Readying Eddy for "The Classics"

Tuesday, January 29th 2013 -- It was 58 degrees today, as I swung a leg over my ‘winter project.’   This quest began with an email from my high school bud, furniture maker, and Eddy Merckx bicycle devotee, Dan DeKoven.  Long since trashed, I recall Dan’s email went something like this:

“Fausto, check out this Eddy Merckx Team SC bike.  It won Paris Roubaix, and I like the paint job.  The Lotto Domo and 7 Eleven paint schemes are kind of loud and cheesy in my opinion.”

The frame and fork Dan found on ebay was painted gloss black with white MERCKX lettering.  Dan’s email hooked me, so I did a bit of checking on this bicycle.

The Team SC may have been the last racing design that the ‘Great One’ had a hand in before selling his bicycle company.  Indeed, as Dan said, it won Paris Roubaix not just once but in three successive years! 

In 2001, Dutchman Servais Knaven, Belgian Johan Musseuw, and Latvian Roman Vainsteins swept the podium frying the competition for Domo-Farm Frites.

In ‘02’ Museeuw piloted his ‘Frites’ Team SC to victory in Roubaix’s hallowed velodrome. 

Then in ’03,’ another Belgian, Peter Van Petegem doubled at the Tour of Flanders and then Paris Roubaix.

Other victories include Richard Virenque’s scorcher at the ‘01’ Paris-Tours race and his 2002 assault and battery of the ‘heads of state’ up Mont Ventoux in a most memorable stage at the Tour de France.

Yes, this bicycle had provenance all right, and more than one blogger has sung its praises.  Besides L’Eroica, this would be a celebration of my 65^th.   Thus began the readying of Eddy for the ‘Classics.’

My second nudge from Dan was to purchase an official Eddy Merckx seat post (or ‘seatpin’ as he called it).  Dan’s bike mechanic, Joe Hughes, found one.

Then, we began searching for wheels and components.

“Fausto, I don’t know about Sram (Apex), but I’d recommend Campy for this bike.  You can rebuild the shifters.”  Not intending to thrash and mash gears, Campagnolo and Eddy Merckx go a long way back and seemed a good choice.  Campy’s 11-speed stuff is very pricy, and I’d be locked into their chains and cassette, so I managed to find New Old Stock (NOS) Chorus 10-speed shift levers and a rear derailleur plus a lovely Record front derailleur from an internet outfit in Springfield, Illinois.

Peter Naiman collects bicycles and is a fellow participant in the Classic Rendezvous lightweight steel bicycle inter-network.  Peter recommended a pair of Planet X Ultra Light CNC brake calipers.  They are very light indeed and easy to install.  The toe-in was extremely easy.

Ron Mattson had a beautiful set of DT Swiss wheels at his Freeport Bicycle Company.   Ron gave me a sweet winter year-end price on the wheels and a pair of durable Schwalbe Durano 25C tires.  I also asked Ron if he might provide Sram’s super light XG 1090 10-speed cassette and an Italian threaded bottom bracket.

To pay for the cassette, I traded off purchasing Campagnolo's Chorus compact crankset for a FSA’s SLK model saving roughly 100 bucks and 100 grams.

Last Wednesday with much needed assistance from Bill Leibman, Eddy came together at the Freeport Bicycle Company.  Ron arrived at 5 PM just in time to help me tighten a loose headset that can plague owners of Team SCs if not properly sorted out.

Technical details aside, I was now anxious to discover how this most lauded Merckx performs.  Until today, the weather had been plenty cold and gritty, and Eddy was content to stay on the trainer.  We had a two-hour window between the rain and so pushed off at 11 AM.

How do you turn a huge grin into words?  This bike fits like soft kid gloves and moves like a silky black panther.  On the pedals, the bike begs to be ridden aggressively.  Relax, and the DT Swiss rear end emits a faint clicking unlike the annoying sound from my Madone’s Bontrager Race X Lite hub.

On the first climb, I shifted into the large cog and heard chain ticking.  While tinkering with the downtube barrel adjuster, I realized I wasn’t in the lowest front derailleur position.  Campy has five settings that allow you to trim the front as you shift up and down the gears.

Campagnolo’s shifters differ from Shimano’s two levers and Sram’s DoubleTap.  It took time to get used to the Chorus Ergopower’s thumb lever, but I like the feel of the hoods and the Deda handlebars, which are especially comfortable when you drop into the lower bars.

Another very close high school buddy, Gil Gulbrandson, purchased a Sella Anatomica for his Waterford, and I discovered that the surface leather of this saddle is made in Elkhorn, Wisconsin.

It looks like a svelte racy Brooks with a large center slot.  Check out their Butt Cam:  http://www.selleanatomica.com/design/  

Nuff said about that and my Sella Anatomica's white leather.  With the bike on the trainer, I had some comfort concerns, but outside, I found this saddle extremely agreeable and supportive.

My first two hours outdoors were the beginning of what promises to be a long and enjoyable relationship with this historic racing bike.  The Team SC is so steady and noticeably unaffected by crosswinds, which were strong today.

As I rode back along West Stephenson I flatted in front of Park Hills Golf Club.  The rain held off long enough for me to change the tube.  What better opportunity to get acquainted.