cal_gundert05

I had to sell my IRO recently, and I don't have the money to buy a new bike, but I've been thinking about building one up when the time comes and what parts I'd want on it.

I can be kind of picky and neurotic about this kind of thing, so I want to get parts that I really feel are good.

For example, I'd like to get a Thomson seatpost--made in America, one-piece shaft and head (not two pieces bonded together), two-bolt design, can be attached to seat without disassembly, all parts replaceable (also, the seatpost clamps use the same bolts and barrels as the seat clamp).

I have (tentatively) decided on a few other parts and tools, as well, but choosing a frame has been difficult. I want a steel frame that's designed for use with a threadless headset (basically, not a frameset that comes with a threaded fork), without chromed fork blades or dropouts or anything.

So my question is, without getting anything too expensive ($700 max), are there any qualities that make a frame stand out?

Ignoring the high-tensile steel frames, most of the frames in this price range have very similar tubing (I think), and picking a frame based on that seems like splitting hairs. Spicer has a few frames that are made in America, so that's nice. But I feel like the main differences are just going to be geometries and aesthetics.

What do you think?

Capocaccia

Short answer, yes. There are large differences in sub 700$ framesets.

Long answer: Ill let adriano or someone else get technical with it.

xkillemallx16

i may be stupid, but i cant change the seat on any of my thomson seatposts without disassembling the whole thing.

anyways, the quality of taiwanese frames are excellent; yes, american made stuff does make you feel all warm inside, but its all the same. take the trek t1 for example; the red ones were made in the us, the black ones in taiwan, however they are the same frame but one just happens to be ~4-500 less than another but with the same quality. unless its just me, i'd rather pay 550 for a t1 than 1000, but just because the price is lower does not mean it is a subpar product. my mash was made in china and my pista concept was made in taiwan, if that gives another perspective.

you pay for good designing, such as accomidation for wide tires, brazeons, geometry (whether you want road, track, mix - with a bb thats not too low, etc), and a good range of sizes. cheap framesets that sound good at first may show to be not so great, not tested wel enough, etc. you will feel this on the street when you realize your frame's bb is way to low and you cant corner, your chainstay is too short to use the entire dropout, etc - you pay for r&d.

tubing for sub 700 dollar framesets are greatly diverse; they will determine weight and ride quality. some include hitensile, 4130 cromoly main triangle framesets, full 4130/reynolds 520, tange infinity, reynolds 631, reynolds 753, tange prestige, and reynolds 853 - also there are various columbus and japanese steels you can find that are good as well. there are tons of different tubings for the price you mentioned. might want to make a general budget

assuming you are speaking steel frames only under 700. there is reynolds 953 and other high end stainless steel but thats reserved for higher end frames, even 853 is quite rare.

you have TONS of choices for frames under 700. if you dont know the difference you probably should do more research before dropping such a large amount - hell, i'd go with a slightly lower end frame (yet still great) and spend more on the wheels, those are important too.

if i had 700;
-all city big block, 400
-eai bareknuckle, 650
-soma rush, 400 (i went this route, tough choice between this and the leader)
-leader 722, 400
-iro, 280 - one helluva frameset for an excellent price, take the extra 420 and take the girl out for dinner or spend some on wheels.

forgive spelling errors or repeats, im tired and cant go on.

solbrothers

if i were spending $700, id buy a used roadbike with ultegra 6600 and open pros

avner

where can I get a reynolds 700+ frame for under 700?

cal_gundert05

Thanks for the info killemall.

A $700 frame isn't very realistic for me, but I wanted to see how $700 framesets like the EAI Bareknuckle and Cinelli Gazzetta compare to ~$400 framesets.

cal_gundert05

Wabi Classic - $675 bike, $350 frame.

• Frame: Hand built using heat treated, double butted oversized Reynolds 725 cromoly steel with forged track style rear drops. Braze ons for one bottle cage on downtube and integrated headset design.

• Fork: Hand brazed double butted Reynolds cromoly steel with investment cast crown, 1 1/8" steerer and forged fork ends. FSA Orbit headset with cartridge type
bearings

dookie

at $700 new, i would be all about a 'cream city' (ahem). waterford-built f/f, paint-matched nitto cromo stem (and 20% off anything else bought at the same time):
at ben's

i can't imagine you're going to do much better than that at the price.

i will second the comments that there are also some good things available at ~50% of that. i like the rush already mentioned a lot (tange prestige), or better yet the (more costly) lugged delancey. and my sputnik, which is ~$700 complete...i've heard rumors of frameset sales ~$350, but never seen one advertised that way myself. reynolds 631 (pre-2011), easton carbon fork ('07-'08), investment cast track ends, built by maxway in taiwan. a fantastic riding bike, more road than track, welds are not centerfold quality (witness the moots & TST/kona stable-mates).

xkillemallx16

350 is a great pricepoint and is a nice pricepoint for a new frameset; ill revisit the other frames
-wabi classic, as you mentioned earlier: i've ridden one, its nice, light, and well made. bb is a tiny bit too low for my tastes, but geometry is nice for the road, commuting, or getting around.
-soma rush, good tubing, semitrack geometry, and one set of bottle bosses. basic track frame with nice tubing, cant go wrong here. i also got this because it has a 1" ht, just incase I wanted to go threaded someday. this can be to an advantage or disadvantage
-leader 722, stunning looks (pretty hot dt imo. tubing may not be as good as the rush's tange prestige but i do hear it is pretty damn light. good color selection, but long toptube so keep that in mind aswell.
-iro, i know youve had one already but its a great frameset, maybe the toptube brazeons arent so great, but it is nice.
-allcity big block, nice steel, cool custom dropout, and decent quality - basic frame, but with a bunch of nice touches. i wish the bottle cage mounts werent on the st though.