Other parts and tooling..

Tools for life..

Besides new Italian threaded bottom bracket cups, which were easy enough to come by, my other concern would be a newhead set, also not included in the parts group, which just like the crank is a real core component that would need to be selected carefully. Although I naturally would have preferred one, Gerard had already told me that Campagnolo stopped producing headsets in the middle eighties. They can still be found new on the web though, but I was under the impression these were meant for old-fashioned threaded forks where the 1-inch diameter stem is placed inside the fork tube.  Although a nice 1" Pantos stem would surely be worth considering if it comes to a nice appearance, I was sure I wanted a modern black ultralight compact handlebar which has a 31,8 mm diameter, which don't fit the 26mm of the 1"stems. I meanwhile know the Campa headset would have fit as well and at the same time it did not refrain me from ordering the Campa headset anyway. It somehow seemed like a good investment for possible future retro projects. And I just love these parts. So no Campa headset at this stage, but the alternative was easy and logical.

Straight from Japan..

Being nice and smoothly profiled in shiny alu, the current Dura Ace set was already a great fit and a real quality choice. I initially just wanted to replace the so conveniently closed bearings, but these are not registered by type or part number and nowhere to be found. So I looked out for a completely new set. Which I found rather quickly in its country of origin Japan on E-bay. Not exactly a bargain with shipping & customs added, but I wanted everything new & I had been lucky enough with the other parts so far. Then there was the special tooling to look after. Although already in possession of some basic items like a torque wrench, pedal wrench, chain punch and Shimano cassette removal set, which is not suitable for Campa, I would need a great deal more. The Shimano crank and bottom bracket removal required both a crank puller and special wrench for the threaded lock washer. Placing the Campa Ultra-Torque bracket required a special hex key and fitting wrench for the cups. The removal of the headset needed a drive-out tool for the frame bearing cups and another one for the crown-race on the fork. Re-fitting the new headset required a headset press and crown race placing tool. All in all a considerable but fair investment so it would prove, and these are also tools for life of course. Good tools really make a difference and are a great pleasure to use. There was however one specific tool I decided would be just too much of it. The Shimano crown race removal tool TL HP20 which is not easy to come by. I could find only 2 available offers on E-Bay, 1 for a fair $ 55,00 which could not be shipped outside the USA unfortunately, & 1 for $ 175,- excluding shipping & customs, which was just a bit too much. Considering that this part is basically only a bearing holder, not subject to wear, made me decide it would need no replacement. Upon the search for tools and small parts I always finally ended up at: https://www.bike-components.de. A great webshop. My next mission was to find the remaining outfit to choose: Brake calipers, handlebar, stem, seat and seat post, but above all: Wheels...