written but then get edited and reedited numerous times while hopelessly beginning to define C&V status.


Whoever created such a status could have been snickering as they did so.

Crystallh

Well what qualifies as hike to be vintage style bikes is my bike of course it's taken me forever to post a pic but serious this bike is all original and it's serial number is WE 19750 made in Japan

Crystallh

So please what is 100 chromoly cause I see nobody mentioning that as frame style.is it trash cause it's very light and this bike is very well older then me and unbelievable sharp

smd4

Chromoly is a type of steel alloy used in bike frame construction, not a frame “style.”

reroll

In recent decades probably more bikes have been made of chromoly steel tubing than any other sort of tubing, not race bikes or special purpose bikes but ordinary, everyday bikes, the sort of bikes that can take a beating yet keep on working for many years.

Pantah

So what you've got there is the Shimano ST-6400 shifters and those were actually only ever 8 speed so you've got yourself a slick 2x8 setup.

(My dates for these may be off by a year or two, I'm not, in fact, a bike history guru. Feel free to correct me) Rough timeline for Shimano's STI levers (brifters) is Dura Ace 7400 8 speed was released in 1990. The 600/Ultegra 6400 series was already out and was updated to STI style levers in '91 or '92 and was also 8 speed. The 105 1055/105-SC got the same update by 1993. RX100 and RSX got similar treatments by the mid-90's and the first 7 speed STI style levers became available in the early RSX series. All of these first generation shifters were of the same basic design and function though the internals are all annoyingly slightly different. Those of us who have been using these first generation 7 and 8 speed shifter designs love them as they are full rebuildable and repairable. They can be easily identified by their aluminum main body. All later designs have plastic main bodies.

With the release of 9 speed for the higher end groupsets in the late 90's, Shimano changed over to an entirely different design.

I'd say that anything with the first generation shifters qualifies as C&V but anything with the second generation shifters does not, at least for now.

Johno59

For mass produced bikes the quality of the metal is paramount. Many older folks firmly believe any bike produced after WW1 (1914-18) is junk. Certainly if you work on restoring bikes it gets easier as they get older as the quality of steel and workmanship is superior for the older bikes. After a 1980 DoM restoring a bike get's considerably more difficult. However most of the folks who understand this are dead or as good as dead so who cares. As long as it is made of steel you can restore it to near new - albeit the more modern the longer it takes but hey...this is for fun..
Avoid powder-coated older bikes. they hide many sins. If restoring PC coated steel burn the PC off it works a treat and saves bags of time and frustration and any horrors will be sooner apparent.

Steel Charlie

Right there you're totally wrong. It's ALL cosplay !

cegerer

From my reading of the L'Eroica rules, my classic & vintage Alpineer would not be allowed to participate in their events due to 'aero' brake hoods with the cables run under the bar tape That is ridiculous IMHO, but I suppose a line need be drawn somewhere.

merziac

Aero levers are allowed now if they were correct for the bike/time period, may be a cutoff year, no integrated shifting at all yet.

I suspect it will be assimilated soon, many on the vintage ride were riding modern bikes from the Nova event on Saturday.

I would expect they will have all riders on the Sunday ride if they want to keep it going in the future.

Only talking about the US event here, doubt they have much of a sense of humor in Europe where they embrace the true spirit of all this.

seagrade 

Stunning racing bicycle and with its 531 Professional tubing and Record Crono tubular rims the epitome of 1987 classic according to my opinion.

Johno59

The bike manufacturing industry in the UK has been defunct for nearly 50 years. Most of the old codgers who were a bit funny about what constitutes a classic or vintage bike are dead and buried. On some rides for older bikes you can get 70 year gaps in date of manufacturer. More often than not they are pleased to see anyone to ride with. Obviously they prefer to see steel but some folks knees can't take much weight so Al or carbon are welcome. In many cases they are begging folks to take up a custodian bike as the old boy who had it before WW2 died decades ago and they need a new home.

Windows95

If it uses something that hasn't been commonplace for twenty plus years

calamarichris

Everyone's allowed their own opinion on the matter. As Chris Rock once said, "I'm 49 and I still looove rap music. But I'm tired of defending it. Whatever kind of music was popular and playing on the radio when you lost your virginity, BAAAM, that's it; that's your favorite music for the rest of your life."
For me, steel, lugs, and pretty paint & decals, (even though my Masi Gran Criterium was spelled out in Comic Sans above all the national flags.)
Also, I snapped a carbon Felt frame during a sprint, so I don't trust them anymore. I'm not right, it's just like my opinion mann.

MooneyBloke

That is a gorgeous frame. I'm not ordinarily a loud paint guy, but this is just absolutely great. Personally, I'd figure out a way to stick Campag 10 on it though.

calamarichris

That bike is so pretty, I'd just bandit-ride l'Eroica and let everyone envy (And I'm no bandit-rider.) Such a beauty!

bironi

Also classified as real cute!

cb400bill

Thread closed for moderator review.

cb400bill

Thread now reopened.