some advice needed

[swinger76]

hi all

bought this nice frame and forks off ebay a few months ago for great price of just £10.50

has a Frame number 76801 whats the best way to get the year on it?
has 130mm spacing for rear

the seller said it has Gipiemme rear ends (what are Gipiemme mean?)

and says it takes 1 inch forks my plan is to get some nice Carbon Forks and either 600 parts or vintage 105 parts.

My other Question is it possible to upgrade the forks and use Ahead
or does it have to be threaded?

pics below would love anyones advice many thanks and happy new year!

 

[Midlife]

Looks like a typical 80's frame and what a bargain

Gipiemme were a manufacturere like Campagnolo, they made chainsets etc as well as dropouts for frames. Not shabby either.

All you need is a 1" headset........cheap as chips

Nice find.

Shaun

 

[oonaff]

nice one !

 

[matthew71]

i would keep the forks,and not mess with the geometory of it. you might save a bit of weight but let,s be honest the bike is never going to be super light



just noticed is that a reynolds 501 or 531 sticker near the down tube shifters?

 

[swinger76]

thanks all for the advice i do agree on the frame and forks got a identical bike already was trying to change it a little bit lol and yes
matthew71 its a Reynolds 501 according to the sticker

thanks midlife werid that its italian drops when its Raleigh

 

[Midlife]

Raleigh used a lot of Gipiemme dropouts on their frames.....as I said not at all shabby. Their Chrono sprint range was very nice

Shaun

Just off to look at their frame range for Gipiemme

 

[Midlife]

http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=197102

Gipiemme droputs

Shaun

 

[lewisfoto]

You asked about figuring the year of a bike and, even though it is not an exact science, there are some clues that can point one in the right direction.

You already hit on the first, rear spacing. Narrow spacing (120, 126) tends to indicate an older bike. Bikes were spaced at 130 to accommodate larger cassettes that generally came around in the early 90s.

Second, braze on bits. Top tube brake cable guides and shifter bosses indicate a bike newer than about 1980. Again not exact because some builders included such features as far back as the '40s and '50s.

Three, braze on front derailleur hanger. this is a pretty clear indicator of a post 1985 build.

Four, short horizontal dropouts. The Campagnolo 1010 long rear drop, though available in the 80s, was largely out of fashion by then. Also a vertical drop is a good indicator of a '90s build but the Campagnolo catalog No 17 from the '70s offers the 1060 vertical drop.

Five, unicrown forks. This is a good indication of a newer, post 80s build.

Also a friend of mine has a theory that if part of the serial number contains a year it probably indicates the year. So 76801 could be 1976 or it could be 1980. (even 68?)

There are exceptions for each bullet point here, for instance an old 120 bike can easily be cold set to 130, but any little clue is helpful when trying to solve the mystery.

 

[swinger76]

You asked about figuring the year of a bike and, even though it is not an exact science, there are some clues that can point one in the right direction.

You already hit on the first, rear spacing. Narrow spacing (120, 126) tends to indicate an older bike. Bikes were spaced at 130 to accommodate larger cassettes that generally came around in the early 90s.

Second, braze on bits. Top tube brake cable guides and shifter bosses indicate a bike newer than about 1980. Again not exact because some builders included such features as far back as the '40s and '50s.

Three, braze on front derailleur hanger. this is a pretty clear indicator of a post 1985 build.

Four, short horizontal dropouts. The Campagnolo 1010 long rear drop, though available in the 80s, was largely out of fashion by then. Also a vertical drop is a good indicator of a '90s build but the Campagnolo catalog No 17 from the '70s offers the 1060 vertical drop.

Five, unicrown forks. This is a good indication of a newer, post 80s build.

Also a friend of mine has a theory that if part of the serial number contains a year it probably indicates the year. So 76801 could be 1976 or it could be 1980. (even 68?)

There are exceptions for each bullet point here, for instance an old 120 bike can easily be cold set to 130, but any little clue is helpful when trying to solve the mystery.

wow wicked thats some awesome info also to say the seller said the forks might not be original as there are a different blue to the frame

 

[Midlife]

Nice points have to also bear in mind that a lota of rear brake cables went internal in the 90's ...........I have a 91 Dynatech with internal TT cable.

Shaun