Inertianinja

i'm thinking of keeping a bike at my office.
at home i have a carbon road bike and a steel fixed gear

i also have an almost new alum. hybrid with all tiagra components. despite its newness and niceness, i'm having trouble selling it.

what i WANT is a vintage-looking lugged steel road bike (after riding my fixed gear, i like steel better than alu) to play with out here.

would it make sense / be possible to get a vintage frame and put the new tiagra components on there?

FreddyV

I guess that makes sense. It almost makes more sense to get that new steel Specialized Allez and swap those 2300 parts with the Tiagra.

*edit* Normally new wheels and cassettes won't fit the width, or should I say narrowness, of the chainstays. Did that come out right?

Inertianinja

i get you, that's good to know. i might be signing up for more work than i want if im going to have to always find vintage parts for it.

the new allez steel is pretty interesting, though it's not lugged.

Barrettscv 

Something like this?



Last fall, I converted my long-distance bike from a double crankset to a triple. After the conversion, I ended up with an extra Ultegra 10 speed FD, RD, 11-25 cassette, a new 105 chain, along with a Sram 46 & 38t Cyclocross Crankset & BB. I also had a Mavic Open Pro W/ 36 spoke Dura Ace hub rear wheel I purchased on eBay last year.

I only needed to get a front wheel and shifters to upgrade the Trek 400D Elance to a modern 2x10 drivetrain. I found new Dura Ace 10 speed bar-end shifters from Nashbar for $50 and purchased a 32 spoke 105 hub for $15. I had the bike shop source a matching 32 spoke Open Pro rim & spokes, the new front wheel cost about $150 in total. I have about $750 in the bike at this point. Not cheap, but the result is excellent, IMO.

The bike is 22 lbs with the Brooks seat. Not bad for a size 63cm steel framed bike with a heavy saddle. Mechanically, the bike gets an A+. The frame is responsive, stable and fun to ride. Much smoother riding than a modern Aluminum bike. The drivetrain is quick shifting and the gear set with 46 & 38t chainrings and a 11-25 10 speed cassette has a tight range. I can travel at any speed from 10 to 33 mph and always maintain my target cadence of 85 to 100 rpm.

Inertianinja

that's pretty much what i'm looking for. i much prefer the ride of the steel fixed gear to the aluminum.
understandably, i'd like a bike with a little more retro flashiness. chrome lugs or the like.

Barrettscv 

I also have one of those, but it's too nice to update;

Inertianinja

Barrett - yes, just like that.

in fact, i had a dream the other night in which i owned a lugged-steel road bike with chrome fork ends and chainstays, just like that.

like this:
https://i557.photobucket.com/albums/s...g?t=1255821026

Barrettscv 

I've seen that frame on eBay, the Vintage & Classic forum have been discussing it. It's a modified mess at a high price according to some.

Be sure to get a 2X6 drivetrain with 126mm drop-out spacing. Converting a 2x5 with 120 or 122mm spacing requires a frame builder to coldset the spacing to 130mm and may even require a new bridge between the seat stays.

Michael

Barrettscv 

Also consider this: https://www.somafab.com/stanyan.html

FreddyV

Alright, I'll play:



I bought a used aluminum road bike after I decided the costs of a conversion would be too high. Still, I like the feel of the old bike, but as I don't ride it anymore it's up for sale. I'm gonna miss her, even though she's been in a dark corner for a long long time.