Re: unabashed plug, Crumpton

dustoyev...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 wrote:
>
> I've never actually met you, intros and all, but I do remember a brief
> encounter at the old South Austin Bikes, actually not too long past
> the time when I swapped out some plumber labor (venting for bathroom
> fixtures IMS) for a tubular tire or two with Jim Keene and (I think)
> Al, or maybe Joe. Anyhow, even my paltry 182 lb. racing weight of old
> pushed the envelope of equipment made for a population where 165lbs.
> is "big".

Hmm, whaddaya know?  I worked there a couple of different spells.  The
last time was in 1994, and that stint ended when I snapped a Deore XT
crank spindle off trying to surge out into traffic on South First,
resulting in me breaking my face.  I was rather lean and fast then, no
heavier than about 260 lbs. or so.

A few years later, I remember just by chance being Joe Kunesh's last
customer on his last day of business before he packed it in.  I had
special-ordered a Sachs front drum and when I went to the South
Congress shop to pick it up, I learned that there would be no more
stopping by South Austin Bikes.  I don't think I ever saw Joe again,
or Al either for that matter.

> Meaning: besides the eye candy aspect,
> their bikes are used for racer stuff-- group rides, racing.

That's as it should be.  I think the weight budget for most CFRP bikes
contains an allowance for inattention that probably doesn't apply to
the work of a single craftsman with his name on the downtube.  If the
level of finish is any indication, all details in Nick's bikes are
just so.  Weight for weight, that would make his bikes at least more
predictable than factory bikes if not outright stronger.

I think of plastic bikes as little airplanes for the road.  That is,
they are both strangely strong and very demanding about what they'll
tolerate.  They are the opposite of old-style steel bikes that may not
be especially strong but are so tough that small localized failures
can pass unnoticed.

> It comes down to tools for the job IMHO. If I had the discretionary
> bux (not with young kids still in the house), easy choice. For now, I
> scrounge <g> and that's OK, too.

I have had the liberty to spend pretty much all the money I wish on
bikes for a few years now.  My stable has grown greatly in size but
not in median cost.  I scrounge a lot-- not primarily to save cash but
mostly to acquire some of the parts that were too good (or heavy, or
big) to remain on the market.  For instance I came up with a handful
of 185mm Primo Powerbite cranks and BBs for $89/set some years back.
I bought them because they were my first choice irrespective of
cost.

> At the risk of re-repeating, the object was to win the comparison. So,
> congrats to the little guy, for once <g> in this modern cor****ate
> world, and he's a local, too.

Momentum magazine or BCQ should host a shootout like that.  I imagine
the entries would be a bit more inspiring (to me).

Chalo