Don Wilson wrote:
>
> The seller promotes this as an exceptional custom made
> bicycle comparable to a Masi or a Pogliaghi. Will one of our
> astute frame builders or knowledgeable list members take a
> close look at this bike and point out some details that would
> suggest whether it was made by an amateur, or a craftsman?
http://ebay.com/
The workmanship looks very fine in the couple of photos that show any framebuilding detail... Could still be a dog though.
I don't think I'd trust a framebuilder who would make a frame "so tight that the rear wheel cannot be removed without deflating the tire". That is a serious gaffe IMO.
Carving the seat lug to not wrap all the way a round the seat tube is not very wise structurally either, unless the seat tube is double butted -- i.e. thick at the top, seat post 26.6 or smaller for an English-dimension, 1-1/8" (28.6 mm) seat tube. If the seatpost is in the 27.0 to 27.4 range as I think it is, then the seat tube is too thin to be left un-reinforced by lug. Yes many frames made this way have lasted (anecdotal evidence) but on average they are weaker, more prone to cracking or yielding in that area.
Similarly, head tubes without the lug band around the very top and bottom of the headtube (where the headset is pressed in) sometimes last forever, but have a higher incidence of problems. (A lugless head tube is normally thicker, but this is clearly a normal thin head tube as used with lugs.) Removing the bands is a stylistic choice that saves almost no weight and weakens the frame. Those bands are there (on every other lugged bike you've ever seen) for a reason!
My verdict: Probably more show than go - stay away if you're large, strong and/or high-mileage. Conversely, if you like the style (and it is very stylish) and are willing to put up with the silly-short chainstays and lack of pedigree, then go for it.
Mark Bulgier
Seattle WA USA