Jay writes:
>I was tickled to come upon Campy cat. # 17 when unpacking a box of books
that had been in storage for years. Totally forgot I had it.
Unfortunately the spiral binding was gone so the catalog was loose (is
it possible to re-bind this?) but I was surprised to see that, according
to this catalog, the S.R. brake calipers had the flat Q.R. lever. I
thought the S.R. caliper had the scooped out Q.R. lever.....enlighten me
someone?
You've probably already received replies to this, but domed levers came as a result of the CPSC's (Consumer Product Safety Commission) late 70's determination that the flat ones were unsafe and demanded they be changed in an effort to stop the thousands of senseless deaths and disfigurements that had resulted from the unsafe flat levers. The rounded edges on the front of the front derailleur cage were a result of the same mandate.
Always nice when a government agency that knows nothing about cycling can turn the industry upside down. I guess the mountain bikers went thru a similar thing a few years ago with the little nubbies on the front dropouts that turn your quick-release into a never-release.
The plastic binding combs like they used on the #17 catalog are a standard item, Office Max has them in many different diameters, but whether they are at all the stores or just on the web site, I'm not sure.
Try to get one a bit larger than the original... my experience has been that #17 always felt a little tight... hard to open and turn pages without binding (but I dunno... maybe that's why they call it a "binding").
You can also make some loops with zip ties that will work just fine (if you try to make them all the same diameter and not too tight, they'll actually work as well or better than the comb. Try threading the ties thru the pages and around a small dowel, then take out the dowel, then they'll all be the same size).
Bob Hovey
Columbus, GA