A Leslie Wong Blog

Somehow over the past 25 years, I’ve gone from riding a modern bicycle to vintage bike.

I bought my current De Rosa in the early 80′s, after I rear ended a Manhattan cab on Third Avenue and 50th Street with my first De Rosa. I must have just left Conrad’s Bike Shop and was a little too cocky following the cab. I went over the handlebars, landed on the trunk and slid off onto the pavement. There’s a small kink in the top tube and I always thought I’d send it to CyclArt for a tube replacement and paint job. That red frame is hanging in the garage.

This week, the rear axle broke in my freewheel Campagnolo Nuovo Record hub. It’s something that happens to me every couple of years, mainly because I weigh 17.8 stones.

The chrome on the quick release was full of rust and I thought it had rusted through the chrome like it has on the drop-outs. I used a fine wire wheel and was able to clean off most of the rust.

My local bike shop didn’t have a Campy axle, but they did have 10×26 141mm axle. I used a Dremel to cut off about 5mm and slotted the axle for the washers. Given the great quality of the Campagnolo components of 25 years ago, maybe the quick release will last another 25 years.