Hi all, i have just been passed down a Condor Italia frame circa late 60's to mid 70's. I have experience in maintaning a modern mountain bike but am a liitle unsure on the way to go with this frame. It has a lot of sentimental value so not too bothered on expense or time to get sorted, just want to do it justice...my first basic question is, should i keep everything component wise as close to original as possible, or should i include some more up to date equipment, also not quite sure where too start..lol, so any advise would be welcome....
Condor frame
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Midlife
Retro Wizard
Welcome 
Does it have quite long and pointed lugs and a fork crown that slopes down in one piece? That's how I remember them from my teenage years
I think it depends on how old you are ? I was born in the 50's and I'm trying to put together my old Bob Jackson from the 70's and I'll try and source the correct year parts if I can
Post up a few pics.
Shaun
Does it have quite long and pointed lugs and a fork crown that slopes down in one piece? That's how I remember them from my teenage years
I think it depends on how old you are ? I was born in the 50's and I'm trying to put together my old Bob Jackson from the 70's and I'll try and source the correct year parts if I can
Post up a few pics.
Shaun
Your key decision is whether you want to stick with an original specification drivetrain - the frame will likely be designed for 5/6 speed rear wheel, measuring 120mm across the rear drop outs. If looking to run more gears, then the frame can easily be re-set to 126 or 130mm. A lot will probably depend on your budget and the time you're prepared to spend chasing around for suitable parts.
I think i would like to keep it original as possible, i would however like to have it as a usable good weather bike, i think, because of the marks on the frame i will be getting it resprayed in the same colour it is now, i know this not to be the oriiginal colour, but it is how i remember it always being...i am asuming by the previous post that 120mm is getting rarer to find, if so maybe i would need to look at the practicalities of staying with a 5-6 speed, oh the decisions..lol, There is one area that i need some help, and at moment have no idea what to do about it, the original forks were removed and were badly damaged in storage many years ago, i am now unsure of what a decent lightweight set of forks would be and any options that i may have concerning this........
at first glances, I would say its later than late 60's/early 70's as it has underbracket cable guides, brazed on top tube guides and shortish dropouts. Of course, it may be that I'm not seeing the detail as clearly as I'd like, or the frame has been modded since new, or it made ahead of its time in terms of brazings
I'm guessing 1980's
I'm guessing 1980's
120mm hubs aren't too hard to find, but 126 are a lot more plentiful. I'm with Pigman in thinking it might be more recent - under BB cable routing was more common in the 1980s. Obviously measuring the rear drop outs will help inform your choices. Being a student of modest means in the early 1980s meant that Super Record was well out my league.
It might be that your right with the age of frame, my earliest memory of it was from about 82 ish, i was going by what i had been told by my father, but he has had many frames and bikes so is possible he got confused with dates. I have the frame number, well at least most of it as first number is partly hidden by cable guide. there is also EO in a diamond above number, i assume this to be a builders mark.....
