Vintage Find- My S.M Woodrup "Grail" Find

My 1985'ish S.M Woodrup Bicycle

So, it's been awhile since I have updated my audience on my latest vintage finds. I have come across a few finds during the winter but I have been too busy ( and lazy, quite frankly) to write articles about them. Most of the finds that I have written previous articles about have already been sold, since there are only so many bikes that I can keep in my garage. Now that I no longer qualify as a candidate for the show "Bike Hoarders", I have made room for a few more sweet bikes that I have recently acquired.

One of them is this S.M Woodrup, one of a kind custom road bike. When I say one of a kind, this bike was hand built in s small shop in Leeds, England, to the exact measurements and specifications of the previous owner that I bought it from. Thankfully the previous owner has the same build and height as I do. It was an easy sell, one which I was able to afford thanks to selling a few bikes of my own. I will remind the reader that most of the time there is little or no money to be made in the bicycle collecting pastime, most of it goes right back into bicycles. I will say that the bicycles that I posses have a greater collector's value than the ones I have sold previously. One must work their way up and eventually leave behind the point of sale market. Anyway, let's talk more about that Woodrup!

Awesome Headbadge emblem! Custom made in Leeds, England

This bicycle is completely Campagnolo equipped, with Campy Syncros shift levers. These were the first attempts at SIS shifting, which Shimano perfected and got the one up on Campy in the bicycle market. Campy Syncros shifting is notorious for the clunkiness of the shift and at times skipping gears. Even with these setbacks, I was able to sustain 18mph for over 20 miles at a time. Not bad for a steel bicycle. The rear derailleur was a setback at first. I had to remove it and readjust the chain tensioner which had snapped in half and come off the derailleur. I managed to piece back the tensioner and re-connect it to the derailleur, giving me a working but I'm afraid not so permanent fix. After a hundred miles it's still holding up, so that's a good sign. On a side note, anyone selling a Campy Athena rear derailleur they could let me have at a good deal?

This bicycle is potentially fast. Like all bicycles, the power is in the engine that drives it. I hope I can ride this bicycle one day at the speed it is supposed to be ridden. That way I can pull an Eddy Merckx-style breakaway on a group of unsuspecting time trial cyclists on the trail. I will say that there are stiffer, lighter and more snappier bicycles out there. But there is definitely a coolness factor to this bike that can't be overlooked. In fact, this bike is so so cool that I finally caved in and topped it off with a Brooks saddle, something I never thought that I would buy for a bicycle. Riding this bike takes me back a couple of decades, and let's me see how the view from an 80's professional race grade bicycle looked like back then. I can feel the same way Miguel Indurain or Bernard Hinault felt back in the day. I'm keeping this one, I've already sold a lot others. I could always entertain a trade for a new Cannondale Supersix Evo Team Liquidgas Edition though. Anyone have one lying around?

Stay tuned for more vintage bicycle articles from a Bicycle's Point of View.