In my pursuit of spending money I don’t have on more tri equipment that I don’t need, I’m thinking of buying an older QR (about 1000 miles, 8spd DA, sitting in a garage for the last decade). I’ve wanted one of these ever since the late 80’s/early 90’s when I saw the ads of the Superform with the matching paint-splattered Hed wheels.
So who among you out there can tell me what the differences are between the old QR Superform, QR Zero Gravity and the QR USA Special Edition? Is it the tubing, the angles, etc. I’ve Googled everything I could think of and all I could come up with is that some of the 1st generation QR’s were built by guys like Tom Teesdale and Ves Mandaric.
Also, if anyone has one of these rigs, have you swapped out the old chomoly or aluminum fork for a newer carbon one? I was just wondering if switching the fork will adversely affect the handling due to potentially diffrerent fork rakes. Any and all input from the old school QR nation is greatly appreciated.
If you don’t get a response here, Herbert is probably out of the office. If that’s the case, call QR directly and talk to one of their customer service reps.
Yeah I suppose you’d know a thing or two about a thing or two regarding “vintage” QR’s
I have some friends who’ve been racing since the 80’s that are purging some of their equipment. As such there is opportunity for me to procure (I think this is the year) a QR Superform from '92. It has a lime yellow/green splatter paint job. My initial question is this: what kind of tubing was used on the Superforms and are they any better or worse than the Zero Gravity or USA Special Edition? I’d have to track him down but I know a guy who has a red/white/blue USA Sp Ed that he can no longer use (back issues). So, components aside, which of the three was the “top-shelf” frame and why? I’m only 150 lbs so it’s not like I need a lot of frame beneath me.
Thanks for the help. I know I should get the one the fits the best but as I already have a dedicated tri bike I want to learn how to wrench on this one and experiment with different positions. Lastly, when I got into this sport in '89 I was a dirt-poor college kid who used to look at the ads in Triathlon Times and dream of the day when I could get a cool QR with matching Hed’s. Now that I’m (allegedly) a responsible adult with some discretionary income, it’s a much cheaper way to pacify my pre-mid life crisis than getting a 21 year old girlfriend or a mid-life crisis sports car (not that there’s anything wrong with that)…that and I just like round-tubed steel bikes, they are, for lack of a better term, pure.
bump. Surely there are some of you past/present QR owners who can tell me the difference between the old QR Zero Gravity, Superform, and USA Special Edition.
