79pmooney

I don't call my winter/rain/city bikes that served for decades as my commuters vintage. Just the right tool for the job. Early to mid-'80s horizontally dropped "sport" bikes; either generous 700c or 27" running fix gear, fenders, dropped bars, Mafac or Mafac and Weinmann style brakes. Long TTT or Cinelli stem; later even longer steel customs. LowRiders and panniers. U-lock. Single color paint jobs of durable paint. Now powder coat. BITD brushed 2-part epoxy (much cheaper and just as durable). Wheels - Miche track rear hub, Tipo front. Open Sports and 2.0-1.8 spokes. 28c Paselas.

1980-85 was the sweet spot for production bikes that fit the role above so well. The brief window of time when much of the bike world had one standard. Nearly all the steel frames used the same diameter tubes. Threads were the same. (Well not always cut the same but after the first well greased and muscled force, just fine.) When one of my commuters met an un-timely death, a trip to a bike store or two yielded another well used frame. Swap over of parts - one evening and there would be one or two parts I'd have to buy for that one; maybe a headset or seatpost.

Current ride - a Trek 4-something, circa 1983. Powder coated after the seatstay cap TREK cracked across the "R". Sugino 110 BCD crankset with an 1/8" chainring. RACER front brake, Weinmann rear. (I turn RACERS into fronts, Weinmanns into rears. Gives appropriate response front and rear with very similar feels after full length rear cable mush. Great city brakes.) Fun part on that bike - a Chorus aero seatpost. Single bolt so I won't use it on my good bikes plus it came to me badly zigzag scored. High quality clamp that while single bolt, allows exact seat placement and zero slip. Way, way above the rest of the bike for quality! Except for the 175mm -22 degree stem to get "the fit".

My other winter/rain/city bike is a geared Raleigh Competition, triple 7-speed. Other than that, very similar to the bike above except it has a rear rack also. Farmers market bike. Very comfortable on very poor roads (with or without pavement). Wheels like above except Phil hubs and wider Paselas. Edit: Another powdercoat, this time because that frame missed braze at the factory so all lugs were filled by TiCycles (plus do-dads; WB bosses, Huret to modern hanger change, seatlug/pin repair).