# 1990 Schwinn Paramount



## J-No (Aug 22, 2007)

I bought this Paramount in 1990 when I was a senior in HS. I raced it for a few years and it has been collecting rust in my parent's basement. I sent it back to Waterford for refinishing. D/A 10, Ritchey WCS bars, stem, seatpost, and Ksyriums. I thought about going full retro, but the new stuff works so much better. If I need the brifters for another bike I would not hesitate to get some D/A 10sp downtube shifters. This will be my main ride this year.

View attachment 122600


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## rcnute (Dec 21, 2004)

That's one of the coolest "neo-retro" rides I've seen. Nice to see the old bikes reborn.


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## JaeP (Mar 12, 2002)

*Schwinn Rules*

I love Schwinns and Paramounts as well. That's one beautiful bike. Love the neo-retro look.


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## Scooper (Mar 4, 2007)

Waterford does such great technical restorations, and your choice of components really sets the restoration off. It's thoroughly modern, yet classically beautiful. Nice job! :thumbsup:


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## cyclust (Sep 8, 2004)

That is sooooo fine! I had an OS [ I think a 91'] in that exact color scheme and seeing it brings back memories of what was probably my all time favorite steel bike. Thanks for posting that!


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

Outstanding job...Beautiful bike


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## iron048 (Apr 15, 2008)

That's awesome. I want a Schwinn but they're hard to get over here in England


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## J-No (Aug 22, 2007)

Thanks everyone. I can't wait to ride it more.


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## orbeamike (Nov 20, 2004)

*Do you have a close shot of the headset stem area?*

I assume the bike was built with a threadded headset and quill stem. How do you convert it to the threadless Ritchey stem? I know there are threadless stem adapters but it always bugs me because the solution is not always the most elegant to the eye. 
By the way, I love the paint scheme, white is so classy!
My Paramount is around 35 years old it still gets ridden regularly.


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## J-No (Aug 22, 2007)

It is a Profile threadless adapter. It is not ideal. I would like to drop the stem down further, but the adapter is currently bottomed out. I may search for a black quill stem, but the new stems are so much nicer to work with/change. If I decided to switch to downtube shifters, it would be worth it to change the stem at the same time.


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## meadloaf (Apr 27, 2008)

Did you have to sand down the adapter to fit the Schwinn standard 21.1? How did you make this fit? Thanks!


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## J-No (Aug 22, 2007)

It fit fine, it would just not drop down all the way. I put a couple of spacers in there.


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## Peanya (Jun 12, 2008)

I was about to ask the same question about the stem. I was thinking of adding spacers for the look. I have an adapter too, but I'm not worried about looks. Later this summer, I'm getting a 56cm Raleigh and I'll prolly sell my current ride.


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## Scooper (Mar 4, 2007)

meadloaf said:


> Did you have to sand down the adapter to fit the Schwinn standard 21.1? How did you make this fit? Thanks!


The steerer tube on the eighties and nineties Paramounts took standard 22.2 mm quill stems.


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## meadloaf (Apr 27, 2008)

Sorry to beat a dead horse, but I have a 1987 Schwinn Le Tour. Any idea what the stem size is? I don't have calipers to measure. Thanks!


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## learlove (Jan 18, 2009)

j-no,what size is that paramount?


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## PomPilot (May 17, 2006)

meadloaf said:


> Sorry to beat a dead horse, but I have a 1987 Schwinn Le Tour. Any idea what the stem size is? I don't have calipers to measure. Thanks!


The size may be marked on the stem itself, below the maximum height mark.


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## J-No (Aug 22, 2007)

learlove said:


> j-no,what size is that paramount?


It's a 54cm. I have since taken the STI levers off for another project. Shimano makes 10sp down tube levers, so that is what is on there now.


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## learlove (Jan 18, 2009)

hey J-no, I was a junior back then also. raced as a junior from 1989 to 1993 (graduated in 1993). Where did you race at? At that time I raced in eastern PA and NJ plus the t-town track.

here is a pic of the cannondale I raced from 91 to 93.


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## MR_GRUMPY (Aug 21, 2002)

He could always buy a new threadless steel fork from Waterford to match the old one.


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## OldSkoolFatGuy (Sep 6, 2007)

HAWT!! We need more pics of the paramount!!!


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