Buying bike with Shamal, 8 speed, downtubes, maint questions

[65Matt]

I am very close to pulling the trigger on an older bike (97 Litespeed) that has Shamal aero-type wheels and 8 speed Chorus drivetrain, with downtube shifters. I know this system is outdated, but if it works, I'd like to keep it, ride it, and maintain it. These Campy parts have a certain appeal to them as opposed to newer ShimaNO parts.

As I understand it, I can get a new cassette and chain pretty easily. I also read where I can buy the parts to rebuild the hubs from QBP, which means 'take it to the LBS' for me.

I guess my main concern is that if something else breaks, I can get a part to keep it going. Can I get replacement spokes? Front chainrings? If my derailleurs start messing up, is Ebay my only source for that? I assume that having downtube shifters simplifies alot that could go wrong with indexed shifters and such.

But say I did want to have handlebar shifting, as I understand it, I need Ergo 8 speed brake/shifter units. What is the cheapest option that will work?

Thanks in advance from a Campy 'noob'!