fvernon

I brought this Holdsworth home today--the parts alone made it well worth the $20 investment. I'm guessing it's a 70s Mistral, but tbh I'm not all that familiar with the years & variations (and it seems like some versions of the Special are darn near close to the Mistral).

A couple of unique features: no bottle cage mounts, a shadow on the top of the TT where the model banner used to live, and is 43317 the SN?

The build is a mix-and-match of higher-end shimano, suntour, sugino, mafac, and campy, and they're all mid-70s era-appropriate, so possibly bought as a frameset & built up, or someone raided a nice vintage parts bin to throw this build together at some point. Wheels are Maillard Normandy high-flange hubs and Rigida rims. Stem & seatpost look to be stolen off an 80s Specialized.

Anyway--help me ID this Holdsworth! If it fits my wife, it could be suitable for a Frek-style makeover

machinist42

1975.

Likely Cyclone Because Dropouts, so Plain Gauge 531.

rjhammett

That serial number would mean it is a '75. This site might help: https://www.nkilgariff.com/Models.htm

fvernon

Campagnolo dropouts and the seattube has a 27.2mm ID. A plain gauge 531 would take more like a 26.4mm seat post, wouldn't it?

Thanks for the heads up on the year!

machinist42

Mistral, then, Because Head Tube lugs. Only Mistral and Cyclone used that pattern.

(Must have missed mention of Pillar size and DO manufacture in your original posting? One DO visible in your pictures is not particularly well defined.)

fvernon

I forgot to mention the 27.2mm in my original post, and I hadn't yet pulled off the wheels to double-check the DO. Ran out to double-check after I saw your post. Thanks for the info!

unworthy1

Looks like a Mistral to me, too. The obscured "ribbon" on the top tube near headlug is the right shape to have said "Mistral", if this was a Super Mistral there would be an extra bit on the top/left of this ribbon to contain the extra word. And the forkcrown would be a full-sloping Haden or Davis, I think.
Here's a pic of a Super Mistral (not mine but I do own a Super) and that (chipped up) ribbon decal:

AND BTW a hella nice purchase for $20! It has some pretty nice components as well as being a frame worth de-rusting and touching up the paint on. Are the rims 27" or 700C?
You probably won't come across a headbadge but can find re-pop decals from several vendors which may include a "headbadge decal" which would be acceptable, IMO.