Good frames to look out for?
 

I'm increasingly interested in building a custom bicycle out of a good vintage steel frame. What are some good brands/models to look out for? I'd like to find a good frame cheap with reynolds tubing, replace components with more modern stuff. Thanks guys.

Why does it have to be Reynolds, perchance?

it's just a name I see often. Basically, how can you tell a quality steel frame?

That probably should have been your first question. Do a search first, as this has been covered extensively. Don't mean to be standoffish, but this ground has been beaten flat and the grass is dead, so search away.

something for nothing? :rolleyes:

Me too. Be prepared to spend a lot of time looking.

In the past year, I bought two C&V cromoly cyclocross bikes off eBay, each for $100. The key was each was listed by a seller who didn't know what they were selling, and thus, the bikes were advertised poorly, and nobody else bid on them.

Of course, that was after searching daily for two years on one of those bikes...

A good way to begin the learning process is to post potential frames in threads here: pics are best, but descriptions of decals and any other stamped letters and numbers are helpful too. We've all been through this process, and it takes a little while, but it's worth it.

Someone mentioned early Treks are good and I agree. I have a 1978 710, Reynolds 531 with a mix of Campy and Suntour Superbe components. It is about 21-22 lbs and rides great. My guess it's on the low end of your price scale. If you find one of these snap it up.

If you see good frameset made from Columbus SLX or SL, or any flavor of TI tubbing, below $150 let me know.

Before I say "choose one", a welcome is due. Welcome!

Define cheap.

Tange, Ishiwata, Columbus, Reynolds. Do searches under those names and learn about the various tubings. You could probably find descriptions on Wikipedia, too. If your size is out of the norm, it'll be harder to find one, but easier to get it for a lower cost. Good luck.

Valite (proprietary to Fuji), especially the triple-butted and quad-butted stuff.

Triple-butted cromoly Univegas, made by Miyata using their proprietary cromoly.

Always overlooked, but very good quality: Vitus cromoly.

Why not look for a complete bike? You can change the components to your liking, holding onto the old ones for "posterity", and will not be paying a premium price if you look around a bit. You can also make sure it fits and "feels" right. You can find nice, older Treks in great condition for $100 to $200. Why pay that for a frame only? Plus, you may find some of the components on a complete bike are worth using. Of course if you have alot of money to spend, why not use some of it to throw a B.F. B-B-Q for the nice all the nice B.F. members? :thumb:

Saw a nice Fuji steel frame a few days ago for $10.
But it was a mixte...:D

How about this Burley Harlow?:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Burley-Harlow-Fr...3A1%7C294%3A50

Not to be confused with Marlowe, as in Bruce Lee:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAP_JJPsFV4

Check out mytenspeeds.com. He has lots of info on what to look for when buying a vintage bike. He's on the forum from time to time also. Nice bikes to look at too while you're reading.

What he says, +1, and maybe Kuwahara if you want an older one without braze-ons.

I've nearly decided with 100% certainty that my Cilo build is a Vitus frame, but the tubing is SLX...any thoughts on that?

The Japanese built a lot of really good bikes that are available cheap. They're pretty interchangable, too.
I'm partial to Raleighs. Less interchangable but you kow you'll like it when it's done, especially if it's a 531 Raleigh.

No, not really. I actually meant frames built from Vitus tubing, but Vitus also made frames. I'm kind of surprised they'd use Columbus tubing on a Vitus frame, but undoubtedly somebody here will have some thoughts about that.

I've got two Japanese road bikes, a Fuji del Rey and a Lotus Odyssey. The Lotus is the most expensive bike I've ever bought ($400), the Fuji was one of the cheapest ($100); both are such sweet-riding bikes, and so beautiful to look at... :love: