Joe,
Regarding the performance of Campy Delta brake calipers, there is nothing wrong with either version (that being the 2nd and 3rd) of the calipers. The gross failier is in the design of the brake LEVER. The first generation of Campy aero brake was probably the worst thing they ever came up with; with the possible exception of the Syncro system or the SGR pedals. Get the straight pull updated version aero brake lever (I often buy Athena ones because they work great and a are reasonably priced) to mate with the Delta calipers and they will work suffeciently well. No, they are not like modern dual piviots, but they do work well enough. Euro styling (but heavy) and stopping power; what more do you want? I hope you have a 3.5mm allen wrench handy!
Brian Baylis
La Mesa, CA
>
> I had never attended this swap before. It was great to meet people like
> Wayne and Jill, sell a bunch of stuff and buy more.
>
> I had pretty good luck. Early in the day I bought the Lepper saddle I resold
> to Wayne because I found a decent Ideale 90 with the Rebour treatment for
> $5. I also bought and then sold a set of NOS old logo Cinelli bars for $20
> because they turned out to be 38 cm rather than the promised 40. Some good
> finds were at Bobby Philip's table. He had nice NOS CLB levers with hoods
> for $4 each, NOS French Belleri stems for $4 (I rummaged and found matching
> bars too), and fixed gear cogs for $1. I didn't buy any but he had nice NOS
> Schwinn labeled sew up rims for $20 /pair. These are the 330 gram Super
> Champions. He has more of all of these items (except the bars?) so give a
> look at another swap or his shop if you are interested.
>
> I bought Fujita leather grips and Soyo rubber grips for a track bike at $10
> each from a dealer.
>
> Stopped and talked to "Crazy Dave" Watson who I know well from way back with
> the long defunct Nutley (NJ) Bike Club. He was growling harshly at those he
> viewed as cheapskates as we recounted old times.
>
> The best find was a red Vitus bonded aluminium bike all built up with
> C-Record in my size. I had long wanted on of these. It also came with a
> Houdaille exerciser and a Maillard titanium freewheel thrown in. see
> http://classicrendezvous.com/
> as it is brutally overengineered. The Maillard is a real rare piece of
> equipment and seems the most exotically fabricated of all superlight
> freewheels, as it is probably all titanium including the body. I sold that
> later in the day for the firesale price of $40 considering it was in
> excellent shape.
>
> I have enjoyed riding the Vitus. The ride is agile and not as cushy as I had
> hoped. It has 19mm clincher tires which make it a bit harsh. The Campy
> "delta" (is that right?) brakes are comically ineffecient so I'll have to
> lube all the pivots and possibly change the shoes.
>
> I agree there was a lot of worn out, odd sized and scratched classic
> equipment but I think nearly as much good stuff was carried back home as was
> found.
>
> Joe