BobHoveyGa@aol.com wrote:
> You can also spot Reynolds and Columbus fork blades by their cross
> section near the crown. Columbus blades were noticeably fatter from
> the front, (28x19mm), Reynolds were narrower, (28.5 x 16.5). Reynolds
> introduced a "Continental Oval" around 1977 (27.5 x 20) that is harder
> to distinguish from Columbus, but the early blades usually stand out.
>
> And of course if the bike is mixed tubing, steering tubes and fork
> blades won't be definitive, they'll only tell you what those
> particular tubes are.
Reynolds 531 tubes had "REYNOLDS 531" lightly stamped on one end of the tube; sometimes this is visible through the paint on a finished frame, although on smaller frames the stamp may be lost when the tubes were cut to size.
Older (pre-1981) Columbus SL/SP tubes had a dove emblem lightly stamped in one end of the tube in a similar fashion. Later tubes were marked by a graphite electrode that does not leave an impression visible through paint.
--
John (john@os2.dhs.org)
Appleton WI USA