Notario's are here!

Just this morning I became the proud owner of a couple of New-Old-Stock Notario pedals. In Spain they were not only coveted but also regarded as equal to Campagnolo's best.  Well, yes, it may seem way too much but if you take a look at the smart stylish design and their impeccable finish they   seem close to perfection.

Servicing was quite easy, though it took me some time to figure out how to extract the dust cap (there was no visible indentation and unscrewing seemed not an option so I finally used a pair of pliers to pop it out).
After applying a generous layer of grease and fiddling with the adjusting nuts they started to turn smoothly. No, smoothly is not the word, though it comes fairly close...

Drilling fashion

I was not happy with the original BH cranks so after asking here and there and making a couple of failed attempts was finally able to get hold of a well worn set of  Zeus cranks.  The outer ring is still the original in the drilling fashion of the 70's.
The inner one is a cunningly modified 36 teeth (110 bcd! Necessity is the mother of invention).

By the way, you can also admire the front mech (Have I already  mentioned I'm quite fond of it?)

The rear mech

An old Simplex (from my secret den) successfully restored. Shifts smoothly.

The label is the only missing bit (I'm on it)
See the spoke guard? It was badly rust and took a lot of sanding.

Brake levers

I intended to reuse the original Olimpic levers but their hoods had gone for ever long ago and couldn't get hold of a suitable replacement so... I opted to press into service a good pair of Campagnolo Record I bought second hand in a second hand store (just the levers, no brake arms though).

If you take some time to study the picture you can make quite an idea of what brought Campagnolo components to a legendary status. It was not performance but quality, design and a carefull stylish look.

Now, compare both levers. I'm not saying the original ones are not a fair device that will do the job. It's just, well, it's just that when put them  side to side the others look crude... they're not Campy.

What about the hoods? The original ones were from natural rubber and natural rubber though looks well is not celebrated for aging well. Original Campagnolo hoods were long out of production but I was able to get hold of a pair of Alonga hoods and make some unauthorised modifications.

The Alonga were intended for aero levers so first thing was drilling the exit hole for the cable. In fact, drilling is not the word since I used a soldering iron to melt through. It doesn't look bad at all.

After some minor modifications in the underside this is the final look.

                                                                          

Taking shape

The brake arms are Olimpic 70 Super (the rear is "original specification" while its front counterpart comes from my secret cave). Both have been cleaned, polished and oiled. The mudguards are not yet finished (am working on it)

First lacquer

This week I've experienced the frustrating and time-consuming art of lug-lining.
These are the results after some swearing and a first coat of lacquer.

It's taking shape, isn¡t it?

 

Just waiting for the transfers.

Making good progress

Right now, the base layers have already been sprayed. They must dry out before applying varnish.  The contrasting parts are yet to be trimmed but one can get a fairly good idea of what it'll look like when finished.



Maybe I should mention here that I've finally decided on matching coloured mudguards