Can you identify a rare bike?

It's a road bike. Probably around the mid to late 80s. Unfortunately
the groupset has been changed in the past, so it's difficult to put a
precise age on it. The cranks are Shimano 600 in the old style before
they introduced Bio Pace and Ultegra. The read der is also old Shimano
600. 1986?

The frame is made of what looks like Ti tubes with Al lugs. The main
tubes are the right grey colour for Ti and are not magnetic. They are
also very "hard". They don't scratch. Let's assume for the moment that
the main tubes are Ti.

The lugs are polished Al. The seat stays look a bit like the old Giant
Cadex ones. One Ti tube comes down from the top tube to the brake
bridge where there's an Al lug. Coming out of the bottom of the lug
are two Ti tubes ending at the Al dropouts.

The construction looks a bit like a mid to late '80s Vitus carbon
frame, except using Ti instead of C.

Any ideas?


--
Regards.
Richard.

"Richard Sherratt" wrote
in message
It's a road bike. Probably around the mid to late 80s. Unfortunately

[...]


Any ideas?

Would a JPG be out of the question or are there bonus points for solving the
riddle a la Hercule Poirot?

--

A: Top-posters.
Q: What is the most annoying thing on Usenet?

On Tue, 13 Jul 2004 00:12:13 +1000, "DRS"
wrote:

"Richard Sherratt" wrote
in message
It's a road bike. Probably around the mid to late 80s. Unfortunately

[...]


Any ideas?

Would a JPG be out of the question or are there bonus points for solving the
riddle a la Hercule Poirot?

No jpg available, but one could be arranged in the future. Not my
bike. It belongs to a new chum. Generous bonus points are available.
Not redeemable for cash or prizes :-)

--
Regards.
Richard.

Sounds like an ALAN frame, me thinks. they were pioneers of these
early bonded-style frames. and that rear seatstay arrangement sounds
like their work not sure if they did Ti otherwise as you say it could
well be Vitus

the Ti 'assumption' may be a dangerous one. Al wasnt necessarily soft or
light back then and colour is a bit of a misleader too

pix please

i think a prize should be offered



--

"Richard Sherratt" wrote
The frame is made of what looks like Ti tubes with Al lugs. The main
tubes are the right grey colour for Ti and are not magnetic. They are
also very "hard". They don't scratch. Let's assume for the moment that
the main tubes are Ti.

You sure it's not clear-coated, grey-painted carbon like a Giant
Cadex(?) CFR-1 or 2? How willing are you to scratch it?

I was also going to suggest Vitus, but I see you mention that
already as well.

How closely can you inspect it? You might be able to find some small
writing on it somewhere to give some hints, like on the seatstay bridge
of my track bike, looking from the seat backwards, you can "just" see
"Reynolds 531" stamped there. Check under the BB and on the dropouts as
well. Do any of the lugs have any sort of 'interesting' designs?

You could perhaps google for early ti frames if you are sure it's ti..?

hippy



--

On Mon, 12 Jul 2004 23:15:18 GMT, flyingdutch
wrote:

Sounds like an ALAN frame, me thinks. they were pioneers of these
early bonded-style frames. and that rear seatstay arrangement sounds
like their work not sure if they did Ti otherwise as you say it could
well be Vitus

the Ti 'assumption' may be a dangerous one. Al wasnt necessarily soft or
light back then and colour is a bit of a misleader too

I could be wrong. The original down tube shifters are missing and the
bike has Suntour strap-on downtube shifters - the ones that sit on the
top of the tube rather than the side - so you can see the holes where
the original ones were fitted. Sure looks like Ti. But ...

pix please

I'll see what I can do. Might take a while.

i think a prize should be offered

I'll award bragging rights and big boosts to self esteem. More
valuable than cash prizes :-)

--
Regards.
Richard.

On Mon, 12 Jul 2004 23:30:21 GMT, hippy
wrote:

"Richard Sherratt" wrote
The frame is made of what looks like Ti tubes with Al lugs. The main
tubes are the right grey colour for Ti and are not magnetic. They are
also very "hard". They don't scratch. Let's assume for the moment that
the main tubes are Ti.

You sure it's not clear-coated, grey-painted carbon like a Giant
Cadex(?) CFR-1 or 2? How willing are you to scratch it?

It doesn't look like a Giant Cadex. The only similarity is the bit of
combined seat stay between seat tube and brake bridge. I'm fairly used
to Ti bikes. I mix with the big spenders, remember :-) I know one guy
with a Litespeed road bike and a Merlin MTB. The colour isn't exactly
the same as, say, a Litespeed Vortex. A bit darker, I think.

I was also going to suggest Vitus, but I see you mention that
already as well.

It could be. I haven't seen a Vitus lugged carbon frame since about
1990, but I just have a vague feeling that the lugs are different.

How closely can you inspect it? You might be able to find some small
writing on it somewhere to give some hints, like on the seatstay bridge
of my track bike, looking from the seat backwards, you can "just" see
"Reynolds 531" stamped there. Check under the BB and on the dropouts as
well. Do any of the lugs have any sort of 'interesting' designs?

Next time I see the guy I'll make sure we turn the thing upside down.
The owner says he's looked, but he mighty not be as obsessive as me
about unusual bikes :-)

You could perhaps google for early ti frames if you are sure it's ti..?

No luck so far.

--
Regards.
Richard.

Are you sure it is Ti & not anodised alloy ? because it sounds like an SR
Litage from Japan imported by Repco before they went downmarket. They
supplied their forks to the early Merlin titaniums.


"Richard Sherratt" wrote in
message ...
On Tue, 13 Jul 2004 00:12:13 +1000, "DRS"
wrote:

"Richard Sherratt" wrote
in message
It's a road bike. Probably around the mid to late 80s. Unfortunately

[...]


Any ideas?

Would a JPG be out of the question or are there bonus points for solving
the
riddle a la Hercule Poirot?

No jpg available, but one could be arranged in the future. Not my
bike. It belongs to a new chum. Generous bonus points are available.
Not redeemable for cash or prizes :-)

--
Regards.
Richard.

the Litages arent those polished jobs that had the twin-seatstays
meeting at a lug at the brake bridge and then separate stays going down
to the rear racket are they?

have recollections of a pale blue 'button' in the sides of the lug at
the top of the seat tube
still see some frames hanging about at the back of some shops. kinda
delicate lookin...


--
flyingdutch

On Tue, 13 Jul 2004 18:40:28 +0800, "Steve"
wrote:

Are you sure it is Ti & not anodised alloy ? because it sounds like an SR
Litage from Japan imported by Repco before they went downmarket. They
supplied their forks to the early Merlin titaniums.

Could be. I didn't recognise it as anodised (Al?) alloy because I'm so
used to 'standard' gray anodised Al masts that I didn't think of
coloured anodised Al.

Any pointers to photos?

--
Regards.
Richard.