Originally Posted by
gugie
I don't think that head tubes were ever in the 531 set (someone correct me if I'm wrong).
They're certainly in the set according to the catalog. Not sure the vintage, maybe 1950s
That said, I've seen more than a few French frames, otherwise all 531, that have a seamed head tube. Not sure how they got away with that, because the head tube is certainly a tube. I'm sure Reynolds weren't happy about that.
Mais un centime économisé est un centime gagné.
Originally Posted by
gugie
At the very least, the 531 decal that says "butted tubes forks and stays" doesn't guarantee it. If your decal doesn't mention the stays, I'd guess that they aren't. If you look up from inside the bottom bracket with a flashlight you should be able to tell if there's a seam or not, if you haven't already.
Some stays do have the Reynolds stamp but it is very faint and easily disappears under paint. It can also be removed with a little "shoe-shining" as is done to clean the tube ends before brazing.
Stays have slight differences in profile and taper and diameter that could theoretically be used to determine the manufacturer but you'd have to comb through lots of old catalogs to see if you can find the profiles. And they changed through the years. Of course Reynolds were known to make special tubes for individual builders that were not in the catalog at all.