looking to buy a Roadie bike

Hi guys, I don't know much about Racers and such, but have fallen in love with some bikes I have seen lately - I do love that beautifully designed and crafted lugged Reynolds frames with the intricate work at the head tubes and joints.
Some vintage stuff looks utterly gorgeous and works of art

So much so that I want to get myself a nice frame and build one up - in period.

Any thought about what british built bike frame only of the type I could buy for around ~£100 mark?

Cheers.

ps. Anyone heard of this?

http://www.classicrendezvous.com/Britis ... entury.htm

BSA Golden century

You have come to the right place as many of us are connoisseurs of elegantly lugged bikes. I am fairly new to English bikes (in fact that is one reason I signed up for RB) however the "big" names like Hetchins, Claud Butler, Jack Taylor etc all made, still make, some fine frames. Finding one in you price range may be a bit of a trick, but don't let that hold you back. Things to look for: finely brazed and filed lug work, fine details like a delicately curved brake bridge or seatstay caps that line up perfectly. That BSA that you linked to is what I would call a good journeyman's bike, it certainly may be a nice riding bike and is well constructed but there is no lug thinning or other details of a fine handcrafted bike.

That is my take others to follow no doubt.

Steven

Thanks ever so much Steven!
I mentioned the BSA as I was also looking to get a BSA Bantam 175cc Motorcycle.

Thanks for the tips! I know my budget is a bit low - too much money spent on MTB's because of this site
But I'd push the budget if I find a frame I like a lot!

What names could i look out for? In Italian and french bkes too?
How about Mercian?

And could you perhaps link some photographs of what sort of details to look for?

Thanks again!

This BSA bike is mostly a poverty spec Raleigh mass produced in what was the Carlton factory.
It would be useful, but has absolutely no relationship to BSA motorcycles.

Which BSA bicycles would be worth looking at?
I think raleigh bought BSA in 1957 - are all post '57 BSA crap?

I would say the Raleigh made BSA's were actually better. I went round the BSA factory in 1955 and you would not believe how dreadful it was. Where Raleigh either pinned or tacked the joints BSA used a pneumatic chisel to hammer a deep dent in the lugs to hold the tubes in before brazing. I actually had a BSA Gold Column in 1949 which was a good handmade butted 531 bike with specially made bsa parts, they made everything but the b37 saddle, Dunlop rims, tyres tubes, and mudguards.
Raleigh used BSA and Sun as cheap mainly export makes, many to US in the early 1970's.

Thanks for that information my friend, man, you must've seen many things come and go.
My dad used to have a BSA Bantam 175cc - he wrote it off in 1963, and he used to have a Raleigh Roadster back in the 50ies.
I read Major HW Tilman's biography - and he rode a Raleigh Roadster across Africa in 1929 - a journey of 2 months!!
Enough about Roadsters and such - It's actually the Gold Column I've decided upon and am on the lookout for!

It should be affordable - as I don't want to spend too much as I doubt I'll ride it much

£100 budget for a nice frame is cutting it a bit fine......This on is $10,000

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Chater-Lea-Al ... 0691468%26

also building one up is a nightmare the older you get as manufacturers had their own branded kit with often funny sizes..........

I'd try something late 60's or very early 70's with Nervex lugs or similar but modern enough to get the bits easily or even substitute something modern / repro.

Shaun

Ah I never thought about that!!! I assumed things were more or less standard (depending whether it was Imperial or Metric)

And as for that 10k bike - a joke perhaps? 400 quid for Postage too! Surely!

If I were you I'd set a bigger budget and try and find something complete to use or renovate. If you set your goal on a specific make and model you will really limit your options. Building up from a frame with period parts could take ages and cost a small fortune. More often than not, you'll be spending more than the bike is worth at the end of the build. Be prepared to travel for a good deal. I'd look on gumtree, local paper classifieds, forums like this with for sale sections, the CTC have a similar site.

You can try Ebay but prices are usually at the high end, although the odd bargain will slip through. Search through the bikes section using 50s then 60s and 70s, they will be the periods of classic built steel frames. Try searching nervex lugs, they will be the style you are looking for and Reynolds 531. Depends on what you want to spend but with something like a Dawes, Carlton, Holdsworth or Harry Quinn you should find a good complete bike around the £150+ mark. If you move up to builders like Mercian or Jack Taylor expect to pay £400+

I have a 1969 BSA Bantam in bits in the shed of dread at the moment