Questions, questions, questions

Hi.
So a mate of mine brought the below frame off ebay, and has been asking me a bunch of questions about some small issues.
i answered some, but i figured id consult the hivemind to answer the rest of them

first of all he’s worried about this little bit of rust on the toptube, (see Below) i had a close look and the steel is a little pitted but still seems ok, i think if he wanted to he could strip and sand back some of it, but would prefer not cos i like the decals and history.
Whatcho think? safe to ride? Will it get worse?

second question, and this is most pressing. The rear brake bridge is quite thick and not recessed (see below) he’s having trouble working out what brake will work, i didnt have any answers so i leave it to you guys. I think maybe some older brakes may work but im not sure


(cyclebucket was being weird and flipping the pics upside down)

heres the frame, not much is know about it, apparentely the builder commited suicide so hes not around anymore to get info. For this reason i dont want him stripping it, legacy and all that.


upside down WTF!!!

thanks for your help, he will appreciate it.

Hit the rust with oxalic acid (aka rust converter), clean it up, and then wax the frame.

Get an older ‘nutted’ brake, or a ‘front’ recessed brake, as its bolt will be longer.

rearding the brake mounting holes, that frame suits oldskool nutted (not recessed) brakes. you can get around it by finding longer bolts for your modern dual pivot calipers:
SPA CYCLES Allen Key to Nut fit Converter Bolt :: £7.00 :: PARTS & ACCESSORIES :: Components - Brakes - Caliper :: Spa Cycles, Harrogate - The touring cyclists specialist..
fit this to your rear brake, then put the front brake on the back, and the modified rear brake on the front.
i haven’t tried it out, so don’t know if there’s any compatibility issues.

There are some really nice old skool brakes around on ebay still… I have a soft spot for these. :slight_smile:

Suntour Superbe 4700 Road Brake Calipers: Side Pull, Nutted, Vintage 1980’s MINT | eBay

Vintage Campagnolo Road Bicycle Brake Calipers Nutted Good Condition | eBay

Modolo Flash brake set with original hoods 70s/80s Made in Italy Not Campagnolo | eBay

Yeah, but those old brakes don’t tend to compare to even cheap (i.e. tektro) modern dual pivots for power and ease of adjustment.

Buy a set of dual pivots, drill the back of the fork out to 6mm, put the ‘rear’ brake in the front with a slightly longer recessed allen bolt, and then put the ‘front’ on the rear (as Blakey suggested) with some spacers and a normal nylock nut.

I did this to my frame, well worth it for improvement in braking coming from ‘old’ Shimano 600 sidepulls, cost ~$35 for brakes (online) and $10-$15 for a shop to drill the fork in a proper jig.

Shimano br-r450 are cheap and excellent btw. Assuming this frame takes medium reach brakes.

Great! Thanks for all the responses. I will relay them back to him and take all the credit.

This place is the best.

i think the fork needs to be drilled out to 8mm for recessed allen bolts if you’re gonna DIY it