Fattic on eBay
 

If anybody here gets it, can you post build pics please? I'd be all over it, if it was a 60cm. Would love to have a Fattic.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/EXTRAODINAR...oAAOSwX9FZLzSU

Is this it?

that is exquisite

https://www.ebay.com/itm/EXTRAODINAR...oAAOSwX9FZLzSU

I assume this is it, too bad it wasn't taken better care of. :mad:

It's arguably one of the nicest framesets on eBay right now in regards to framebuilding perfection. Paint scheme is gorgeous too.

But yes, damn whoever allowed it to get into that condition.

-Kurt

That seller advertises so much stuff as being NOS and has so many overpriced items, I refuse to work with him. Right now he has a Mercian Vincitore frame set advertised as NOS that is literally featured on another website and was described as being purchased for $20 at a thrift store some years back!

-Gregory

Yep I always find stuff I want or need listed by the seller but his prices are always much higher than anywhere else and I've never bought from him.

I agree, the lugwork looks fantastic - especially around the BB shell. Interesting to note there is no shoring up of the stays directly behind the shell - I wonder why? This approach is rare when using earlier shells without buttressed tabs. The only bike I have with a similar configuration is the Colnago Mexico.

DD

Pic Assist. Paint job has a Motobecane vibe.

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/ajoAA...SU/s-l1600.jpg

It would be convenient if this frame could talk in English. If you look close, you can see that the original customer's name is written in script on the top tube near the seat lug on the drive side. Unfortunately I can't quite make out the name. Can anyone else tell what the name is? What I can tell is that the rear triangle is Columbus. I sometimes made the front triangle with Reynolds because it is a little lighter and sometimes I kept it Columbus too. That seat stay treatment cost an extra $100 in the 80's. I can't see any frame I made in the 70's that matches those specs. I had to cut off the cast bolt system on the original Henry James lug and fillet braze on a longer one I made on my lathe.

I am curious how the seller (who I don't know) got this frame. It has been on eBay for some time and various people have sent me notices it is there.

The paint on this frame could be reconditioned without having to strip it all off to start over again (I painted this frame too). It is helpful that most of it is black that can be sanded to feather out all the chips. After masking the red (again) it can be primed with black primer before applying the black color. After replacing the decals a couple of coats of final clear can make it look almost new again. Typically a lot of clears go over the decals and sanded smooth before the final clears so they are smooth to the touch.

Kinda looks like Tom Faulkner, though some script is missing.

Yes! When I saw who had the listing, I rolled my eyes because the guy seems to be such a clown. He has stuff that has been sitting there for years, unchanged and overpriced.

Let's hope someone buys this and maybe gets it to Doug for a refresh.

So if you go to the efbay ad, one of the pics shows the name much better, looks like Tom is the first name, the last name is still not very legible but may be Faulkner. :)

Oh crap, this was already noted. :twitchy:

Flawless lug filing and a flawless painter? Bravo, Doug. Bravo.

It'll be a good day when this frame finally winds up in the hands of someone who can send it back to the master to put it back the way it should be.

-Kurt

I used to race with a Tom Faulkner in SW Ohio during the 80s; he was very fast. Tom had some nice bikes back then because he worked at a local GM plant. I can't go so far as to say I remember the bike but it is his size and he had some "built for him" rides. I think he lives down south now, Florida maybe.

Yep I made a frame for Tom Faulkner in March, 1984. I had a few customers from SW Ohio back then because I taught high school there before I went over to apprentice in England. And my in-laws lived there as well and I supplied custom frames to Pete at the International Pro Bike Shop. I moved back to my home town of Niles, Michigan in 1976 to build, paint and teach framebuilding classes. Because of that work combination and the fact that I took my time and was fussy about frame details, I have never made all that many frames. I was always busy so I never bothered to promote myself much. I'm best known on framebuilding forums where I explain how to switch from brazing with acetylene to using propane. Interest in how to build steel bicycle frames picked up in the 21st century and teaching is mostly what I have done and do now. There are a few paint jobs waiting patiently in-between classes to be finished.

Tom's full on racing frame was towards the end of an era when I built frames for national caliber racers. After about 1985, my customer base tended toward fit recreational riders wanting something better. By then more sponsorship money became available so top riders didn't need to buy their own bikes.

The buyer would obviously have the option of having Doug Fattic refinish it himself. ;)

I figured it was the same Tom ;) Yep, Pete DiSalvo and Tom were very good friends. International Pro is still in business, owned by Roger Schroeder (since 2009) and still the only place to get nice, high end stuff. Pete was no slouch on the bike either; I once would up in a five man breakaway that included Tom, Pete and Alan Kingsbury; it was punishing. I only managed 4th by outsprinting the 5th member of our group; I was never so happy to see a race end. Heck I ought to buy it just because I may have beat it or been beaten by it at some point ;) I'd be surprised if you didn't make a frame for Alan as well.

I just got into the old shoe boxes and found a pic of Tom winning a race. I'm pretty sure the green bike he's on was a Viner, Pete had a connection with them too.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...16abbd4c29.jpg

I'm drawn to the fork crown on this one. So cool.

Would be neat to see this frameset go to a member and return to Doug for restoration.

55 seat tube, 57 top tube, not steep geometry. Very pre-1960 Italian and not mid-80s standard geometry.

Any particular reason? Custom fit? Mr. Faulkner have a long torso? Just wondering. I'm no expert by any means, but not what I would consider a full on racing frame for the mid 80s.

I was one of the people who reached out to Doug - and received a generous reply, of course! You guys are making it hard for me to resist this one. I live in Cincinnati and grew up in northern Indiana. It would great to have a frame, and a great one, from the area. I have way too many projects going, but maybe, just maybe...

Tom was my size, 5' 9" 150-160. If I remember right, he didn't like long stems. At the time I was of the opinion to get the frame as small as possible and make up for it with stem and bar reach (I rode with a 55cm top tube 12cm stem). Plus, back then you got one bike for the season; that meant it was your road race, criterium and your TT bike all in one. Tom favored road races and ultimately started doing triathlons when they first started out around here. The bloodlust of criteriums wasn't his favorite thing; I on the other hand was more than willing to wind up on the deck for a chance to win ;)

Union Terminal

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...41457f9747.jpg

Alex, don't put this financial burden on me at Christmas time! I just dropped off a frame to Jack at Franklin Frame. ;) Doug, I'm assuming you could change the name on the top tube? :roflmao2:

Ironically during that time at my real job, I was on the Dayton Police SWAT unit (called TRT, Tactical Response Team). It was commanded by Tom's brother, Lt. Billy G. Faulkner and I had also worked the same shift, prior to that, with Lt. Faulkner's son (who himself became a Lt.). Billy always looked out for me, I assumed it was because of my friendship with Tom.

OK nomadmax , let's go halvsies and we can adopt the frame together! :)

Almost all of the frames I have built were custom specific to an individual customer. I 1st determine their bicycle position and my fixture allows me to design the frame around where their handlebar and seat are located. I don't have the build sheet in front of me so I'm not sure of its geometry since no 2 frames I have built are exactly the same. I'm guessing it has a 74º head angle (2nd guess would be 73.5º) and the seat angle would have been determined by his saddle set back numbers.

Thanks for the responses everyone. Especially Doug Fattic. Very interesting history, and information. Bicycling Rules! Most appreciative of this forum. Hey Doug if I buy that frame can you stretch it into a bigger one to fit my 6'3" size? Lol