Professor: Now for some sacriledge. I have essentially your bike, an early 80's version, same chrome fork, etc. I decided that rideability (probably not a word, but you know what I mean) was my main issue, and like you I had some minor rust on the frame. I sent the frame to Spectrum Powderworks in Colorado, and had it bead blasted and powder coated, with no decals. My local shop said that powder coating would be the best finish, since it virtually bonds to the metal and eliminates any chance for exterior rust. (I also sprayed the inside with rust proofer before reassembling the bike.) Of course it no longer looks like a DeRosa, but the "cognoscenti" recognize the heart-shaped cutouts. To make things even "worse" I replaced a hodge-podge of Campy parts (when the bike was new, 25 years ago, I would move up working parts from whatever earlier bike I was racing on to the newer frame...) with the Shimano Ultegra group from my modern ti frame when I upgraded that one to DA10. The necessary changes were to spread the rear triangle a bit (modern hubs are a little wider than the old 6-speeds), and buy an Italian thread bottom bracket for the Ultegra cranks. So I end up with a non-decal-ed "stealth" bike with modern shifting and a super ride. Its a little like classic Leica cameras - you can either buy them as collectibles, or as "users". My DeRosa is a "user."
