Originally Posted by
non-fixie
OK. While those who are interested in the subject are gathered here, I have a question:
Why was the American version of the Gitane TdF - which has been identified to be one the best-riding bikes of its era - made with a full set of Reynolds 531 tubes, whereas the European version only had a 531 main triangle? Did the Americans have bigger budgets? Did the Europeans know something the Americans didn't?
Just curious.
I was really hoping more people would take up this aspect of the topic.
I've got three bikes now with "tretubi" frames and they all three ride great. I can't seem to get my head wrapped around the metallurgy well enough to understand what difference basic steel stays and forks "should" have or how rider weight plays into that. At some point I had convinced myself that high ends stays and forks "should" be more vertically compliant (given the assumption that whatever low be tubing the tretubi bikes use is thicker).
I was particularly curious as my 1972 Motobecane a Grand Record only uses 531 for the main tubes while later years were full 531. That sounds to me like a decision driven by the marketing department rather than the engineering department.