Hello all. I am a bit of a retro rider. I love my steel frames, and I can really live without brifters, preferring the elegant simplicity and reliability of down tube shifters.

However, I recently purchased a Dawes Lightning 2100 from chicabike. It is a aluminum, compact frame, briftered modern machine, kind of along the lines of Giant's OCR series (actually, they appear to be re-badged Fuji Newest frames).

I really like the bike, and much to my chagrin, have fallen under the spell of the compact frame. I love the look of it, the comfort of it, and the stiffness of it. However, I really like steel.

My question: does anyone know of a frame manufacturer that makes a compact steel road frame that has bosses to mount downtube shifters? I have seen a few custom, high-toned type companies make such a thing, but alas, I am but a poor state employee and have very little expendable cash, so something $500 or less would be great. Thanks a lot in advance for any replies.