vintageaddict

Hi all! First time posting here!

I came across this craigslist post, offering a frame from a now defunct company that produced custom road bikes in the past. 'Custom cycles' in new westminster, britiish columbia.

vancouver.craigslist.org/van/bop/d/vancouver-vintage-road-bike-for/7351060420.html

Are there any telltale signs that could indicate what kind of steel tubing was used? As far as I can see there aren't any useful decals on the frame. I'm looking for a frame to build up my first project bike and would like to at least purchase something that isn't high tensile steel.

All advice and suggestions are appreciated!

oneclick 

That likely isn't high-tensile steel, but worse.

It is almost certainly a european-made bottom-end bike-boom, or slightly previous (i.e. late 60s to mid 70s) machine, re-painted (?) and decaled by whoever that BC operation was.

The mudguards are a cool thing, be careful as they are somewhat fragile.

Pedals look to be decent japanese, SR150 or 250 maybe, they are not original.

how about this <evil laugh>:

https://vancouver.craigslist.org/rds...353870274.html

juvela

-----

appears it may be of German manufacture

very low end; suggest to keep looking


-----

fabiofarelli

I agree, I guess this is gaspipe or something like that. Imo a lot of money for this.

philpeugeot 

Hard pass, especially for a frame of this provenance. Stamped dropouts (where the wheel's axle goes) indicate this bike is on the low end, so the rest of the bike will be similarly low-spec. Keep looking, your patience will be rewarded.

rgvg

What kind of bike are you looking for?

You should consider buying the nicest bike you can then staying away from craigslist. Craigslist/fb marketplace/kijiji/ebay are easy places to catch N+1.

randyjawa 

The bike frame is entry level and nothing special about the tube set. Probably something one should pass on.

shuru421

If you want to learn, buy a low end bike you can fix up for cheap. Ride it, learn more. Then consider upgrading when you have an idea of what you want out of your bicycle. Youll appreciate the difference in different bicycles, also itll be a great learning curve.

vintageaddict

Hi all, thanks for the advice, definitely passing on this frame!

rgvg I'm looking for a road bike for 100-200km rides, we have several mountains near us here in British Columbia so I'd be using it for some intense climbs. Right now my friend has sold me on 80s road bikes, I've been hunting for high end frames from that era for some time now but nothing yet!

rgvg

Good luck finding a bike or frame that works for you.

If you don't find something by early September there should be a vintage swap meet in East Van I think the week of labour day. There'll be an ad for in in craigslist I'm sure. I got my tiny Trek 520 frame there last year for $40. It's not high end but it's quite well made and doesn't weigh a ton. It's only a parking lot sized swap meet but it's fun. Good place to look for parts.

vintageaddict

Thanks! I just saw a craigslist ad for that I'll definitely be there come September!