The_Joe

Hey all. My wife is interested in getting a mixte frame and I found this one on Ebay. I'm not familiar with the Tange hi-ten fork or Tange Champion tubing. Does this seem worth it? She is currently riding a Nishiki Landau which I know is some kind of Tange CroMo. The plan is to pull the parts off of that and sell the frame. She sometimes says she'd like something lighter. I'm not sure thats even possible. My question is- Is this worth the price plus shipping? I'm also cautious because she'd definitely want to re paint it and this one is in pretty good shape.

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/VINTAGE-80s-C...item53f89e24e7

juvela

this is a mid-seventies taiwan frameset. not horribly overpriced and not an especially good value either.

juvela

forgot to mention - corsaro bicycles/frames were a contract build done by giant or merida for a company based in oregon.

T-Mar

Champion was Tange's name for their series of seamless, chromium-molybedenum tubesets, of which there were several grades (same alloy but different thicknesses). Unfortunately, that's a poor picture but I can just make out P G which typically means plain gauge, This would have been the predecessor to Tange #5. Given the hi-tensile fork, the stays are almost certainly hi-tensile too. The decal style indcates very late 1970s to very early 1980s.

If the Landau is some kind of CrMo, it probably the equivalent or maybe even lighter, depending on the exact age and wheter or not it is a mixte. If you can post pictures and specs of the Landau, maybe I can tell you exactly what it is. Bottom line is that you're probably not gaining anything with the Ebay frame.

While there are some high end mixtes with light frames, most are entry level and similar what you are looking at or even heavier hi-tensile steel. If she wants lighter and needs a small frame, I suggest you start looking for some of the late 1980s proportional frames (also called Terry style frames). These typically used a 700C rear wheel in conjunction with a 24" front wheel to achieve a low standover height. There were quite a few mid-range versions made with full Tange #2 butted tubesets or equivalent.

wrk101

+1 Think Terry bike instead. I have a 1988+/- Terry Despatch, Tange 1 frameset, really light and competent.

Rhodabike

I had a Nishiki Landau in the 80s and loved it! It was an entry level road bike, not super light, but certainly lighter than a hi-tensile mixte would be. If she really wants another mixte and wants a fairly light weight, a Reynolds 531 frame would probably be about the best you could do. U.K. companies like Dawes made them, for the most part. North American mixtes tend to be lower end frames made from cheaper tubing.

The_Joe

Thanks everybody. T-Mar: The Landau is a mens style frame. Seat tube has that typical Nishiki "CroMo tubing" crest and the fork is Tange. It is probably the smallest size they make.
She likes the look of the mixte so that is why she is looking for the change. She'd also be able to ride more in dresses which will be nice when the weather warms.
I know there are a few mixte frames that had tubing a bit lighter than hi ten so I'm trying to find those. She isn't much of a bike nut so she doesn't have any standard of what tubing or what brand or anything like that. Just the frame look and the right color. She may not even notice if the frame is a little heavier. Because I'm going to pull the parts off of the Landau it will be all alloy which should save some weight.