New to me 1973 Raleigh Competition frame
05-26-22, 01:45 PM
#26
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I've heard discussions about the difficulty of making a "good" living as a framebuilder, and I suspect it falls into the general category of "fun jobs don't pay well".
Even in my career as an engineer, the part about creating and problem solving is wonderful, but it's also the part that engineers are expected to give up when they (usually) move into project management or middle management. I opted to stay in the fun stuff as much as possible, with a distinct impact to my earnings. The trick is to actually have valuable skills that people recognize and value.
With full-time framebuilders, it seems that you need to successfully market your work if you want to make some money (i.e. enough to not starve). Richard Sachs always struck me as having done a great job of this... he got covered by a wide variety of magazines, produced beautiful frames, and stuck with a particular style that could be produced quickly and efficiently. Admittedly, making unadorned racing frames might become tedious in its own way, but there was a significant market for them, and it didn't require spending a ton of time with the customer discussing options and such.
In my own work, even the interesting work could have a fair bit of tedious work involved, so I also did electronics work as a hobby. As a retired guy myself, I still find myself spending too much time on other stuff and not enough on electronics. At least I don't have to go to meetings or do performance reviews.
Steve in Peoria
Even in my career as an engineer, the part about creating and problem solving is wonderful, but it's also the part that engineers are expected to give up when they (usually) move into project management or middle management. I opted to stay in the fun stuff as much as possible, with a distinct impact to my earnings. The trick is to actually have valuable skills that people recognize and value.
With full-time framebuilders, it seems that you need to successfully market your work if you want to make some money (i.e. enough to not starve). Richard Sachs always struck me as having done a great job of this... he got covered by a wide variety of magazines, produced beautiful frames, and stuck with a particular style that could be produced quickly and efficiently. Admittedly, making unadorned racing frames might become tedious in its own way, but there was a significant market for them, and it didn't require spending a ton of time with the customer discussing options and such.
In my own work, even the interesting work could have a fair bit of tedious work involved, so I also did electronics work as a hobby. As a retired guy myself, I still find myself spending too much time on other stuff and not enough on electronics. At least I don't have to go to meetings or do performance reviews.
Steve in Peoria
05-26-22, 03:08 PM
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You know the old saw about getting a job at something you love so you never work a day in your life???? It's been my experience that getting a job as a bike mechanic or a musician can potentially make you hate the thing you love if you're not careful. I still love riding and gigging but never teaching guitar or bass or a new mechanic again would be ok by me.
I think one advantage of engineering is that it covers a huge field of potential types of work. Even when I was doing design work, it covered both software and electronics hardware. The software included work on diesel engine control here in Peoria, as well as laser control when doing defense work. The hardware also ranged from aircraft to spacecraft to the big diesel powered earth-moving equipment.
For me, the biggest factor for job satisfaction was the boss. Even when fixing aircraft in the Marines, a good boss could make even a crappy job enjoyable! By the same token, a rotten boss could ruin what should be a great job. I suppose the trick is to make sure that you always have your eye on an alternate job, just in case the current one turns rotten. Part of that includes keeping your skills up to date so that other employers will want to hire you. As you get older, this gets harder and harder (which I assume most of the C&V crowd has experienced).
Part of being ready to look for alternate jobs is to have a cushion of cash to keep you going during the transition. This cash can also be a retirement fund, in case you might want to retire early if the job goes bad. If nothing else, being ready to retire does provide some leverage in negotiations with your boss....
Steve in Peoria
(fortunately, my last boss was a good one, so no need for this sort of conversation)
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05-26-22, 04:02 PM
#28
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very true! I had a friend who had considered bailing out of engineering college and just doing stained glass windows. She had been doing stained glass as a hobby and as a part-time job. I think there's a lot to be said for the idea of "don't turn your hobby into a job", because it's likely that you'll just feel too much pressure to make it pay off and will learn to hate it.
I think one advantage of engineering is that it covers a huge field of potential types of work. Even when I was doing design work, it covered both software and electronics hardware. The software included work on diesel engine control here in Peoria, as well as laser control when doing defense work. The hardware also ranged from aircraft to spacecraft to the big diesel powered earth-moving equipment.
For me, the biggest factor for job satisfaction was the boss. Even when fixing aircraft in the Marines, a good boss could make even a crappy job enjoyable! By the same token, a rotten boss could ruin what should be a great job. I suppose the trick is to make sure that you always have your eye on an alternate job, just in case the current one turns rotten. Part of that includes keeping your skills up to date so that other employers will want to hire you. As you get older, this gets harder and harder (which I assume most of the C&V crowd has experienced).
Part of being ready to look for alternate jobs is to have a cushion of cash to keep you going during the transition. This cash can also be a retirement fund, in case you might want to retire early if the job goes bad. If nothing else, being ready to retire does provide some leverage in negotiations with your boss....
Steve in Peoria
(fortunately, my last boss was a good one, so no need for this sort of conversation)
I think one advantage of engineering is that it covers a huge field of potential types of work. Even when I was doing design work, it covered both software and electronics hardware. The software included work on diesel engine control here in Peoria, as well as laser control when doing defense work. The hardware also ranged from aircraft to spacecraft to the big diesel powered earth-moving equipment.
For me, the biggest factor for job satisfaction was the boss. Even when fixing aircraft in the Marines, a good boss could make even a crappy job enjoyable! By the same token, a rotten boss could ruin what should be a great job. I suppose the trick is to make sure that you always have your eye on an alternate job, just in case the current one turns rotten. Part of that includes keeping your skills up to date so that other employers will want to hire you. As you get older, this gets harder and harder (which I assume most of the C&V crowd has experienced).
Part of being ready to look for alternate jobs is to have a cushion of cash to keep you going during the transition. This cash can also be a retirement fund, in case you might want to retire early if the job goes bad. If nothing else, being ready to retire does provide some leverage in negotiations with your boss....
Steve in Peoria
(fortunately, my last boss was a good one, so no need for this sort of conversation)
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05-26-22, 05:27 PM
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I would address the rear bridge for a proper recessed brake attachment since the paint will be messed with at the dropout.
these frames got very variable brazing.
but it is 49 years old... how fast we are to age things.
I do have a 50 year old bike, and a few older, some younger and only two older than me.
these frames got very variable brazing.
but it is 49 years old... how fast we are to age things.
I do have a 50 year old bike, and a few older, some younger and only two older than me.
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05-26-22, 06:31 PM
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I would address the rear bridge for a proper recessed brake attachment since the paint will be messed with at the dropout.
these frames got very variable brazing.
but it is 49 years old... how fast we are to age things.
I do have a 50 year old bike, and a few older, some younger and only two older than me.
these frames got very variable brazing.
but it is 49 years old... how fast we are to age things.
I do have a 50 year old bike, and a few older, some younger and only two older than me.
Last edited by noobinsf; 05-26-22 at 06:40 PM.
05-30-22, 06:21 PM
#31
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Opening this up a little more, it looks like there are some issues with the seat cluster. Bravo to the previous owner, as the seat post was slathered in grease, and it was overly long, which may have been done to avoid damaging it further. But, it’s damaged nevertheless, and I’ll have to think about how to deal with it. It looks like the kind of damage usually associated with a too-short seat post.
Also, this is a 27.0 — shouldn’t it be a 27.2?
Crack at bottom of clamp ears.
Bulge at bottom of seat lug
Stress lines from bulge, and it looks like the drive side seat stay cap took a whack at some point, so there is a ding.
Also, this is a 27.0 — shouldn’t it be a 27.2?
Crack at bottom of clamp ears.
Bulge at bottom of seat lug
Stress lines from bulge, and it looks like the drive side seat stay cap took a whack at some point, so there is a ding.
Last edited by noobinsf; 05-30-22 at 06:26 PM.
05-31-22, 06:37 AM
#32
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My usual recommendation for a full 531DB Raleigh is to gently run a brake cylinder hone down it, after making sure the top is the correct width. It should indeed be 27.2, and both of the '73 Raleighs I had a couple of years ago (a Gran Sport since moved on and a Competition Mk. II that I adore) required this treatment. You're not so much removing material as smoothing away corrosion and any odd burrs. The brake cylinder hone is also your friend for steerer tubes, and MOST especially when you want to run a Nitto stem in a metric Nervor steerer without sanding down the stem quill. Run the hone, thoroughly grease everything and it works, though it may feel snug.
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