Sixty Fiver

My friend had a vintage CCM racing frame set that he acquired and sent it to Ron Cooper to have it built... it was 531 but do understand that with Cooper and other frame builders, the sticker on the frame means less than the proper selection of tubes to give the desired ride characteristics.

bikingshearer 

Welcome to the Cooper Club - a very exclusive group of folks with only the finest, most discerning taste.

Ron Cooper is on the short list of the very best frame builders ever to put torch to tube. Leave it to him to combine new-fangled design elements (mono-stay seat stay) with old-time craftsmanship, understated elegance and artistry. Yours may not be "vintage," but it is the very essence of "classic," IMHO.

I have a 1982-ish Cooper. Mine also has no tubing sticker. Other than curiosity, I don't care - if Ron Cooper chose it, that's good enough for me. All I know is that my Cooper disappears out from under me whern I ride it. I think there is no higher praise for a frame. I hope you ride the hell out of yours.

jstar1000

I saw that bike for sale on CL a week or so ago, great looking bike, great score!

I picked up a cooper about a year or so ago by accident. It was a CL find as well. The add just said Italy race bike with no picture. I went to check it out hoping to snag some campy bits. I got it for $75 and had no clue what it was, I saw the (C) on the downtube and knew that hat to mean something good.. It did have a Campy crank and bottom bracket on it, Campy down tube shifters, A Suntour superbee rear derailer and an italian headset that is a campy knock off, I can't remember the name but its aluminum and very nice. The frame didn't have any decals but it had the (C) on the down tube just below the headtube. I thought maybe it stood for campy or something.

I took a picture and posted it on the ibob website and within about a minute I learned it was a Ron Cooper. Lucky for me it had no decals as it would have been long gone before I would have got to it or been more expensive anyway.

I have it set up kind of modern with 9 speed shimano bits. Kept the campy crank, put dura ace brakes on it, a brooks saddle, Velo orange seat post and stem with VO adaptor to threadless. 105 brifters with a chrome aluminum drop bar and reciently added a set of 40 spoke Velocity rims with high flang sealed bearing hubs. Its a sweet ride to say the least.

The paint is very high quality but has a lot of scratches. Here is a link to my photobucket page with some old pics of it, it has morphed over the last couple of years. Enjoy if your interested in looking.

Welcome to the RC club its a great place to be. I belive mine is an 84 or 85 model from dating the cranks.

https://s32.photobucket.com/albums/d4.../Ron%20Cooper/

DMNHCAGrandPrix

Thanks for pictures. I especially enjoyed seeing the Cooper "C" incorporated inside the head tube lug cutouts on your bike.
https://tinyurl.com/3k4pwxb

DMNHCAGrandPrix

Thanks, and I look forward to riding the hell out of the Cooper. I've put about 6000 miles on the Craiglist bike I got two years ago, enough to erode away about half the decal on the headtube (See thread: https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...-Super-Leggera

The head tube emblem of the Cooper should be immune to that problem, though I do plan to put it to the test by lots of riding!

Sixty Fiver

Mine...



The seat stay on the bike is a Cooper original which has now been widely copied by many other makers but Llewellyn did mention on his blog that it took him years to perfect the brazing to do this.

With this I never need to look at another steel racing bike.

noglider 

My mouth is gaping open.

I also really appreciate everyone's comments on this thread. They enhance my appreciation.

merlin55

Nice find. In 1977 my best friend loaned me his Ron Cooper to ride for a few months while my Paramount was back at the factory having a lug repaired. The Ron Cooper road bike was made for Crits and had track fork blades and chain stays....it was stiff as a brick....ahh the good old college days

jstar1000

Thanks, Imagine how I felt getting it for $75 then discovering what I had and it was my size to boot! That's pure dumb luck but it fell into the right hands! I've but probably 1,000 miles or so on it but I have about 5 bikes, my go fast bike is a Merlin Titanium so it sees the most miles. I do love the RC though its such a smooth safe carbon free ride!

Sixty Fiver

My friend took my Cooper for a spin one day and I was afraid that he either crashed, or decided to keep it... he was gobsmacked.

It comes off the line like a rocket, handles like it is on rails, has an incredible ride, and inspires confidence.

in a word... perfect.

DMNHCAGrandPrix

i'd also like to thank many people on the C&V list for previous posts on Ron Cooper bikes. During the few days between when I saw the craiglist ad and when I was able to go see the bike, I learned a lot from things forum members had written and shown about their own Cooper bikes.

I particularly enjoyed Sixty-fiver's comments on both Cooper construction methods and riding characteristics from a thread on the "what are the best handling vintage road/racing frames" (see several entries on this page):

https://www.bikeforums.net/archive/in...55692-p-4.html



And bikingshearer had penned a memorable comparison of his Italian De Rosa vs. English Ron Cooper bikes in a thread earlier summer:

"My two main rides currently are a 1986 De Rosa Professional (SLX, probably with an SPX downtube as I am a Big Boy) and a 1982-ish Ron Cooper. I don't know what the Cooper is built with. Both are set up almost exactly the same in terms of position and components (including tires) and both are termendous rides.

The De Rosa is quintessentially Italian. It is sexy, calls attention to itself, and feels like it is urging me to give just a little bit more. Instant response without sacrificing straight-line stability. At the same time, it is not at all a harsh ride. It wants to run, and it makes you want to run with it.

The Cooper is quintessentially British. Understated elegance. Does not call attention to itself. Does anything and everything you ask of it, and right now. It rides the way the best British butler butles - takes care of your every want and whim, often before you have formed the thought, and does it quietly, efficiently and without a hint of wasted effort. It wants to serve, giving the rider the confidence of knowing it can and will handle anything you want to do, from taking it easy to out-of-the-saddle bashing to set a personal best up Alpe d'Huez.

They are both very responsive, not at all twitchy on descents, good climbers (as opposed to the rider, who makes bigbossman look like a polka-dot jersey contender) and good distance rides. If it is going to be a 50+ mile ride on beat-up pavement, I will usually pick the Cooper (although if the Cooper is not available for some reason, I will not hesitate to go on the De Rosa). For anything else, it's a game-time decision. "


My particular Craig's list bike was obviously newer than most of the other Ron Coopers I saw pictured in C&V threads. But the quality of construction was immediately obvious, the understated elegance was striking, and learning more about the reputation and history of the builder was a big help in deciding to go ahead with the purchase.

rekmeyata

That's a fantastic find. Some major congrats are in order! Those bikes are wonderful and wonderfully made, and yours looks very clean.

79roncooper

lucky find, i've had mine since '79.
this may be the only chromed cooper in existance. has anyone ever seen another?

gaucho777 

^nice wheels. (maybe more photos in another thread? please.)

79roncooper

i'll post some more tomorrow.

79roncooper

in '79, when i used to ride alot more, i wanted to get a serious bike. i was painting frames for a local shop, and talked to the owner of the shop about what i wanted. it had to be light, fast and all campi. he recommended a cooper frame. when we ordered the frame, i wanted it without paint, as i would do the painting myself. i requested the dropouts be chromed. ron shipped the frame with a note that he didn't have anyone to do the chrome work, so i was on my own. it took me about a year to collect all of the parts to complete the bike (buying as i could afford the parts). during this time i was trying to come up with an idea of what kind of trick paint job i could do to the frame. when i got all of the parts, i put everything together in bare metal to make sure everything worked properly. during this time the frame would get a little surface rust on it and i would remove it with fine steel wool. the more i rubbed on the frame, the more it would shine, so of course it seemed the trickest thing i could do was have the whole frame chromed. back then it cost $75. to have the frame and forks chromed. it has held up pretty good over all these years, but as you can see in the photos, there is some surface rust coming up on it. all the original world champion and cooper decals have long ago gone away except the ron cooper decals i made (as i didn't like the black ones that came with the frame). i wanted to be different, so i cut my own from gold vinyl. on the insides of the forks you can see some of the suprise details that ron is known for doing to his frames. all these years later, i have never regretted the purchase of this frame as it is a great rider. it is a short wheelbase frame with no provisions on the dropouts for unnecessary items like fenders or racks, there is no kickstand, or lugs for a pump. i purpusly geared it for speed as that's how i used to ride, even though all of the local know-it-alls said i was crazy gearing it like that for road use. so far i've never ridden a hill that couldn't be done in the gearing that's on it. well, that's the story of my cooper. ride on!

DMNHCAGrandPrix

The saddle is much easier to come by than the bike! It's a Sella Italia Flite with titanium rails, and is available at places like wiggle as the "Flite 1990 (Original) Saddle"
https://www.wiggle.co.uk/selle-italia...iginal-saddle/

DMNHCAGrandPrix

I expected from your user name that you'd have an interesting bike. Thanks for the pictures and story. You've made me want to check out Ron's handiwork on a few other places on my own frame too.

79roncooper

pics?

CrankyFranky

Wonderful artistry... I'm gobstruck. It's one thing to build a frame that disappears beneath you - the sublime artistry Mr. Cooper brings to the execution of his designs is rare indeed. You're one lucky man!

DMNHCAGrandPrix

I hadn't really looked in detail at the bottom bracket area before on my bike. Here's how Ron joined the downtube, seat tube, and seat stays on the 1997 Cooper:

Sixty Fiver

My Cooper has a club cutout in the head lug and one in the bottom bracket as well as a card suit running down the inside tang on the forks... it has a simple elegance to the work that most people would miss.

That Cooper seat post lug... the discoloration at the bolt is not rust but resulted from the rather gentle heating used to extract the seat post that preceded the 600 aero post. This bike was built for racing and has one of the lightest coats of paint I have ever seen (typical for older racing bikes) and will have the frame and fork professionally re-done at some point.



Front end... lug work.

DMNHCAGrandPrix

Several people have commented on the outstanding ride, as well as the outstanding workmanship of their Ron Cooper bikes. Ron was an accomplished racer in the early 50s, serving on the RAF team, riding road events in Britain and France, and nominated for a position on the British Olympic cycling team. His extensive riding experience was synergistic with his frame building experience, and his bikes emphasize function almost more than form. Great workmanship is there if you look, but the bikes often have an understated appearance, and many of the interesting details are nearly hidden from view (like the card suit cutouts running down the inside tange of the forks on 79roncooper's and SixtyFiver's bikes).

I've now had some more chance to evaluate riding characteristics of my own Cooper, after adjusting the seat and handlebar position, and putting on some Vittoria Evo Corsa 25 mm tires in place of the Continental Duraskin 23 mm tires that came with the bike. I now see what people mean when they say the bike nearly disappears beneath the rider. My 1988 Bianchi Super Leggera feels "prancy" when you climb aboard. In contrast, the Cooper feels supremely smooth and controlled. I rode yesterday on a 22 mile circuit that has a mix of flats, short climbs up to 15%, and descents. I've done this ride at least 20 times before, sometimes on a fendered 1983 Raleigh Grand Prix, and sometimes on the 1988 Bianchi Super Leggera. The ride yesterday on the Cooper was the fastest I have ever done, including the highest maximum as well as the highest average speed compared to all previous rides. From Garmin data, I already knew that I ride about 1 mph hour faster overall on the Bianchi than on the Raleigh commuter bike. Riding the Cooper looks like gives a similar sized increase, this time about 1 mph faster than the Bianchi. And the ride itself on the Cooper is a true pleasure, particularly the smooth feel, confident handling on descents, and the ease of shifting of the Record Ergopower drivetrain. I'm still grinning from ear to ear, and loving both the form and function of this bike!

noglider 

That's an impressive review! My admiration for Cooper continues to increase.

DMNHCAGrandPrix

Rouleur magazine had an interesting interview with Ron Cooper in their summer 2010 issue. I just received a copy of issue 19, which shows the actual hands of the man who built my bike on the cover, battle-scarred from over six decades of bike building and brazing frames freehand style:
https://www.rouleur.cc/issue-19?gallery=0

You can also listen to Ron Cooper in his own words, in a radio version of the interview that the Rouleur article is based on:
https://thebikeshow.net/ron-cooper-on-ron-cooper/

(Click "Ron Cooper on Ron Cooper" under list of Top Shows at upper left)