More pictures

Well, it's done (pretty much).

Well the good news is I had the frame back from Mercian a few weeks ago and was extremely impressed with the finish! I can highly recommend their service!

I did assemble the bike almost immediately, but as with anything there were unexpected teething issues.

The original headset turned out to be fubar! To find a 1" threaded headset with a low enough stack height in chrome was not easy. All period ones either had too high a stack height or were in poor condition. In the end I plumped for an inexpensive new one. It may not be vintage, but it fits and looks the part.

When it came to fitting the pedals the axle threads stuck so far through the crank arms they actually catch on the chain when pedalling, this was easily sorted with some washers though.

The biggest problem was the handlebars slipping in their own sleeve. In the end this was resolved by getting a very snug fitting imperial spanner and really torquing the bolt!

I have taken pictures to show just how good it looks and how far it has come since I first had it. I have tried to restore it to as close as it would have been specced in the mid-50's to early-60's. I have decided to leave the mudguards off and have now sold them on. The two shades of blue didn't quite match and the thin racing cyclist inside my fat bike-geek body just thought the bike looked so much better without them!

In terms of weight, one or two parts have changed slightly, plus it's had a lot of paint, decals, cables, grease etc added and weighs in at an actual 10.86kg or that's 23.9lbs in old school shillings and guineas!

I still want to swap some ferrules on the brake cables, remove a rubber seal from the headset, and shim the pedals before it's first ride. Aesthetically though, it will be pretty much unchanged!

Here are some photos, compare and contrast!

Rethink on paint scheme

Well I was positive I knew what I wanted with the paintwork, but I have recently been looking at lots and lots of lovely period bikes so have decided to elaborate slightly on the paint scheme.

I am going to stick with the original colour ( light blue enamel) but am going to have a contrasting white head tube and white panel with bands on the seat tube. I am also going for white lug lining rather than the gold I originally planned. I'm confident this will look awesome! As I write this the frame and forks are all boxed up at work and I'll hopefully be having it collected to go to Mercian tomorrow!

In the last week or so I have been able to source most of the finishing parts that I will need. I have a Wipperman 708 chain on order, I have sourced a Campagnolo gear lever and toe clips via ebay, and I may look at getting some different pedals... I'm not sure on that one yet.

On Saturday I stripped and serviced the freewheel (with some help from my colleague Ian Price) and it now runs very sweetly!

On Sunday I cleaned down all the mudguards, polished the stays etc. I also cleaned and polished an 11cm GB stem that I am more-than-likely going to use. I also proofided my saddle, having soaked and bound it previously to reshape it. I have stripped, cleaned and polished the brake calipers and have been able to track down some new brake pads for them in the correct style-result!

Pretty much everything is coming together now. Assuming the frame is collected tomorrow and ready in 6 weeks or so it should be ready mid-Tour (de France).

Let's hope it all goes to plan!

Part specs/weights for rebuild....

Well I have got most of the parts that came on the bike as I got it but I also have a range of parts that I have either sourced myself (mainly via eBay) or have been kindly donated to me.

Interestingly, whilst some of the parts are older than my Dad (yes, really!) a lot of them are still, relatively speaking, quite light!!! And this is coming from someone who has owned £7000 6kg super bikes!

Here is a breakdown of what I have....

Frame: Stuart Purves built, 59cm c-c, 531 tubing. 1890g

Forks: Stuart Purves built, 531. 794g

Headset: Bayliss Wiley steel. 127g

Front wheel: Normandy hub/Weinmann rim/ACI spokes/Michelin tyre, tube + tape 1700g

Rear wheel: Campagnolo hub/Dunlop rim/ACI spokes/Michelin tyre, tube = tape 1720g

Freewheel: Regina 5speed 362g

Chain: TBC

Bars: GB sprinter style 344g

Stem: TBC

Saddle: Brooks B17 460g

Seatpost+clamp: Airlite layback 274g

Chainset: Williams with 47T single ring 679g

Bottom bracket (no bearings): Bayliss Wiley 297g

Brake calipers: Weinmann QR 322g

Brake levers: Campagnolo Gran Sport 192g

Gear lever: TBC

Rear mech: Campagnolo Gran Sport 301g

Pedals: Williams (I think) with Christophe clips+straps 579g

Bar tape: TBC

Total (so far) 10.041kg (or 22lbs if you prefer)

EXTRAS:

Mudguards: Bluemels Club Special 428g

Pump: Bluemels alloy 130g

Lamp bracket: TBC

What I find interesting is where some things are much, much heavier, eg; the pedals weigh a ton, others are very reasonable.

Take the seatpost, whilst being competitive even by todays standards, it has all the weight in the steel clamp at the top, making it feel quite unbalanced.

I am very happy with the frame and fork weight.... it is much lighter than my 1995 Raleigh M-Trax 531 frameset!

I would guestimate that the missing parts will come in at around 850g (chain 350/gear lever 100/stem 300/tape 100), giving a total of 10.891kg for the bare bike.

With mudguards, pump and lamp bracket (c.50g) a total will be circa 11.499kg, thats 25.3lbs in old money. Not bad for an equipped steel bike that's older than my parents!

Call to Mercian

Well I have been sorting through all the parts that I have and I am basically sorted now. I still need a down tube lever but think I have found a good one.

Yesterday I rang Mercian Cycles in Derby and checked all their terms for frame renovation. So next Friday (payday) I will box up the frame and have them collect it ready for the work to be done. It should take around six weeks.

I am having.... a new Campag' rear mech hanger fitted; a broken braze-on removed from the down tube; frame stripped, primed and repainted in light blue enamel (Mercian colour number 24) and lug lined with gold polychromatic (Mercian colour number 10). I am then having "STUART PURVES" made in block white lettering for the down tube as well as a set of Reynolds 531 transfers fitted.

It should match the mudguards nicely and look like this..............

www.classiclightweights.co.uk/lug-lining-rest.html

Big update!

Well it looks like the snow has gone (at least in England), and the cycling season is under way. So it's back to the refurb!

The first thing I have to say is an enormous thank you to Dave Fossard for his overwhelming generosity. He has given me fantastic advice and donated many pieces of period equipment and clothing which are going to help fantastically with my ultimate aim with this refurb. The goal?

To get this beautiful machine back to its original glory and ride the full 205km l'Eroica ride in Tuscany!

So what's happened over the last month or so? Well to be honest, not much until this week. I have been struggling a little with money (our car has been on the back of a breakdown truck at least twice) and the next major job is a full respray, complete with lug lining.

I am going to have this carried out by Mercian Cycles of Derby. At the time of writing I am almost certain of having the frame painted sky blue with gold lug lining. This is to match the mudguards and give the bike a homogenous look. As yet I am unsure about any chrome plating, it would be nice but will double the cost and time (although time is less of an issue). I may be having a Campagnolo hanger and down tube lever boss fitted. The latter is essential. The dropout though will only be fitted if I replace the Huret mech with a Campag Gran Sport (not Nuovo though). I have a week off work at the end of May so will be taking it up then. In the meantime I am going to try and source some Stuart Purves transfers, failing that I'll have Mercian make some up for me.

Here's some photos of some of the new kit!