... many years ago, there was a lad in one of the local shops that went to the UBI. did the lugged steel thing, very nice, and put some decals on it thats said "blodwyn pig". i think he was from Wales.
robert clair
alexandria, va
usa
> Brother Matthew,
>
>
>
> Thanks for that great report. I've often thought of building my own
> frames,
> and haven't yet been able to. Your story may well serve as impetus for my
> ow
> n efforts.
>
>
>
>
> I especially liked your acceptance of the evolutionary nature of your
> first
> effort. I feel certain that your experience will guide you well in the
> const
> ruction of your 30th Anniversary Frame.
>
>
>
> Looking forward to seeing photographs of your first effort.
>
>
>
>
> Best regards,
>
> Chris Wimpey
>
> somewhat west of Brooklyn,
>
> San Diego, California
>
> but still in the
>
> USA
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: devotion finesse <devotion_finesse@hotmail.com>
> To: CR discussion list <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
> Sent: Tue, 20 May 2008 6:57 pm
> Subject: [CR]My First Frameset : A UBI report
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Brothers and Sisters of The Wheel:
>
> As I might have mentioned in a previous post or two, I recently attended a
> two week chromoly brazing class at the United Bicycle Institute in
> Ashland,
> Oregon.
> I was asked by a couple of CR Listmembers to "report back to headquarters"
> with a full report. Below is a description of my experience at
> UBI...where
> I built myself a lugged steel bicycle.
>
> First off, I feel that I ought to strongly recommend that anyone with an
> in
> terest in learning about the framebuilding process look into UBI. The
> reas
> on that I was drawn to UBI over other framebuilding programs was that it
> se
> emed to me that it would help someone looking to "get in at the ground
> floo
> r", so to speak; meaning that they would skim over/touch on a wide array
> of
> basics across the spectrum of the framebuilding experience. My experience
> there was just that. And more.
> The two instructors for my session, Ron Sutphin and Gary Mathis, were
> top-n
> otch...and there were fewer students in the class than I expected (8 per
> se
> ssion), so the instructor-student ratio worked out very well. Students
> came
> from a variety of backgrounds; some hoping to start a framebuilding busine
> ss, some hoping to build as hobbyists and some on vacation who spend a
> coup
> le of weeks a year learning to do something that brings them closer to the
> craft which creates something they love and appreciate.
>
> My original plan was to build a late 70's (my birth year, 1978 to be
> exact)
> style American tourer, with a design based on the work of the American Mas
> ters of the era. I thought that given my recent 30th birthday, It'd be
> fun
> to build a bike in the style popular at that moment and use framebuilding
> parts and components from the era too. I had a VERY clear picture in my
> he
> ad of the bike I wanted to build. Loaded with braze-ons for racks,
> fenders
> , cables, etc. My thought was that I'd benefit more from a complicated
> bik
> e (because I'd have to practice all of my braze-ons and ask a ton of
> questi
> ons) than I would from a basic track bike.
> I was supposed to attend UBI at the end of the summer, but got an email a
> c
> ouple of weeks before I left saying "Can you be in Ashland in two weeks? A
> spot in class just opened up and you are on the waiting list."
> I spent the following two weeks frantically trying to get my ducks in a
> row
> . Airfare, lodging, time off work, cash in hand, etc.
> But more importantly, trying to QUICKLY get my hands on the parts I needed
> for my bike.
>
> CR folks were VERY helpful and generous with my expedited preparation.
> Som
> e of you might recall a thread I started called "1978", in which I asked
> Th
> e List for building tips...and then parts to help me make the vision I had
> a reality.
> UBI does include all tubing/lugs/etc. for the frame you will build in
> class
> in your tuition cost, but I wanted to make this first one special and roun
> ded up my own bits (with your help): a NOS Reynolds 531 tubeset, NOS
> Cinell
> i CS lugset, NOS Campagnolo long 1010 eyeleted dropouts, NOS Cinelli fork
> c
> rown, NOS Cinelli braze-on cable guides and cable stops, and some
> Campagnol
> o "over the top" braze on cable guides for the bottom bracket shell.
> I was just thrilled that I was going to get to build something that really
> embodied a lot of what The List means to me; a sharing of stories,
> knowledg
> e, comraderie, advice, parts, etc.
> The cable guides, for instance I got from a member who himself was a
> builde
> r for a larger bicycle manufacturer. They had actually been brazed onto a
> frame in roughly 1980, only to have been removed just before paint when
> the
> manufacturer decided to switch all of the new frames over to the much cool
> er/newer style of routing derailleur cables under the BB. So even the
> cabl
> e guides had a story to tell...How cool is that?
> As The Listmeister himself put it, I was assembling a pile of bits with
> qui
> te a bit of "mojo".
>
> Beginning on the very first day, the sessions were a mix of in-class
> instru
> ction and "hands on", when we actually worked on our own framesets. The
> in
> structors built a frame with class, so we could follow the sequence and
> lea
> rn through demonstration first, practice second.
>
> After our first day of class, when we worked on practice lug preparation
> an
> d our first brazes, I had my first "oh sh*t" moment. It was not during or
> after my first practice headlug assemblies, which we eventually sawed in
> ha
> lf to evaluate the quality of our lugs...It was when I compared the lugs I
> brought with me to the array of investment cast lugs available at the
> schoo
> l.
>
> Even the modern investment cast lugs needed a bit of pre-braze file work
> to
> ensure a proper fit...But by comparison, my Cinelli lugset looked like it
> came from the bottom of the ocean or an archaeological dig or something.
> I
> became concerned that the old pressed lugs I had would need LOADS more pre
> p time than class would afford...and I would end up hindered by trying to
> u
> se them, falling behind the schedule needed to keep up and finish a frame
> a
> nd fork in 2 weeks. I brought the lugs into the instructors on the 2nd
> da
> y and they agreed..."Very Cool...Save 'em for bike number two, or you'll
> be
> filing them while the rest of class is brazing away, leaving you no time f
> or the braze-ons you want, etc."
>
> I was a big disappointed baby for a few hours, as I had dreamt of this
> perf
> ect touring bike...But the reality is that the first bike is never
> perfect,
> and I needed to readjust my thinking in order to maximize my class experie
> nce. Bike number two will be better than bike number one, and I can make
> i
> t at a pace I am comfortable with.
> The "Matthew Bowne Thirtieth Anniversary Commemorative Frameset" project
> wo
> uld have to be on hold. Quite a bummer, but only a temporary set-back.
> On
> the bright side, bike number two is already underway!
>
> [This explains why my luggage was full of framebuilding parts on the way
> BA
> CK from Oregon, leading to a T.S.A. inspection and the ultimate loss of my
> beloved Campagnolo belt buckle mentioned yesterday.]
>
> So what now? Back to the old drawing board, so to speak. Which worked out
> quite perfectly, because our next day in class was, in fact, spent at an
> ac
> tual drawing board. After covering bike design, fit and tube selection we
> began work designing our frames.
>
> Now, part of why I wanted to build a touring bike was that I want a
> touring
> bike in the stable...I already have a track and road machine. It was whil
> e I was digging through bins of lugs and dropouts that it dawned on me: I
> h
> ave a growing obsession with British "all-rounder" bikes of the
> mid-century
> . The bikes that blue-collar racers would have because they could only
> aff
> ord one bike. The bikes that spent time with a freewheel, brakes and
> fende
> rs for training...only to be ridden to a velodrome where everything was
> tak
> en off, a spare fixed wheelset fitted, the bike raced, reconfigured as a
> r
> oad bike and then ridden home. Perhaps that same frame was ridden in a
> Tim
> e Trial. Or perhaps a derailleur hanger was put on and it was taken out
> f
> or a country tour or long distance ride. One bike. Purpose built...but
> MU
> LTI purpose built. As one whose own bicycle collection is hindered by the
> spacial constraints of a Brooklyn 4th floor walk-up apartment and the
> wages
> of a artist's assistant, I gotta love that.
>
> No longer thinking of this as the precious and perfect dream machine, I
> dec
> ided to build a frame that I could ride in as many different ways as
> possib
> le. I could avoid getting trapped in minutia, concentrate on the basics
> an
> d save the bells and whistles for a time when I could build a machine at
> my
> leisure and with plenty of practice under my belt.
>
> I decided that I ought to take advantage of the parts UBI had available,
> ge
> t her home, get a coat of paint on her, build her up with parts on hand
> and
> get it on the road.
>
> So I'm calling my first frameset an "all-rounder".
>
> It's built with a mix of Columbus and Deddacai tubing, Henry James lugs
> and
> an Everest fork crown and bottom bracket shell. On the rear, I used Parag
> on track ends with a derailleur hanger. The fork got eyeleted Gipiemme
> dro
> pouts. I added fender eyelets to the rear and drilled for both front and
> r
> ear brakes.
> It's pretty much built for a mannequin: 56cm square, with an average BB
> dro
> p and chainstay length. The angles are also the tried and true angles of
> t
> he average racing roadie: 73 degrees parallel.
>
> While the plan is to build it up as a fendered fixed-gear at first, I
> wante
> d the flexibility to ride it as a 10 speed, so the rear is spaced at the
> st
> andard 120mm. I might eventually put a wheel with a 5-speed freewheel on
> b
> ack and build up a 70's style TT bike. Because I'll use a clamp-on
> shifter
> , I brazed a small triangle (from a lug point) on the underside of the
> down
> tube, to keep the shifter from sliding down. My '74 Raleigh International
> had that feature and I always liked it.
>
> I have a pile of old Campy and chrome Cinelli bits to use, but will likely
> have a couple of WTB posts in the near future to bring it closer to the
> roa
> d. Completed pics will surely be posted to The List as soon as possible.
>
> For now, LOTS of finish filing and final alignment checks...And hopefully
> n
> o more "oh sh*t" moments.
>
> Thanks again to all of you for your inspiration, help and support. You
> can
> count on frame number two in the near future. And then number three, numbe
> r four and so forth...
>
> Matthew Bowne
> Looking for time, space and money in
> Brooklyn, New York
> _________________________________________________________________
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