Originally Posted by
jlaw
If you haven't already seen this (below), it is a good explanation of the various Japanese-manufactured tubes used on some 70's - 80's vintage bikes - on the Retrogrouch website. The posting and some of the comments are helpful. It helped me better understand the quality of some bikes/frames that I see on Craigslist.
Retrogrouch makes the case that some of the Tange and Ishawata tubes are of a comparable quality to the better Columbus and Reynolds offerings - and this means that some vintage bikes are under-appreciated for the quality of their frames thereby relected in asking prices. ....may be some bargains out there...
The Retrogrouch: Classic Tubes: Tange and Ishiwata
Yes, good reference.
Perhaps it should go without saying, but tubing quality is only the starting point of frame quality. The end point has much more to do with things other than tubing.