Charlie and group,
My wording, in evaluating the "'78 Custom Mystery Bike" that started this thread, was unwise and too harsh. After I sent my email, I decided that overall, I actually kinda like that Mystery frame. I mostly like practical frames with clearances, but I remember the appeal of tight, for racing machines.
I once built a frame for a promising young racer. I asked her how she wanted it to handle, and she replied "Scary! Dangerous!" We decaled it "Danger!" on the toptube, as if that were the model name. She loved it. Though I couldn't actually bring myself to design it to handle badly, I did make it very tight.
Impractical details that make a bike say "total race" can make you faster, if only for psychological reasons. But faster is faster. (You can quote me.) ;)
Personally, all I needed to get psyched for race day was fresh white cloth bar tape, but to each his own.
Mark Bulgier Seattle WA USA
Charlie Young wrote:
> I have a British purpose-built time trial frame with " fag
> paper clearance "
> in the rear and horizontal dropouts. A 23mm tubular will not
> clear when inflated. The short wheelbases that characterize
> this type of frame seem to be an acknowledged trade off
> rather than a design flaw (or serious gaffe). I can't see how
> it is much of a detriment (for this type of bike) unless you
> have a support vehicle behind you ready to toss you a fresh
> rear wheel in the event of a puncture.
>
> While vertical dropouts would allow speedy replacement of a
> wheel with an inflated tire, they generally preclude the use
> of a fixed wheel.