Originally Posted by dbs
Thanks to all for the recommendations.
Hey moxfyre, after getting a few hundred more miles in this fall I have now stripped the Viscount down and have it at the fame shop right now. I first only wanted to have a couple of pairs of brazeons for water bottles but after discussing options, he'll be doing a few more things. He has a well thought of shop. He is also going to add some brazeons to allow me to eliminate some rear break cable housing as well as change the routing for the shifter cables. Next I'm off to the powermetal coater. The real bonus is he is going to cold form the rear to 126mm to allow for the 7-speed freewheel. Rather than me doing this with a couple of 2x4s he has a jig mounted to a granite surface plate with dial indicators etc so it should turn out pretty true.
I'll take some after pictures to post. I took some before pictures last night before I started the disassembly and got one good shot that shows my state-of-the-art athletic tape pump holder. Real nice.
Awesome
I was wondering if it was the same bike!
Sounds like you've gone all out with this upgrade. By the way, I would suggest having the rear stays spread to
128 mm, not 126 mm. That way, it'll fit either 126 mm or 130 mm hubs easily, in case you ever upgrade again to 8/9/10 speed. Not a big deal to do it later, but as long as he's spreading the frame you may as well get it future-proofed. In the 1990s they made frames with this spacing in anticipation of the arrival of 130 mm spacing.
I'd love to see before/after photos of that frame. I'm sure you'll enjoy the brand spanking new look!