So, I have a Austro-Daimler frame without anything else hanging in my garage. It was given to me for free as a lost cause with a stuck seatpost. Having removed it I set it away and did nothing with it. Somehow it came back to mind, and I measured it and it seems to be a fit. This will be my first frame up build. All I've done til now is take bikes apart and usually put them back together!

The lack of a fork seems to be the biggest obstacle to me, I'm looking for a steel replacement. I thought a Tange chrome replacement fork might do the trick, but I wasn't sure of the size or a source. On Sheldon's site he says some Austrian bikes had 26mm forks which I would think aren't interchangeable with the normal 1". I seem to think many ADs came with fully Campy, so it should be a normal 1" forks and Italian BBs, correct? I will have to count the threads in the BB I guess.

I don't have any good pictures yet, but the frame is Reynolds tubing (I forget which), that is painted a pretty purple/brown color, has no model decals (worn off), and measures 22" for both the seat and top tube. I know not the most useful info for IDing a frame but all I have right this second. I'm guessing 80's.

If it is just a 1" fork, where could I get a decent looking replacement? Any sources? Should I just consider getting a parts bike instead of piecemealing it together? I don't have a very nice parts bin (yet ). In my mind I see it with some fenders and bar end shifters but no racks or lights.

Sorry for the torrent of information, it's coming to me as I sit here at work thinking about it.

A picture just for the color:

i also have a A-D with a stuck seatpost. do you remember how you got it out? i'm gonna try a few things and if nothing works out, i'd be willing to donate the fork (56cm frame IIRC) for the cost of shipping.

otherwise, no i'm not sure the size. looks like all the 1" threaded headsets i have.

I've got an A-D i'm working on right now too. THankfully without a stuck seatpost.

Mine uses a standard English/ISO 1" Tange headset and English/ISO sized BB.


Yours is the same color as my '76 Inter-10 (and nearly every other inter-10 out there), and same seat post lug and seat stay attachment style but mine has no braze ons whatsoever...I can see a brake cable guide on yours...

Whats your Serial Number?

Seems like there's only ever 2 models of A-D you see in the states... the Vent Noir and the Inter-10 (Inter-12 in the early 80's)

jco, the person who had the frame before me did all sorts of things. Lye, PB blaster, trying to twist it out. Anyway, he cut off the seatpost, but way too short. He left like maybe 12mm of post sticking out. He tried to cut it out with a hacksaw but bailed. So I got it. I finished the cut of the seatpost with a hacksaw blade (takes a while, be careful not to cut the frame) and then what I did was seal up the frame and I poured ammonia into it and left it to soak for a few days. This eats away at the bond between the aluminum post and the steel frame. It eventually worked away enough of the bond that I was able to curl up the seatpost inside the seattube and pull it out (with vice grips). I was a little too hurried and I put a little dent in the seat tube, but I think I could fix it if I was inclined. Nothing structural. Thank you for the donation offer, I hope it works out for you though! Everyone says these bikes ride great.

Zaph - Well, maybe it's an Inter-10 then! I'll put it up when I get home. The guy who gave it to me was really reluctant, and when I told him I got the seatpost out he refused to even sell me the fork. I believe he parted out the whole bike. It's too bad, since I bet if he wasn't upset about it he'd tell me what it is.

It's most likely either an Inter 10 (531 fork) or SLE (Puch fork). It's worth fixing up in any case.

Hi Dude, I think it is a SLE. All I can make out of the decal is "AD S" and the rest is trashed. It's 501 tubing (There goes the hope of a VN! But if this rides as well as I hope, it's an excuse to try to get one, ha). The serial on the BB is 7269018 and there is a small w imprinted on the rear portion that attaches to the chainstays, and a F on the portion that attaches to the downtube. Sorry, couldn't find the camera.

What a JERK!

FWIW my Inter-10 and others i've seen are 531 frames and forks - If yours is 501, it might be a different model.

That does sound weird that he wouldn't sell him the bike's fork, but we have to remember the guy just gave the bike to the OP for free, so we cannot really bash on original owner if he has other plans for his fork or somethng...... The OP is still a lucky guy to get the frame for nothing. Anyway, there are literally hundreds of fork options out there new and old to complete the bike.

Chombi

Seems to me the problem is the headset, not the fork. If the original fork was a 26mm the headset would use nominal 30.8mm cups. That isn't far from the nominal 30.2 size on ISO headsets but I don't know how critical the tolerance is. Maybe using some locktite or equivalent on the cups would be enough to keep them tight or perhaps some kerfing on the inside of the headtube would work.

I have an AD SLE at home that I'm pretty sure uses a 26mm fork. I could take some measurements of whatever if that helps at all.