brownlights

While riding my bike in LA a few months ago, I saw a bike frame sitting discarded on a lonely stretch of sidewalk. I thought it would at least help out the local bike co-op so I slung it over my shoulder and took it home. It is a red Bruce Gordon frame complete with fork, with some rust and peeling paint, and I'm not sure if it would respond to a little rehab work. I know next to nothing about repairing frames etc, but it has some beautiful lugs and it at least seems structurally sound.

I've read some about Bruce Gordon and it seems his frames are very nice. What one was doing in a n'er do well area of LA, I have no idea. Is this frame salvageable?

bbattle

Strip it down, get rid of all the rust, prime it, paint it, build it up. Simple, really.

Yeah, looks like a lot of surface rust, nothing real heavy.

anomaly

Very nice lugs, and I like the fastback

Scooper

Bruce Gordon has a well deserved reputation as one of the top tier framebuilders, and still plies his trade in Petaluma, CA, just north of San Francisco.

Bruce Gordon Cycles

bbattle has it right; strip it, get rid of the rust, prime it, paint it, build it up, and ride it (if it's your size ) !

cudak888 

Any machine with Cinelli (?) headlugs finished like that deserves to be stripped and done up with a proper repaint. Looks to be in perfect shape for the occasion.

Is it your size?

-Kurt

JunkYardBike

Before you dump too much money into paint, have an expert look at it and check the alignment in a jig.

A frame like that doesn't simply get lost and mistreated. It's highly likely it was stolen at some point.

moki

That's what I was thinking, but what kind of thief steals a Bruce Gordon, strips it down to a bare frame, then leaves the frameset in an alley?

Bruce Gordon works out of Petaluma, CA. Not sure how far that is from LA, but he's certainly reachable. I'm sure he knows who that bike was originally built for. And I'm guessing that he would be the best person to assess the frame and do a restoration, if it's worth it.

Good luck with it. I hope it makes it.

cudak888 

And what about the markings on top of the frame? It looks as if the braze-ons were added recently, hence the lack of paint in those spots. Perhaps someone dismissed the frame due to ignorance of surface rust properties?

-Kurt

unworthy1

That's a weird rust pattern on the top tube...but why wouldn't this frame have had cable eyes on it from the get-go? It's baffling. Maybe those are replacements for the original guides; maybe this is a frame that got a lot of corrosive sweat dripped on the top tube. Bruce G. will probably respond to an email with pics. Whatever the case, it's the find of the year for a cast-off frame!

SoreFeet

Thats one helluva find! Bruce is a about 6-8 hour drive depending on how fast you drive and how many stops you make. Send it to me and I can take it to his shop for an evaluation He is about 20 minutes from here...

Pogliaghi

That is a stunning frame and if it is sound worth re-finishing. The rust pattern on the top tube makes sense as rust generally starts around the braze-on cable guides and spreads out if left. Beautiful color!

int19

That thing looks beautiful and is my size! What you should do is give it to me in exchange for a few clamshells, and I'll bead blast it and give it a good restoration

I would say its worth contacting him (I think he goes by bgcycles on this forum) and let him know the serial number and where you found it, just as a good faith effort in case it has been stolen and reported to him as such. He most likely won't be able ID the frame for you, (too busy to look through records) but at least you've done some due diligence.

stevendavid75

Does it have gear lever bosses?
I cant really tell but it looks like typical markings for the band on levers.
Which might support the idea that the cable guides are an after thought.

I am not sure how long BG has been around for but it certainly looks interesting enough, maybe someone orginally purchased it to build it as a modern vintage build??

I would be asking the builder to paint a bit of a picture!!

ken cummings

Bruce has been around since the 1970s. I am confident it would be cheaper to buy a new bike from him then to try to get him to repair an old one. He values his time at $90.00/hour. He has stored paper records of all the bikes he has made. If you can find the serial number and want him to look up the records he requires a $90.00 deposit. If it takes under one hour to find the records he refunds some. Over one hour no extra charge the last I heard. I recognize from the lug details that your frame is not one of his current standard loaded touring frames. You've scored something better then usual for his bikes. He has no more tolerance for foolish questions then most of us so if you E-mail him ( www.bgcycles.com ) be brief and clear in what you want. He has been helpful the time I have visited his shop. He is also only a few doors from The Sonoma Valley Port (wine) Works and the Sweetwater Distillery.

cudak888 

Unlikely theory - the areas were obviously sanded down rather carefully - note the transition from metal > primer > basecoat. Rust from the TT cables themselves would have been rather different.

Considering the band-on DT cable clamp setup, I wouldn't be surprised if this did not have the braze-ons in the first place.

Incidentally, all the other Bruce Gordon machines I can find online (with the exclusion of the tall frame @ Bikeworks NYC) have cable guides running along the lower left of the tube as opposed to the top:









Bravo to Mr. Gordon for routing the rear cable braze-ons on the left side. No "bravos" for those who have routed the rear brake to the right, and the front to the left - haven't they ever tried to signal a left turn while stopping?

-Kurt

unworthy1

there you go, then: add-on cable eyes or repairs for side-mounted guides that broke off. This frame is a bit odd: no braze-on for shifters but with under BB cable routing and a cable stop on the chainstay and one set of water bottle bosses. I understand that BG is a bit of a self-described curmudgeon, but I think if you catch him on a good day (or just pay him) you'd get answers. Good luck with it, it's worth restoring and riding, somebody who needs a small frame would treasure it.

cudak888 

That's good enough for me not to own one of his frames. Thanks for the advice.

-Kurt

brownlights

thanks for all the comments/advice. The frame is most definitely not my size, so I'm looking to pass it on to a more suitable owner.

For me to contact BG himself then, would probably not be worth my time & money. If anyone is interested I'd be happy to talk, and I can also post more pictures if anyone is interested in seeing a specific part of the frame.

YoKev

Sent you a PM. Looks like an interesting frame

brownlights

I have taken more pictures of the frame and fork.

They can be found here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/locke45...7605250798872/

I also measured from the BB to seat stay, which is 50cm or so.

PM me if interested in buying.

dbakl

Wow, nice find. If it was me, I'd scrape up the money, send it back to Bruce for an official repaint. He is one of the best around, though maybe not as well known as some others. That's a frame worth returning to its original glory!