I would agree almost 100% with Dale on this one...the frame is definitely not one of Bill Hurlow's. My advice would also be to not attempt to contact him to seek his opinion. Bill is a very approachable, pleasant and knowledgable fellow who is rightly proud of his work, but he has come to realise that a lot of folk these days are trying to discover "Hurlow's" I sent him some photos quite recently of a beautiful late 1930s frame whose lugs were very similar to a pattern that Bill used for his best frames in the 50s; I thought that "my" lugs were earlier and slightly less refined than his later and more mature products. The frame is an original HOBBS - predating the time when they became "Hobbs of Barbicon"..and I thought that as a very younf builder Bill had done a few frames for them.
Bill disowned the frame immediately stating that he would never have cut such crude lugs or used a fork crown that had been cuy way too far in his opinion. !
No..your frame is most certainly French, as the top eyes indicate...the fluted ones pressed out of the seat stays themselves. The lugs appear to be Nervex Serie Legere, except for the seat tube one which is a much plainer model altogether. The bracket is an RGF..a very good brand..and your s appears that it might even be a cast one, making it quite early from the late 40s/early 50s. As for the forks, they are not original..in fact they appear to be an English pattern from the 40s with possibly "D" section blades, a type in common use over here for all manner of mid-range road frames. If the bracket threads do prove to be BSA, then I would suggest that the frame could just be an early Dawes as that company has used a lug with a very similar design made by Haden..and it also used fluted and pressed top-eyes..but none nearly as neat as those on your frame. I doubt whether Dawes would have used an RGF bracket because they tended to rely on British manufacturers such as Davis. However I have seen this type of fork on quite early Dawes, and Hercules and a whole host of other frames. But...I have never seen a Dawes track frame..ever..but that's not to say they didn't make any in the 40s and 50s, because the company was known for its quality frames.
But I still think it's French with a irregular fork.
Norris Lockley, Settle Uk
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