IFPCL

Ortlieb Micro. It's very good, completely waterproof, easy to detach, has never fallen off in the 3 years or so that I've had it.

edit: I agree re: the chain. I put it on on for a bit of flash before I added more of the anodized stuff. Probably going to go with plain old silver when this one wears out.

the sci guy 

how much can you hold in it? (like what size tire, etc)

chaadster

Pump peg? Crimped stays? Down tube shift boss cable stop adapters? Lugged dropouts? External headset?

Sorry, not modern.

Fiery

I like this one:

dr_lha

Lazyass

1 1/8 threadless? 130mm spacing? Modern.

Jarrett2

Looks a little cleaner than this pic

chaadster

1 1/8 threadless has been on road bikes for nearly 20 years; at least 17 commonly. 135mm rear spacing has been around almost as long; I remember Kona Major Jake having 135 spacing back in '04/'05... Not arguing they're traditional road spec exactly, but I wouldn't call them, especially the headset, as markers of modernity. Anyway, it's the totality of the design which makes me call it not-modern, because that frame could have been built 15 years ago or more exactly as it is. Too much water under the bridge since then to call that modern.

Lazyass

Well in '96 pretty much every road frame still had quill stems. In any case, 20 years ago is modern to me but I didn't just get into cycling this century. There hasn't been too many changes since then. And a frame made in 2016 could possibly considered modern, crazy thought I know

rms13

I think you need 1 1/2 to 1 1/2 tapered head tube to be modern these days

IFPCL

I keep tire levers, tube, patch kit, and multi-tool in there and there's room to get your keys or whatever else in there too.

Yeah that was a good day.

chaadster

This guy... LOL.

As if the only reason this thread even exists isn't a testament to the exact opposite, a reaction to the profound changes wrought by carbon fiber construction.

Needless to say:

dr_lha

Maybe we should ask the guy who started the thread to judge. Orange BMC frame? Modern or Not @Jarrett2 ?


In my opinion threadless fork, TIG welded frame. It's modern as opposed to classic. Also those crimped chainstays are there to work with a current modern trend: fatter tires on a road bike (it takes up to 700x33).

Lazyass

What's "LOL" as you put it is someone thinking a 2016 frame with a threadless 1 1/8 fork and 130mm spacing isn't modern

Menel

Threadless steerer, TIG welded. Modern.

Jarrett2

chaadster

Crimping stays (as opposed to modern shaping/forming methods) goes back as common usage to the 1950s at least. TIG welding goes back in popular usage to the 1980s.

So where does that leave us with that frame? The external threadless headset, use of which stretches back pre-millenium! Even if we call it common on road bikes for 15 years, for that to be the single marker of it's modernity is an extremely weak position to argue from, especially given it has far more indicators of traditional design and construction.

Staking an argument on common design and construction elements going back 20, 30, and more years in a period that has seen more rapid development of the road bike than any other period in history is, frankly, ridiculous.

To be even more clear, none of this discussion has anything to do with whether a bike is awesome, great, cool, killer, or anything else. My point is simply to recognize that there are steel frames that don't rely on ancient techniques or nostalgic aesthetics, and that instead are conceived from a perspective which embraces the lastest technologies and innovative accommodations for recent equipment developments.

I know everyone wants their bike to be in the "modern club," but it just doesn't work like that. It may be new, and cool, but that doesn't automatically mean it's modern.

P.S. When do we bring the lugged crown steel fork into the discussion? My '70s Motobecane has one that looks just like it.

Jarrett2

Chaadester, I'll help you out by making a call as the thread starter.

Any steel-framed drop bar bike made in 1996 or after is welcome in this thread.

See, that was easy. No more bickering necessary. Now let's get back to enjoying some modern steel road bikes!

Maelochs

I hereby appoint myself the sole arbiter of the definitive interpretation of all indefinite terms. Submit your request for clarification, along with a check or money order made out to me, to my PO box and I will get back to you with a ruling in 3-5 business days.

dr_lha

I'd just like to point out that arguing over the definition of modernity is tedious willy waving.

Ohhh your bike has a pump peg! Crimped stays! How retro! How old school!

rpenmanparker 

I don't often agree with chaadster, but here is one case when I do. To me a modern frame is one that is based on modern design principles, modern steel tubing resources and modern construction techniques. I'm not talking about one-off novel design characteristics, but rather those that represent a directional trend, where the art is going, not where it came from.

chaadster

At more than 3 months, more than 30 pages, and over 800 posts, it's a little late for that, guy.

It has been nearly 800 posts (791, to be exact) since I challenged the standards for definition and said the thread was on the "road to Suxville."

So yeah, for you to try to regulate now falls mighty flat insofar as I'm concerned.

dr_lha

Who cares though? I read this thread to see pretty pictures of steel road bikes that I can go out and buy new. Not to read dictionary definitions.

Stick69

My first drop-bar steel since the 70s.

chaadster

Thank you, Robert.