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old bike worth restoring ???

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  • July 14, 2019 at 8:20 pm #29892
    rickypjonesy

    Hi , I’m new to cycling and instead of going out and buying a new bike I thought id repair this bike that was in the garage of a property I bought and try it out before spending big money . I’ve cleaned it up, stuck some tires and some new cables on it but the back tire was rubbing on the frame. I stuck a bit of lead under the axel which gives it about 1mm clearance and id 40 miles on it without dying. Ill add some picture, if anyone can tell me what is wrong and if it’s worth me spending any money to fix it up properly that would be great.

    I believe it is a claud butler, looking online I think it’s about 1998

    Reynolds 653 frame 

    Campagnolo avanti groupset

    Mavic cxp 10 rims

     

    Any help would be much appreciated

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  • July 15, 2019 at 7:11 pm #946025
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    shufflingb

    Hi,

    Hi,

    I had a look at a similar bike for sale over here https://www.gumtree.com/p/bicycles/claud-butler-professional-road-racing-bike-reynolds-653-campagnolo-/1299108501 , or more precisely the image of it here https://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/NzY4WDEwMjQ=/z/z9QAAOSwo1pa~WWw/$_86.JPG

    That bike’s got 700x20c’s on it and it has plenty of clearance. 

    So my suspects would be:

    1. The packing above the axle is moving the wheel forward and causing the problem.
    2. The tyres are not 700x20c
    3. Depending on reputability of manufacturer – tyres are not correctly sized.
    4. Worn dropouts.

    Fwiw, in terms of the packing; it’s pretty easy to get the axle in the wrong position when fitting a wheel in its dropouts. Close original fitting tyres, a tight chain because of gear selection and not quite knowing the technique, might well give the  impression of needing a correction.

    In terms of that technique; I’m sure Park Tools et. al. will have a nice video, but I go with chain on smallest gears front rear.  Then fit the rear wheel loosely, before balancing the bike on its wheels, slacking off the axle to allow gravity and me leaning on, wiggling the bike to help centre and move the axle fully rearward in its dropouts. Finally, as it’s easy to disturb the axle position, carefully tighten it all back up while continuing to balance the bike to ensure the axle doesn’t move forward.

    The bike’s definitely worth a bit of a faff; nice ones seem to be going for reasonable money on eBay.

    Good luck.

    July 15, 2019 at 4:42 pm #946023
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    mike the bike

     

     

    I had a Claud Butler once, about thirty years ago; it was alright but never considered amongst the top tier of frames.  Nevertheless, it’s worth restoring and if the rear dropouts are restricting your tyre choice, could they be reshaped?  That’s a problem for a metalsmith to answer but it might be a cheap solution?

    Best of luck.

    July 15, 2019 at 4:11 pm #946021
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    rickypjonesy

    Thanks for your help.

    Thanks for your help.

    The tyres I put on it are 700 x 20c, do they do lower profile tyres than that? I took it to a bike shop and they thought it was a bit strange. They measured a few things to see if the frame was straight. After a bit of head scratching I just said ill pack it out and see how it goes.

    I wouldn’t class myself as a cyclist but I have become quite fond of this bike and was thinking of getting it re sprayed as it’s a bit scabby at the moment , just wanted to check that there isn’t something obvious wrong with the frame.

     

    July 15, 2019 at 3:04 pm #946019
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    Boatsie

    fixation80 wrote:

    fixation80 wrote:

    Perhaps it was an out and out race bike built with tubs (21/22mm) and close clearances in mind!

    Wreck in shed like that. A tiny bit younger but came with 700c19. 700c23 is a tight fit.
    Walls ain’t rubbing though hence your issue is profile not width. With certainty; an LBS will know.
    I laugh with my mate, he rolls a 28 front, 25 rear and asked if that normal. I don’t know. My fronts are fatter then my rears too. We just laugh and exercise. Goes fast enough. 😉

    July 15, 2019 at 2:33 pm #946017
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    fixation80

    Perhaps it was an out and out

    Perhaps it was an out and out race bike built with tubs (21/22mm) and close clearances in mind!

    July 15, 2019 at 1:50 pm #946015
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    CygnusX1

    To answer your question, in

    To answer your question, in the post title … YES, absolutely. 

    I assume your lead packing is in the rear drop-outs? Whilst this is working now I suspect it will quickly wear out resulting in contact between tyre and frame.  Have you tried taking it to a local bike shop (LBS)?

    Your LBS should be able to advise on whether it is simply tyre choice , or something more serious.  Assuming tyres are the issue, they will also probably be able to recommend which will have a lower profile  and sell you some.

    Don’t simply take their advice and buy online – that advice has just saved you the trial/error of several tyres to find the one that fits – worth paying a little bit extra to keep your LBS in business

     

     

     

    July 15, 2019 at 8:23 am #946013
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    OldRidgeback

    That is a lovely bike as the

    That is a lovely bike as the other post says. Yep, a different tyre choice might help. And I agree that bikes of that vintage can be really nice to ride. It’s a quality frame.

    July 15, 2019 at 12:07 am #946011
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    Boatsie

    That’s beautiful dude.
    That’s beautiful dude.
    I get about the same clearance. If it ain’t rubbing it’s rolling.
    Tyres have different heights. Probably just that. I use big tyres to avoid hassles such as flats but I lost all the cog combinations on single speed to do such (edited).

    Maybe easier to check out tyre heights when they wear or sooner and have a spare front if field changing is an issue.
    But if it ain’t a hassle to fit in field then the larger volume in the rear would certainly bring additional benefits as per video suggests (retro bike vs modern bike) with a higher load capacity to accommodate bumps, coordination, etc.
    Love your bike, she’s a beauty

    Edit:
    I love that era of bikes. They’re so comfy. They’re fast. They’re easy maintenance.
    Old mate was funny one day, riding similar. He took it easy while I kept up. His resting heart beat was 30bpm though. His old lady was wondering if I was dead when we stopped to drink/finish.
    That style of bike to me is super comfy, quick enough, ultra reliable (especially when drop tube shifting) and encourages blokes like me to get the hours in (slightly less kms compared to modern ultra light streamline aero models) because they’re well made to suit men.
    That’s pretty much an opinion; an awesome riding quality.

    July 14, 2019 at 8:26 pm #946009
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    rickypjonesy

    and a picture of my problem .

    and a picture of my problem .

    this it with my lead packer 

    July 14, 2019 at 8:24 pm #946007
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    rickypjonesy

    a picture off the bike 

    a picture off the bike 

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