Out With The Old, Back In With The Old

Final week I flatted a tubular tire on the Cervino:

Since all my spares have been unhealthy and I needed to return the bike to rideability as quickly as potential, I put in an order for some new tubular tires–nearly instantly after which I opened an electronic mail from a kindly and beneficiant reader who supplied to ship me “a number of unused, gently aged tubular tires.” Naturally, I accepted. I didn’t even assume to ask him why he needed to ship me a number of unused tires of top of the range, principally as a result of I simply assumed like most individuals he’d come to his senses and realized tubulars are a ache within the ass. I believed the identical factor a few years in the past when I discovered an entire cache of classic tubular rims within the trash on a Brooklyn sidewalk–that the proprietor had lastly snapped, introduced “Fuck these items!,” and threw them away. (I saved them for years for stretching tires and stuff, solely just lately eliminating them myself once I figured I’d in all probability by no means cope with a tubular tire once more…and right here we’re.)

Then I spotted, “Duh, why don’t I simply put a pair of contemporary clincher wheels on the Cervino?,” which turned out nice and made me understand I didn’t really want to cope with the tubulars in any respect:

Nonetheless, what’s the purpose of proudly owning an aesthetic classic bike when you don’t at the very least often experience the stylish classic wheels that got here with it? And with an ample provide of tires for it on the way in which (which amongst different issues will enable me to experience with spares that may truly maintain air) there’s actually no purpose to not preserve them rolling. Most significantly, they need to present me with ample alternative to make an ass of myself.

The freebies are nonetheless en route, however the unique pair I ordered simply arrived, so the very first thing I did was name in an professional:

Although I’m sorry to report issues didn’t go effectively:

Simply kidding:

Clearly issues went fantastically.

In any case, I’m undecided I’ll use these or the freebies, however it’s at all times thrilling to get new bike stuff, so I figured I’d at the very least put them on the wheels with out glue in an effort to stretch them and verify them out or no matter. Again once I raced and had a pair of tubular wheels I principally used Continental Sprinters, which appeared like a very good compromise between gentle weight and sturdiness–till the inevitable flat, in fact. (You at all times swear by a tire till the second you get a flat at which level you swear by no means to make use of it once more.) However, I just lately realized there’s now such a factor as a Continental Gatorskin, so I figured I’d give {that a} strive:

The lingerie-like black base tape was completely different from the Sprinters I bear in mind, however the tread that serves solely a beauty objective was nonetheless there:

Subsequent I went to the wheels, the rear nonetheless wrapped in that sorry, structurally unsound spare:

Talking of out of date know-how, in case you’re questioning, the freewheel is a Suntour Winner:

It’s a 13-21, so with the 42-tooth little ring up entrance it nets me the identical “low” gear I used to beat barely survive the Swiss Alps.

I’m torn between altering it to one thing a little bit decrease and leaving it on there ceaselessly so I can preserve congratulating myself.

Earlier than gluing no matter tires I ultimately find yourself utilizing subsequent, I had an vital resolution to make with regard to the entrance wheel:

As everyone is aware of, you’re supposed to place the tire label on the drive facet of the bike. Moreover, the emblem on the hub ought to oriented in order that it’s legible from the saddle, and the emblem on the rim must be legible from the drive facet of the bike. Nevertheless, again once I first acquired the Cervino, I seen that, sure, the tire label and the emblem on the rim have been going through the identical method as they need to:

However the precise stamped branding on the rim was going through the alternative method because the sticker:

Additionally, with the entrance wheel on the bike with the tire label and rim label going through the “proper” method, the emblem on the entrance hub was going through the “incorrect” method:

So once I mount the brand new tire, what do I do?

Principally the sticker and the tire presently agree, and the hub emblem and the rim stamp presently agree, however there’s no solution to make all of them agree. So do I observe the hub emblem? The rim sticker? The stamp within the rim? Do I peel the rim sticker and attempt to stick it again on the opposite solution to make it agree with the stamp and the hub emblem? And if I do orient the hub so the emblem is legible from the saddle because it’s imagined to be, meaning the wheel might be spinning in the wrong way it’s been spinning all this time, and everyone is aware of the sudden reversal may trigger the bearings and races to fail catastrophically:

Simply kidding.

Clearly I’ll simply be throwing the wheel away and getting a brand new one.

Subsequent I peeled off the entrance tire:

I hadn’t actually seen when peeling off the rear tire since I used to be principally simply targeted on getting again on the highway, however I spotted now that the tire was coming off very cleanly certainly, at which level I spotted Paul had in all probability used tubular tape, which I’d by no means tried:

Given how tidy it was, I spotted I in all probability ought to have simply ordered a few of that as a substitute of a large tub of glue I’ll in all probability make a large number out of and that I’ll by no means get by anyway except I get a hankering to re-tile the lavatory:

So I figured I’d do at the very least one good factor to make up for all that. Through the flat debacle I’d realized the arduous method that one in all my spares wouldn’t maintain air. I supposed to make use of the tire I simply eliminated as a spare, so to ensure I didn’t combine it up with its flat counterpart I wrote “good” on the sidewall:

Sadly it seems prefer it says “Gooo,” and I can nearly assure that I’ll overlook doing this anyway, which signifies that in a couple of months I’ll marvel why the hell I’ve a tire that claims “Gooo” on it, conclude the tire is someway unhealthy, and use its flat counterpart with no ambiguous markings on it because the spare. And the cycle will proceed.

(Sure, I may simply throw out the flat one, however a part of utilizing tubulars is deluding your self into pondering you’ll restore it in the future.)

As I say, I’m undecided which tires I’ll find yourself gluing, so I mounted the Gatorskins dry to see what they seemed like in situ and to offer them a very good stretch: