Re: [CR]Re: Cinellii status

(Example: Bike Shops:R.E.W. Reynolds)

Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2002 22:16:07 -0800
From: "Bill Bryant" <Bill_Bryant@prodigy.net>
To: kevin gosney <kevingosney10@hotmail.com>
Cc: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Subject: Re: [CR]Re: Cinellii status
References: <F156eIiGXix4A2DreBB0001fa22@hotmail.com>


Hi Kevin-- Were Avocet saddles even available back in 1973? I don't think so, nor Grab-on foam grips. All that stuff came later than '73, me thinks. Avocet in about '75 or '76, and Grab-on about '78 if memory serves. That doesn't explain your NOS/NIP saddle, but there it is. Maybe the original owner has his purchases confused? His bill of sale would have probably listed any extra charges such as those you mention; or does he still have the build sheet? That specified every bike's components and would tell you how the bike left the shop. So many CBS bikes had various combinations of parts, there was nothing considered "standard" by Spence. The build sheet is what we used to assemble the bikes and a copy went to the customer. Spence was a ~very~ thorough guy (so too his wife Lillian) and wrote every customer request down to avoid any subsequent confusion. Also, the shop was busy as hell in '73 and it would have been impossible to keep track of everything without listing all the parts for each bike or set of wheels.

Spence would have probably just made an upcharge for the Phil BB. I don't know why the Campy unit went out the door with the bike unless the owner was nervous about the (then new) Phil's reliability. The original models had a two-piece spindle and some did indeed come adrift... but Spence would have resisted sending a ~spare~ BB with a new Cinelli--no bike he assembled would need anything like ~that~... yuck! This must have been a special customer request for some reason now forgotten. (To keep his Campy groupo intact, perhaps?) At any rate, by 1981 we had quite a few unsold Campy Italian-thread BBs in the "morgue" since so many Cinellis got Phil BB units during the mid-70s period.

Another point; Spence's preferred method of handlebar wrap was to rubber cement strips of 1/4" neoprene atop the handlebars for extra padding, then wrap the normal Tressostar cloth tape over that. Black electrical tape to prevent the ends from fraying would have finished the job; the Tressostar wrapping started at the bottom and went up from there. He liked black cloth tape best since it lasted the longest in terms of appearance, but other colors where used from time to time if the customer requested it. By the late '70s he did install Grab-ons if a customer wanted them, but he told me he preferred his padded cloth tape method more.

If it's worth anything, I worked closely with Spence while he retired and sold the shop in 1981; I took over (hired by the new absentee owner), when he left. Spence's goal was to provide the same level of service to his loyal customers after his departure, and so carefully passed on his service techniques and philosophy of business to me and my friend and colleague Carter Milieus. What an education we received from the master! We also got to deal with his customers, and the overall experience was very rewarding for a variety of reasons.

Good luck with your project. Though he generally liked an uncluttered look on bikes (i.e., Alex Singer), I think Spence would say, "It's ~your~ bike. Put the decals on if you want."

Bill Bryant Santa Cruz, CA

kevin gosney wrote:
> Listmembers,
>
> I'm soliciting your thoughts on how to "finish" my red '73 Cinelli Special Corsa, serial #1748. It is as original now as the day it was purchased from Spence Wolf's Cupertino Bike Shop on September 6, 1973 (thanks Vance). So what's the problem you ask? I understand that Spence had an issue with how Cinelli packed their frames for shipping, therefore he specified no downtube decals be applied at the factory . ergo, this beauty has no downtube decals. The original buyer requested an Avocet Racing II saddle, Phil bottom bracket and thin foam Grab-On handlebar wrap. Fortunately the original owner also bought a Campy bbkt and Cinelli #2 saddle along with the bike, these I have,both NOS/NIP. So your thoughts: have dt decals applied and change out the saddle, bbkt and handlebar wrap, or leave as Spence and the original buyer intended?
> cool, drizzle in P-Town

>

> Kevin

> -