Suntour1985 

Hi. Just checking to make sure I have not missed anything. Have a custom bike with a Reynold’s 531 frame from the early 80’s with 27in wheels and a square taper English b.b. Now have a donor bike with Shimano 105 (5700 series). I tested the new wheels on the old bike and they work with using the old nutted brakes. I realize I need to spread the frame to 130 from 126. My plan is to keep the brakes, stem, bars, bottom bracket and crank on the old bike. I will then move the brifters, front and rear derailleurs, chain, wheels and cassette from the donor bike. I still need to check that the new rear derailleur will fit in the old dropout. I will also need a shim for the front derailleur, a new seat post and new cables. I assume that since both cranks are doubles, there should not be a problem with the front derailleur. Am I missing anything? Wanting to keep the old Reynold’s 531 for sentimental reasons. Thanks for your input.

icemilkcoffee 

The old nutted brakes will not work well with the brifters. You should change to dual pivot caliper brakes. Tektro makes dual pivots with nutted mounts.

The old crankset might not work neither. I am guessing the narrower 10 speed chain will fall in between the two chain rings. You’ll need to use the 5700 crankset. The shifting will be way better with the 5700 crankset in any event.