Originally Posted by
steinbra
What can i look for to determine its original quality?
Is there any way to identify a Reynold 531 frame?
Weigh it.
You can use a kitchen scale. It looks like a medium-sized frame -- 57 to 60 cm cranks center to top of seat tube. Remove everything except the pressed-on races of the headset and fork (you should tear everything down, clean, inspect and relubricate anyway).
If the frame and fork together weigh less than 3 kg, then it's most likely good-quality butted tubing. My 531C 57 cm Raleigh frame weighs 2015 g in this state, while the fork weighs 832 g. A Motobecane Team Champion (Columbus SL) 60 cm frame I have weighs 2080 + 698, while a double-butted 58 cm Nishiki weighs 2175 + 748.
Often steerer tubes (the upper part of the fork) are marked with the tubing manufacturer's name or logo. If your bike's been repainted, then perhaps someone was lazy and painted over the tubing decal, which may still be on the frame; look for it.
Originally Posted by
steinbra
What should I fit on it?
Any other tips on what would fit my needs for functional racer and a little fixup project?
From this great distance (you need to take photos that show less of your garage, and more of the bike's details), it looks like it has fairly nice components. If they're in OK shape, clean everything up and start riding. Change things incrementally, if you've got the bug to do that. It looks like the bike has sew-up (tubular) tires. That's great if you like those; the tires are more expensive than clinchers, but changing them would cost quite a bit (rims, possible spokes, hubs, building labor), and there's no real reason to do that unless the rims are severely bent and can't be trued.
If it's indeed a French frame, then it probably has a French threaded bottom bracket and steerer. The BB cups should be marked with the threading: 35 x 1 = French or Swiss (the latter is left-hand threaded on the right side); 36 x 24tpi = Italian (right-hand threaded both sides, like French); 1.370 x 24tpi = British. If the frame has a serial number anywhere, then the location and the (alpha)numeric sequence are other clues. Design of the lugs at head, seatpost and BB, dropout manufacturer (stamped in dropouts), design of the fork crown, and the components themselves (both manufacturer, model, and any datecodes that may be stamped on them) are other clues.
Do your homework, take detailed photos, and post them, please. There aren't many bikes that can't be fairly well identified here.