Steel frames

[gummibear]

There has been so much talk about old steel frames lately that i had a look and found these guys that are in Australia.Are there any steel builders left in SA.I still have an old steel DHC at my folks place.

 

http://www.baumcycles.com/bikes/road_cappuccino.html

 

Look at the welds

[Jules]

very smart.

[gummibear]

[Jules]

The welds on my single speed GT are also very neat, although not quite as neat as this. The thing is damn heavy though.

[buckstopper]

Check http://www.ciclicasati.it/english/foto_laser.htm# Casati Steel frame "Laser"

[Johan Bornman]

Nice welds, but not fantastic. Those seem to be TIG welded which is easily done by robot. Just before aluminium frames came into fashion, most Taiwanese frame manufacturers were putting out fantastic welded frames. Steel welds very nicely with TIG whereas aluminium leaves a bit of a rough bead.

The real fancy joining of the day was something called fillet brazing. (Not pronounced felaay, that's for steak). This was a style where the brazing was built up and then filed down to give a smooth transition between the brazing and the tubes. It was always done by hand and is now completely out of favour, mostly due to the labour-intensive nature of the job.

Are there any framebuilers in SA? I think Duncan MacIntyre is in Cape Town somewhere and although he's sold his jigs when he left Jhb, he is rumoured to have teamed up with someone.

 

A while ago there was a framebuilding thread here and about three builders were mentioned. Do a search.

 

About 8 years ago I built a steel bike with the help of Duncan and I love the bike. I don't know why, but it is my favourite bike.

 

[Jules]

Any chance of a pic of your beloved steel bike, JB?

[Johan Bornman]

Any chance of a pic of your beloved steel bike' date=' JB?[/quote']

 

Sure, when my wife is at work tomorrow I'll park it on the couch and take some pictures. It's in-between paint jobs at the moment since I've given up on people who claim they can paint lugged frames. I've had it at all the usual suspects, including motorcycle helmet artists and you name it. They all stuff it up.

 

I'll have to take a zillion close-ups because it has so many features that I built it that a single couch-shot won't do justice to it.

 

[Jules]

I reckon if Cycle Arts didn't do an acceptable job, then nobody will.

 

 

 

I gave them a lugged Colnago Master to respray many years ago and I was very impressed with the job.

[Johan Bornman]

I reckon if Cycle Arts didn't do an acceptable job' date=' then nobody will.

I gave them a lugged Colnago Master to respray many years ago and I was very impressed with the job. [/quote']

 

I think you are right int he first instance.

 

The Colnago is easier to paint. The top lugs are chromed and easy to mask. The bottom lugs are simply painted over.

 

What I'm after are lugs in a completely different colour. It is hellishly difficult to mask the lugs because the transition point between lug and frame is vague. I'll post some pics of what I have and what I'd like tomorrow. Our power was just turned off (6PM) and my battery is not up to much more.

 

 

[R2S2]

There is a chap on this board that goes by the name of Razzo.  He does the most amazing fillet brazing I have ever seen in my life.  He built a frame that was shown off on this board about two years ago, and that took its rider to I think 7th in the vets world triathlon champs.  Not commercial stuff though, as he does it for the sense of achievement, so park that idea of getting him to build you one!

[pbp2007]

If you really want to be "Dazza"-led by what Aussies do in steel framebuilding, look at llewellynbikes.com.

 

A sample:

 

[gummibear]

Wow that Casati Laser is nice but what does that cost.

[Christie]

My nicest looking frame is a steel Colnago. I really like the look of the smaller diameter tubing. The ride is not that great, I guess after riding oversize aluminium frames for the first 9 years when I started out caused me to prefer a stiff frame. For example, the chromed steel fork looks soooo nice, but the bike steered much better when I experimented with a carbon fork. It still has the carbon fork on, even though it spoils the looks. 

[Canaris]

THere are still some good steel frames about, such as the eddy merckx mxleader, not a frame for weight weenies though. ?Pegorretti if you have the time and money can build a real beauty for you.

[gummibear]