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The Retrogrouch Past: Influences
Every now and then, a little self-reflection is a good thing. When I look at myself in the mirror, sometimes I ask myself probing questions. Am I where I wanted to be in life? Am I happy in my job?...
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Retrogrouch Past: Part II: A Bike Geek's Dream
In my last post, I wrote about how I came to get really interested in bicycles at the tail end of a classic period when lugged steel frames were abundant, and beautiful and simple components ruled. But...
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For the Love of Lugs
I'm a sucker for a lugged frame. I know that there is a lot of skill involved and a certain industrial/utilitarian aesthetic in a really nicely welded frame, but I never really learned to appreciate...
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More Vintage Cycle Art
Getting ready for Thanksgiving, so there's not a lot to say today -- just wanted to share another cool old vintage bike poster that hangs in my home. Wonder Cycles, by Paul Mohr, 1923. The print I have...
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Torchbearer Daydreaming
I know I've mentioned this in other posts, but I am a teacher in a public school. There was a time in my life when I could barely imagine doing anything else. After twenty years, I still like teaching...
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Share the Road?
I remember an incident that happened a number of years ago on a group ride. We were stopped at a light, standing at the right side of the road waiting for the signal to change to green. Just then, a...
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A Bicycling David and Goliath
I've been seeing a lot of posts around the internet about this within the last few days or so: Specialized is suing a little bike shop in Alberta, Canada because of trademark infringement. The shop,...
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Lovely Fork Crowns
In my post For the Love of Lugs I wrote about how, for me, a lugged frame just holds so much more appeal than one that is welded (or molded, as in the case of a lot of carbon bikes). I feel the same...
View ArticleDavid and Goliath - Cafe Roubaix Lives!
There have been some interesting developments in the story of Cafe Roubaix and their troubles with bicycle corporate giant Specialized. As I stated a few days ago, the little bike shop in Alberta has...
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75th Anniversary Paramount
Since the 1930s, the Schwinn Paramount represented the top of the heap in American lightweight racing bicycles. In the 60s and 70s, they were considered one of the few American bikes that could compete...
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Disc and Hydraulic Brake Recalls
It's no secret to anyone reading this blog on a regular basis that I have issues with the latest disc and hydraulic brake systems. This is the Retrogrouch Blog, after all. I'm not ready to accept all...
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Lovely Fork Crowns II - Reader Submissions
After I posted about Lovely Fork Crowns, I heard from a number of readers who felt as though I'd left out some of their favorites. I was just as pleased as heck that there are so many others out there...
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Jamie Swan's Custom Built Fork Crown
While I was collecting submissions of favorite fork crowns, I got this really incredible one from Jamie Swan, a very talented builder located in Long Island, NY.Jamie Swan has been in the bicycle...
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Another Bike Shop Memory
There are some old bike shops the really live on in my memories, long after they've closed up. Shops that could trace their way back to the classic era, when the best frames were steel and lugged....
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Bicycles: Public Enemy?
I've been seeing this article from the Boston Globe posted and re-posted a lot in the past week:From the Boston Globe, Dec. 15Reading the article merely provides some context and support for something...
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Christmas Bike Rides
It was Christmas day and the temperature must have been up around a spring-like 50 degrees or so. It was unseasonable for late December in NE Ohio. There was snow on the ground from the previous few...
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Reynolds 531: Classic Tubes
Look at great bikes from the classic era, and one thing you'll find on many of them is a little sticker announcing the manufacturer of the tubing used in the frame. And for a long time, more often than...
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Retrogrouch Recommended Reading
What could an Olympic champion speed skater, a part-time construction contractor, and a diabetes-inducing 32-oz soft drink have to do with bicycling? Those elements are the beginnings of the 7-Eleven...
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A Fork Crown Collection: Peter Weigle
People are going to think I have a fork crown fetish by the time I'm done with this thread. I really don't! But when you get a contribution like the one I got recently, you run with it. American frame...
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A Rare Find: Hetchins Lugs
The entire lug set, purchased last year from Paul Hetchin. The set includes the main lugs, fork crown, bottombracket, and the decorative tangs that would be brazed on to the seat stays. I recently got...
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