Hi,

My name is Ben and I live in the Lake District,UK.

This evening I had the good fortune to spot a Campag equiped Proteous road bike adverised in the local classifieds for £80!!

I have been cycling for over 30years and was not familiar with the marque but I could tell by the photo that it was quality.

On viewing the bike I was bowled over by the quality of the finish,the lug work was immaculate.The underside of the lugs on the top tube at the head and seat cluster have symbols from playing cards cut out(clubs,diamonds etc) and is built from SLX tubing with no chrome.The deatailing on the fork crown and brake bridge is also impressive.

The components are mainly chorus and athena and would estimate the bike would have been built around 1990.

I have had a look on the net and found that there was a guy of this name who wrote a frame building manual,could this frame been built by him?

I ended up paying £70 and have sneaked it into the garage with the hope my wife does not notice that I have another bike...

Can anyone provide anymore information about Proteus frames please ?

Thanks,
Ben

https://www.classicrendezvous.com/USA/Proteus.htm

Ben, you need to sneak your camera into the garage and provide us some pics of the beauty!

Just go ahead and tell her. Let her know what you paid, and what you intend to sell it for after you ride it for "a while". You can be a little vague about that last part.

I'm friendly with a former employee of proteus and I've seen him post here once or twice. I'm going to email him your thread if you post photos.

Hi,

Have fessed up,after been with a cyclist for twenty years it was not much of a surprise.Just a shame the frame it is too small for me....

Will post some pics tomorrow.

Maryland shop with framebuilding of expensive custom builds, and supplies. I sent for stuff from them around 1980 and the bottom bracket was so badly rolled it wasn't useable and I didn't know any better. Many good firms have crooks in their S+R departments. I had the sense to drive the bike down a bumpy garden variety hill to experience the flaws in my fork, though it was 44Km away from home, threw it in the hold of a bus. Oh yeah- your frame is really nice, but I don't think they could even dip the dropouts in chrome.

Proteus was at the early end of the American frame building
renaissance (for lack of a better word.)

I went to the University of Maryland, College Park, and the shop
was nearby. I never got the bucks together to buy anything
better than a second hand UO-8, but certainly was intrigued
by the concept of building your own high performance frame.

I have no idea of the quality or alignment of their production
frames, because i have no experience with them, but it would
not surprise me if they turned out both good and bad stuff,
because like I said, that was pretty early on in the learning
curve here in the USofA.

Besides custom frames, IIRC they would sell you tube sets and
lugs/dropouts.........bike in a box that needed a lot more than
handlebars turned and pedals mounted.

Jesus, I just looked at Mudboy's link and I think I'm having a
flashback. Did we really look like that?

Proteus Pics.

Proteus Pics.

Hot dog!

Those extensions to the lugs with the playing card cutouts appear to be fork stiffening tangs. I have a set of those on my Alpina and I know Richard Sachs used the same style on his early frames.

Nice details - too bad it's not your size. If it rides as well as it looks it would be a keeper!

DD

It is a shame it is not my size or I would certainly keep it and treat it to a re paint. I have had a Curley Hetchins for over twenty years(bought it when I was still at school off a friends dad) and it is still sat in my dads loft,it is just too ornate for my taste although I do appreciate what it is. I prefer subtle detail and thats why I like the Porteus and similar style frames.I have a Aende fixed bike equiped with Campag Super Record pista which needs a repain,t so plan to sell the Porteus to fund that.

I'm the former Proteus employee, 1981-1993. Post some pix and I can offer some insight. ... never mind, i see them now. Must have looked at this quickly before that post above.

I am not sure what to make of your frame there. The decals are not what we did in house, Proteus never had engraved seat stay caps like those, The seat lug looks like a Prugnat S4 which we did use over many years of production, but the extra clamp ear reinforcement is very atypical, as are the suit of cards cutouts. We mostly did a mitered to a point seatstay attachment, and a good many fastback stays to a large machined binder. The Fork crown is late eighties Cinelli, but during my tenure, that's not one we used, though we sold them as an importer.

so... it is a "Proteus", but not one that came out of College Park MD from 1981-1993. Not sure where it originated.

Here's my old Proteus......wish I still had it

I wish I had it! Definitely a custom build at that size.

Can someone translate this into English for me?

Not quite sure, but I think he's saying...

To heck with the possible repaint & anomalies. I dig the OP's Proteus--especially that rear brake bridge. Also like the lug windows and slightly wrapped stays. You might be able to recoup your £70 by selling just that black anodized Campagnolo crankset (which I like, but maybe not on that frame).

+1 - the frame is seriously nice...regardless of what it actually is. I just can't see anyone faking a relatively obscure name like Proteus...I'm thinking special request one off. Decals could be replacements.

Seriously?

Was in reply to gaucho777, but if you break it down:

Maryland shop with framebuilding of expensive custom builds, and supplies. OK
I sent for stuff from them around 1980 and the bottom bracket was so badly rolled it wasn't useable and I didn't know any better.
Not so positive
Many good firms have crooks in their S+R departments.
Not sure what this has to do with, but not a compliment
I had the sense to drive the bike down a bumpy garden variety hill to experience the flaws in my fork
Not a compliment
though it was 44Km away from home, threw it in the hold of a bus.
Oh yeah- your frame is really nice,
Compliment
but I don't think they could even dip the dropouts in chrome.
Not so much

^ I think you mean "in reply to dovetube" (post #7) not me. At least that's who you are quoting above.

Oops, it was in reply to 753proguy... somehow I thought you had posted that. Sorry.

I don't think it's a Proteus frame from the US (Maryland) Proteus shop. Don't think it's from one of their kits, either. It's a British or EU frame and some builder just liked the name (Greek Mythological Sea God, so why not?). Looks like it's well made. Certainly was well priced!

The red bike from the OP is not a proteus from MD, thats a fact. Totally different built and style, the red one is probably mid 80's, mid 90's racing, I would love to ride that red proteus. At the opposite, you wouldn't pay me enough to try the ones from MD , Just being honest!.

That red proteus is really well made, I agree with unworthy1. Next time I'l be looking one of those too, good find! I HATE YOU! hehehe

Ok, U-scanini and now proteus from uk or whatever added to the list