I originally ordered my steed in January of 1996 through Open Road Bicycles in Jacksonville, Florida. Scott Gross, the owner of the shop took a particular interest in trying to provide me with a versatile steed which would suit me for racing, and or touring. Together we decided on the Waterford 1250, which at the time was their touring frame. Scott had modified certain aspects of it so it could be a cross racer as well. Once ordered, the long wait with much anxiety began........ I had initially decided on having the S&S Couplings installed because of the traveling I do, and I was getting tired of being slammed $50.00 or better by the Airlines just because I took my bike with me. The bike combined with the S&S Couplings and the S&S Hard-shell 26x26 case would allow me to take the bike anywhere I would go without any additional charges. I also decided on the Shimano 105 Triple Road group being the best triple available at that time. Front and Rear Blackburn racks were figured into the package along with a complete set of Jannd Panniers and Jannd Handlebar Bag.

The total package came to $3495.00 (approx. $2000.00 more than what I told my wife it would cost...for some reason she wasn't to happy). I was on a roll, and it became to easy to understand what I was getting - I WENT FOR IT!

Within a week of placing the order, I received a personal call from the President of Waterford, Richard Schwinn, verifying the required modifications to the frame before they began to build it (this impressed me!). He also explained to me that I would have to patiently wait about 3 months before I saw the end product (this I wasn't to happy about, but what the hell - it was a custom frame!). I also went over the custom paint job I requested - I sent them a tail feather from 1 of my Blue & Gold Macaws, to which I wanted them to duplicate the colors and fade from yellow to blue (turned out quite good if I do say so myself!). The people at Waterford found my paint request and sample somewhat amusing and made the best of it.

I waited those slow and painful 3 months for my true riding machine - All the time riding what would be considered a commercial grade clunker once I had my custom bike to compare it to. My wife didn't understand my anticipation and anxiety at all - In fact she thought I was being somewhat childish........... I was like a little boy with his legs crossed tight because he had to pee so bad!

The day finally came about where I had received a call from Open Road Bicycles to tell me that they had just received my frame from Waterford! They would install the components the next day, and ship the bike to me on the 3rd day! Let me tell ya - I didn't sleep a wink for 3 days!

The anticipation I now felt, being this close, is not anything I could rightly explain - Other than it hurt! Open Road shipped the bike as they said they would,3 days later, via the U.S. Mail - Which means to us in the Islands (I live on St. John, in the U.S. Virgin Islands) anywhere from 7 days to 3 weeks! This did not please me at all because it established a new pain of waiting for my bike. I was under the impression they were shipping it to me via UPS, but they were shocked by the price and decided on my behalf to go the much cheaper U.S. Mail route (I was more than willing to pay the UPS price). 10 days later, the Post Office called me over to pick up a big package - MY BIKE HAD ARRIVED!!!!

I tore into that package like a 5 year old at Xmas! Open Road had sent along a set of pictures that they had taken in each step of the packing process, so I would easily be able to duplicate the disassemble and packing.

Sadly, upon the opening of the Hard Shell case, and the inspection of contents inside, I found that the Custom Paint job was terribly chipped from the shifting of the contents (Your Post Office at Work!). Open Road had packed the bike in bubble wrap, but the inward pressure from the sides of the case (mishandling) was the problem. Needless to say, I had to send the frame back to Waterford to be done all over again - It would be 1 1/2 months more before I would finally have the finished product in my hand. Sands Machine has since devised a system of spreaders to be used inside of the Hard Shell case which keep the sides from being pressed in due to mishandling <- I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THE SPREADERS, as well as the Insulated Tubing Protectors!

The end of May, I finally had my steed, as wanted, everything I had expected. She was a beauty to adore, and had my wife let me - I probably would have taken the bike to bed with me! The handling was everything I was told it would be +! Anyone here on St. John that was into any type of cycling was in awe, as I still am each and every time I ride it!

I did a lot of research on many frames, and to this day I'm glad I settled for the Waterford! I can't say enough about the frame/bike and it's overall quality.

I have made a few changes over the years - I changed the 105 Triple Road Group out to the Shimano Ultegra Triple Road group - Over time the 105 Triple became quite sloppy in its shifting.......a known problem, which required frequent adjustments. The Ultegra is a much more precise shifting system, as well as being "Flight Deck" compatible. That has been the only change I have made since I had the bike built - If you're into bike computers, the "Flight Deck" is definitely the only way to go! The LED is a little bit small, but the overall functions more than make up for it. All of the Shimano 99 Groups, with the exception of the RSX are "Flight Deck" compatible.

If you want the best for your money and you're looking for a tried and true tested bulletproof frame - WATERFORD IS THE ONLY WAY TO GO!

2 Great Companies to Deal with:

Open Road Bicycles
Scott Gross, Owner
4466 Hendricks Ave.
Jacksonville, FL 32207
904-636-7772

Waterford Precision Cycles
Richard Schwinn, President
816 W. Bakke Ave.
Waterford, WI 53185
414-534-4190

 
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