Dave Russell - Back to Blue

If anyone still has the will-to-live reading this thread, then I salute you and appreciate your continued interest. This post sums up retro bikes for me... This axle is such a simple thing, but to me it is a thing of beauty. It looks and feels like it was made with the same care and quality as a £50k Swiss watch. The wheel isn't tensioned yet, but even so it just spins and spins and spins :cool:

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Not much happening at the moment... The rear rim went banana at the join (the pin had cracked) under the smallest amount of tension, so have ordered a couple of Kinlin T10s as replacement. They look virtually identical to the Starals and I'd rather have peace of mind knowing they weren't going to disappear from under me.

The Japanese Hatta Swan headset came up nicely though. What is people's preference when it comes to balls... caged or free? Or is it like asking what your favourite type of grease is? I'd always assumed caged balls were more a convenience factor, but it was preferable to install them loose if you had the option.

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