Originally Posted by
repechage
don't get that specific, the fork is loose in the frame and not centered in the head tube. But the fork rake is more road expected visually than anything else, and while the rear wheel is what looks like the center of the dropouts, not super tight there either.
We are making the assumption that it is built for 700c, not 27".
My guess the bike will be pretty neutral handling. Not a bad thing at all.
I agree with repechage. Looking at the frame with some wheels under it, I'd say that it was for made road or time trial use rather than criteriums.
When that frame was built, most working people in the UK weren't as financially well off as their counterparts in the US. So the cost of a better quality bicycle was a bigger portion of a buyer's income in the UK than it would have been in the US.
Cycling was far more prevalent in the UK.
Many cyclists saved up for a "bespoke" (custom built) bike that they used for different purposes - normal riding and commuting with 27" clinchers plus sport riding like touring, time trials and path racing with "sprints" (tubular tires). They could or did use the same bike with a single speed freewheel, fixed gears, an internal geared hub or with derailleurs.
Another consideration, from what I've read, complete bikes were taxed at a higher rate than a bike built from a bare frame and individual components (VAT sales tax). That made custom frames or top quality off the rack frames more desirable.
Round forks were a popular anachronism on a lot of sporting bikes well into the 1970's - for example most Hetchins came with round fork blades!
Back to the fork crown... It's most likely the same crown that was sold by Milremo see picture below.
Milremo was a trade name shared by Ron Kitching in the UK and Cycles Andre Bertin in France. Milremo was a contraction for Milan-San Remo, an early season classic race held in Italy.
Milremo was a marketing operation - they didn't make anything but had a wide variety of cycling products private labeled. The product offerings differed for the UK and French markets.
It's hard to say who made the round fork crown on the OP's frame since Milremo bought from so many sources.
The first picture shows my all original 1971 Hetchins Italia that was custom built for a local northern California woman when she was living in the UK. Different crown but round fork blades...
BTW, Reynolds 531 round fork blades were the same tubes as used for chain stays only bent with varying amounts of rake. They were provided in both 7/8" (22.2mm) and 22.0mm metric diameters.
verktyg
Chas.