Dave Yates Diablo.. finally!

At last, I've finished! Totally lost the retro bug recently and this has been on the back burner for ages all because I needed to make the small pulley wheel for the front mech and just could not be bothered.

15 free minutes at work today and standing next to a lathe doing nothing, I dragged a bit of aluminium out of the scrap bin and knocked out the final piece of the Yates Jigsaw and here's the result (with a typically poor picture).



A beautifully British bike, fillet brazed from Italy's finest steels and paired with the best rigid forks of the day, Kona's Project 2. The bits that make the bike go forward are all XT M730/732 and it all gets reigned in again with Dia Compe SS7 levers paired to 986 cantis.

X-lite Titanium bars and crank caps with original Hope wheel QRs add a touch of early 90's British bling and a Titanium Railed Rolls saddle keeps my bum happy. Grab on MTN2 grips and XT pedals complete the contact points.

The stem is a Tioga T-Bone, and whilst it rides well, I'm not happy with the aesthetics of the rise... It'll be going.

The hubs (730/732) are laced to Araya RM-14 rims and the 'rust wall' Notos tyres provide a welcome break from the 'retro must be skinwall' nonsense without resorting to boring blackwalls.

To me, this bike is the epitome of retro. In 1991/92 I'd have felt a very lucky boy to have owned a bike like this, and I'm quite chuffed with it now

The offending pulley... source of all the delays!

Nice

That looks good mate

The reto bug does come and go but trust me it grabs a hold of you again...ride the Dave Yates that will help.

And again nice bike.

Good work, looks great.

Always wanted one of these BITD.

Great work and great bike but get some decent pics up youuuuuuu slaaaaaag!

Killer bike, looks fantastic (although I agree re the stem not working), the paint job for a Diablo too, motivating me to get mine done now (I'm pleased I didn't go XT in the end as it would look like a copy-cat build!).

I must add though, that once again I amazed that a great build like this, of a classic British, hand built bike has elicited so little response. It might just be me, but every build I seem to like on here receives 3 comments and then slides into oblivion.

Its not me actually, I have exceptional taste.

As an addendum, do you have another of those rollers? My roller does not, in fact, roll.

When we going to to see it?

(Very nice though Russ )

Good work Russ. When is the Lecky Hill shakedown?

Very nice!
I'd be interested in the stem if you decide to shift it on

Very nice...

I too am a member of the half-finished Diabolo club..I really should have it finished by now as it keeps staring at me at work

Funnily enough mine too has a t-bone fitted but with a bit less rise..I'm toying with using a salsa stem instead so may have it available if required..