Mystery Frame... Help!

Nothin-fancy said:
That looks like some interesting geometry. 55st-53tt??? Looks like criterium geo if so. I'd guess very late 80's to very early 90's. Id lean more towards the 90's because of the vertical dropout's. SLX (did you feel for the ridges in the seat tube and down tube?) was introduced around 1987 and wasn't really a thing by 1992 being replaced by Aluminum or oversized steel.

Where are you located? That will help with figuring out smaller builder's.

The bottom bracket and brake bridge look like a Silva brand. While not as well known as Cinelli Silva made some nice parts.

Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
I think that geometry must have some mistakes in it.... Maybe seat and top tube the wrong way around. It would look weird with a longer seat than top tube, even in the pictures right?

So when it finally arrives (thanks Parcelforce for being useless) I will re-measure and check for the helical ridges of SLX and get back to you.

This is all very helpful though! Thanks!!

P.S. The closest thing I could find, looks-wise, is Basso, but I guess Everest may have been emulating these features as a smaller Japanese builder??
 
Entobiker said:
I think that geometry must have some mistakes in it.... Maybe seat and top tube the wrong way around. It would look weird with a longer seat than top tube, even in the pictures right?

So when it finally arrives (thanks Parcelforce for being useless) I will re-measure and check for the helical ridges of SLX and get back to you.

This is all very helpful though! Thanks!!

P.S. The closest thing I could find, looks-wise, is Basso, but I guess Everest may have been emulating these features as a smaller Japanese builder??
Click to expand...
Everest is (was?) a Taiwanese framebuilding components manufacturer. Their investment cast lugs, dropouts etc. are still available to buy.
 
Ok, it has arrived, and the geometry is as stated (see pic below). It's is an English threaded BB.

It's got the helical ridges (super butting) at the bottom of the seat and down tube, so pretty sure it's SLX.

26.8 Seat post diameter.

1755689001987.webp
 
Helical ridges and 26.8 seat tube diameter??? That should be 27.2 diameter seat tubing if it's SLX. They never made SLX with anything other than 27.2 ST dia. And while rare to have a seat tube brazed upsidedown. A Columbus SL/SP ST brazed upsidedown gives you a 26.8 ST. Which does happen every so often. That would be impossible with SLX. The ridges would be at the top and make it unusable.

That's Ishiwata tubing. Ishiwata made triple butted frame set tubing with ridges too. Which would make sense with it being an Everest/Japanese frame set.

It's still a great frame made by a good framemaker. It is definitely not SLX.
I'd throw some Dura Ace 7400 or 7600 on it and ride the tar out of it.
 
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Since it's probably a Ishiwatta frameset, I'd look at Miyata bike's. Ishiwatta was Miyata's house brand of tubing. Maybe it's a 700 or 900 series from the mid 90's??? I believe it was 712 & 912 if I remember correctly. I'd be looking on the interwebs at dropout's and fork crown's on Miyata bikes from the mid 90's for a match.

That'd be my guess...
 
Nothin-fancy said:
Helical ridges and 26.8 seat tube diameter??? That should be 27.2 diameter seat tubing if it's SLX. They never made SLX with anything other than 27.2 ST dia. And while rare to have a seat tube brazed upsidedown. A Columbus SL/SP ST brazed upsidedown gives you a 26.8 ST. Which does happen every so often. That would be impossible with SLX. The ridges would be at the top and make it unusable.

That's Ishiwata tubing. Ishiwata made triple butted frame set tubing with ridges too. Which would make sense with it being an Everest/Japanese frame set.

It's still a great frame made by a good framemaker. It is definitely not SLX.
I'd throw some Dura Ace 7400 or 7600 on it and ride the tar out of it.
Click to expand...
So, I've tried a 27.2 and too big, got LBS to measure it with tool and its weird it's a 27.0 but on the large side. Not 26.8. Found some previous threads on here where SLX came out as 27.0. Butted ridges were at the bb end of the down tube feeling up in there before fitting the bb. The forks are also stamped Colombus on the drop outs.

I'm intrigued though, cause if it was made in the far East then Ishiwata would make sense. I'd not heard of that tubing before so thanks for the info!

And yeah, long story short it's getting a modern groupo, Sora or 105 depending on what I can spare, vison team 35 wheels, a modern cockpit, and yes... riden the shit out of!!

I think for £100 for F&F it was a bit of a steal, regardless its origin.
 
If it's 27.0 it would be a Columbus SPX frameset... 55cm would be around the frame size you would see a builder switch to the thicker and stiffer SP/SPX tubing. With 54cm and below being SL/SLX. Generally speaking... And you mostly see SLX repop frame sticker's and I could totally see someone doing the "well it's close enough" thing with a SLX instead of a SPX sticker. Especially if they figured it was a forever frame they thought they were going to keep.

Although it still could be a Japanese/Korean frame. 27.0 isn't far out of Ishiwata territory and the English BB. The fork might not be original because of what looks like a repaint... What are the frame dropouts brand? Close up pics of of the SLX stickers would be cool too.


I'd still lean towards a Koga Miyata Pro of some sorts. Either way that frame is a score! I dig the color.
 
Nothin-fancy said:
If it's 27.0 it would be a Columbus SPX frameset... 55cm would be around the frame size you would see a builder switch to the thicker and stiffer SP/SPX tubing. With 54cm and below being SL/SLX. Generally speaking... And you mostly see SLX repop frame sticker's and I could totally see someone doing the "well it's close enough" thing with a SLX instead of a SPX sticker. Especially if they figured it was a forever frame they thought they were going to keep.

Although it still could be a Japanese/Korean frame. 27.0 isn't far out of Ishiwata territory and the English BB. The fork might not be original because of what looks like a repaint... What are the frame dropouts brand? Close up pics of of the SLX stickers would be cool too.


I'd still lean towards a Koga Miyata Pro of some sorts. Either way that frame is a score! I dig the color.
Click to expand...
Great info! Thanks. So no stamps on the frame dropouts at all.

SLX stickers are ropey AF, guessing repros.

Just been trawling the Koga Miyata catalogues and that's pretty damn close!!

Cheers!!
 
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