Where can I buy a light-ish frame?

sparkman

Hi - I'm looking for a reasonably light roadbike frame. I going to be adding my brooks saddle and a set of dutch handlebars etc. to it. I'm not too fussy if it can take gears or not. I just can't seem to find a basic frame on the web that doesn't cost a fortune. I just want something light-ish, nothing fancy (although a 501 would be nice), that I can use to build up myself. It's only for a 6-mile commute that has a mix of decent bike-path and some gravel-path. Any advice welcome!

Chips Lovell

How light is light? And what's "not a fortune" in your book?

Raam

I'm in the market for a nice steel frame meself.

Morgan

Surly Crosscheck or Pacer maybe (not the lightest though).

Derailleur gears or singlespeed?

What's your budget?

Lumen

Ribble?

jollylee

sparkman wrote: »

Hi - I'm looking for a reasonably light roadbike frame. I going to be adding my brooks saddle and a set of dutch handlebars etc. to it. I'm not too fussy if it can take gears or not. I just can't seem to find a basic frame on the web that doesn't cost a fortune. I just want something light-ish, nothing fancy (although a 501 would be nice), that I can use to build up myself. It's only for a 6-mile commute that has a mix of decent bike-path and some gravel-path. Any advice welcome!

I bought an old reynolds steel bike in a small bike shop for €30 with two free tubes locally a few weeks ago. Thats the best way of finding a bike. It had no seat post and hadn't been pumped or used in years.

Best advice is just to get the golden pages out and start ringing around all the small family owned shops in your area. Ask as many friends too. When i was looking for my bike i had loads of offers for free racing bikes but they were all ladies frames but you never know what you might come across.

The bike i picked up is is just 10kg with straight wheels and working brakes and gears, all for €30. There are some photos here: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055398997

sparkman

Truth is, I started using my MTB regularly for my work cycle about 2 months ago. Within about 2 weeks, my back was as stiff as a board thanks (I think) to the hunched-forward position I was in. So, I stuck on an adjustable h\bar stem which raised me up and my back has definitely improved. I also bought a snazzy Brooks saddle and a set of dutch swept-back handlebars, but let's face it, they're gonna look like a right pigs ear on a mountain bike. So, for the craic, I decided to look for some cheap-ish parts to build my own bike. I want to keep the whole thing (frame, wheels, pedals, gears) under 400 euro (or less if I can manage it). Re-doing an old bike would be nice but might be too much work for me. By "light-ish" I think I mean 501 or 531 (am I using the right terms?) - I remember the racing bikes of my day were that weight and still seemed sturdy enough. I actually don't really mind too much if I have to do without gears either.

Lumen

€400 is a decent budget.

This frame is only about €160, and light enough at 1650g (my Kinesis frame is 1.4kg and cost more than twice as much).

But that's not steel.

Convict

http://www.webbline.co.uk/frametools.asp

Worth a look. Good frame for the price and it's new.

fish-head

sparkman wrote: »

By "light-ish" I think I mean 501 or 531 (am I using the right terms?) - I remember the racing bikes of my day were that weight and still seemed sturdy enough. I actually don't really mind too much if I have to do without gears either.

501 and 531 are types of tubing, not weights. They're both made by Reynolds in England. Back in the day a lot of the race bikes were made from Reynolds 531. It's the bees knees.

penexpers

fish-head wrote: »

501 and 531 are types of tubing, not weights. They're both made by Reynolds in England. Back in the day a lot of the race bikes were made from Reynolds 531. It's the bees knees.

But it's not super-light

blorg

Compared to your MTB you could probably still get the thing reasonably light even with a steel road frame.

Steel is generally the heaviest frame material at any given price point, but it has other advantages (comfort and aesthetics for example.) Would probably go best all right with your planned saddle and handlebars.

sparkman

thanks - I think I'll follow everyone's advice - i.e. spend a couple of months rooting around for an old frame and if I can't find one by January, I'll get minister lenihan to pay for a new frame from one of those sites ye've mentioned.

Highway_To_Hell

Might be worth a look…

Apparently the recycle centre on the Ballyogan road (Carrickmines) has a section where old bikes can be left and I was told some one picked up a bike that only needed a new chain, they just wanted it for a short commuting trips and not worry about it been stolen. Might get a frame that meets your needs there.