Holdsworth Super Mistral Team Colours - Actual Colours?

black_bird_blue

Retro Newbie
Quick Question - can anyone tell me somehow (anyhow?) the actual colours used for the Holdsworth "team colours"?

I know they are referred to as "pumpkin orange" and "kingfisher blue" but that doesn't help me actually order any paint.

I saw in this thread that jules_b had a bike painted in them earlier this year, so it must be "somewhat current" knowledge.

I am a Brit recently moved to Minnesota in the USA, who finally got round to looking at the tired old steel framed bicycle he has carried with him for the last 30 years, only to discover that underneath it all is a Holdsworth Super Mistral. Chroming on the rear stays is long, but I don't know how to pin down a specific year beyond the rather vague late 60s/early 70s I have now. Frame head badge is long gone, alas - I expect they are like hen's teeth to find. But new paint will do it good.

Thanks in advance,

Damian
 
Ive had a few holdsworth resprayed by mario vaz (in hither green, south london), he will know the names of the colours but not sure if he will have a RAL code as he mixes them by eye. The blue is flamboyant, so it has a silver base coat.

I'm going down there to pick up a frame this week so i will ask him when i am there.

Matt

PS put up a pick of your frame!
 
Just spoke to Mario, he doesn't have names for the colours or a code. He just calls it team colours!
'turquoise flam' for the panel
 
Well, I get back to the UK now and again. Perhaps once I've had the stays rechromed I will get the frame to him.

I'm borderline embarrassed to put up pictures of the frame. A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, I put together a bicycle around an old Dawes frame using the bits available to me from my Dad's shed. It was, to use a technical term, a shonker. As I grew bigger (I did say it was a long time ago) I needed a bigger frame. I can't remember how I came to be given this frame but have a vague recollection it involved my brother. I saved up and bought some Rigida AL1320 rims - not exactly interstellar but something of a move up from the rusted 26" rims that the little Dawes was running.

The frame was looking a bit sad, so I rattle-canned it red and white - driven mainly by the red label on the Rigida rims, I expect; it was over 30 years ago so the details are a bit hazy.

It was a real bitsa. Shimano LB100 "Almi" shift levers on the downtube, a late 50s(?) Simplex front derailleur, Stronglight 106 chainset I was given to replace the cottered cranks I had, Weinmann 750 centre-pulls of late 50s/early 60s vintage. It was just what I could find; other than the wheels (for which I saved for months) I was on essentially a zero budget.

I did a lot of riding on it, up and down the UK with camping gear and various friends, so I could never quite bring myself to part from it. Anyway, to cut a long story short, now that I've moved to Minnesota and started cycling again, I actually had a closer look.

I was a bit surprised to identify it as a Super Mistral and to find the Holdsworth team colours (although in a slightly non-standard arrangement) under my rattle-can job. So I'm on a gentle mission to give it some love and find some period bits and pieces.

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The frame number, 32585

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Crowned forks just visible.

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Whole thing still servicable. Just a bit sad.

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Non-standard arrangement of team colour bars on the saddle tube revealed after attacking rattle-can paint with a dremel.

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Unmistakeable kingfisher blue panel with Holdsworth decal.

It has "long" chrome on the rear stays, which I think marks it out as one of the earlier ones but I have no idea how to pin down the year further.

So, there we are...
 
I'm pretty convinced it's not a Professional, but I can't remember why now. Don't get me wrong, I would love it to be, but I don't think it is. I found no evidence of the additional white pinstriping or the "professional" badge on the cross bar.

What makes you think it might be one and not "just" a Super Mistral?
 
I was thinking it might be a Pro because of the chrome. Back in the 70's chrome was very expensive and holdsworth tried hard not to use chrome if they could get away with it.........that means lack of chrome on the Mistral range !

Just noticed yours has mudguard eyes on the dropouts, I think the Pro had them filed off.

Shaun
 
Hello! Glad you noticed my bike! A couple of points:

- This is definitely a Super Mistral. I would say 1969. (Mine is 30511 and is 1967) You can tell because of the lugs on the headtube (pointy rather than smooth), mudguard eyelets, and the geometry (you will have a mudguard size space between the top of the wheel and the fork). The sloping crown forks signify it being a Super Mistral rather than a Mistral (providing the serial number on the fork steerer matches)

- Mario Vaz is supposed to know as he used to work at Holdsworth. Memory does fade though but I have compared mine to some original ones and it is more or less the same. Different shades of orange where used and it was not really consistent. for example the shop used a different shade to the factory

- As an easy tip I would contact Planet X who are remaking the Holdsworths and are using the orange. they did the car that mine is photographed with on my thread so they should be able to assist in giving you the colour. In reality as long as it is orange and not too way off it should not really matter but I know what you mean about wanting to find the closest colour to it.

- Finally enjoy this bike - both doing it up and riding it. it is great!
Hope this helps
 
incidentally would you not be able to get a paintshop to match the little patches of orange you have revealed on the bike? and I like the non standard blue and orange bars that your bike seemed to have on the seat tube
 

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