>http://ebay.com/<blah>
>
>I don't know what is so hard about finding large quantities of grade
>25 bearings.
>
>A simple search on Ebay produced a link to this seller's auctions.
>I have no idea whether these are good prices, but the quality and
>quantity sure look like they fill the need for most folks. Lou
>Deeter, Orlando FL USA
It's not hard to find them, but it's _harder_ than it used to be.
I always got my bearings from the local bearings suppliers, and Seattle has at least half a dozen of them. Since I buy them in boxes of 1000, they last me a good while. When I needed to assemble 4 headsets in a rush, on bikes shipped to me unassembled for a photo shoot for our book "The Competition Bicycle," I was astonished that all our bearing suppliers told me "No longer in stock." I was lucky that a local bike shop had enough Grade 25 balls in stock to bail me out. And 4 headsets take quite a few bearings.
E-bay is all nice and well, but if you need parts in a hurry, it's nice to be able to pick them up locally. I called three bike shops before I found one that had enough balls for those headsets, and could guarantee the grade. Fortunately, we have a lot of good bike shops in Seattle.
I am sure crank cotters still can be found, but they also are "harder to find" around here.
If you are doing a restoration, and need cotters for cottered cranks, there probably are lots of sources. However, if you were a racer using a 1950s bike, and you needed one the day before a race, you would be out of luck in most bike shops. Same for chainrings for Nuovo/Super Record cranks. TA still lists them, but I doubt many shops have them in stock.
On the other hand, the bearings for a 1952 Rene Herse bottom bracket are just standard items. When I needed those, I had a choice of four different brands, all in stock at the first supplier I called. That makes them "easy to find" around here. Just don't try to find those at a bike shop!
Jan Heine
Editor
Bicycle Quarterly
140 Lakeside Ave #C
Seattle WA 98122
http://www.bikequarterly.com