Bob,
No, I think they were not really obsolete. Woodrup produced bikes made for 27's in the early '80s. A local 'Lister (I'll allow him to out himself if he chooses) and I each own a Woodrup of the early '80s. He knows exactly how old his is, and mine, by inference based on the Woodrup Registry on the CR site, is perhaps a year older than his. His bike came with 27 inch wheels. Mine was unbuilt but a bit shopworn when I got it, but it looks like it is intended for 27s: 700c tubulars look too small and delicate, and tubular wheels with fat 32 mm cross tires look about right, especially the way they fill out the fender line. The handling is a bit more natural with diameter that gets close to a 27 inch wheel. Kevin Sayles' comment might be enlightening, if he's on-line soon. These are both full Reynolds 531 butted frames with good dropouts and lugwork, very nice thin and smooth paint, and at least in my case, a cushy, refined ride. They're not leaving the 630 technology to the lower cost bikes, as was done in the '60s and '70s.
I've never known just how much of an outlier Woodrups was then, but if Ron Coopers were also doing this in those days, perhaps it was still normal for a more mixed-surface or rough riding bike. Perhaps these were designed for bombing up and down in the more mountainous regions of the UK, Wales coming prominently to mind. That would tend to explain the slow handling and cushy feel of my Woodrup. If I'm going to ride all day on roads of unknown condition with my survival in my Karrimor, let it be in a Cadillac or a Bentley, rather than a Ferrari. Better to be lost and comfortable than lost and bone-weary.
On Fri, Dec 25, 2009 at 2:10 PM, Bob Freitas <freitas1@pacbell.net> wrote:
>
> This is an interesting question as a recent Ron Cooper came to
> me with 27'' wheels even though I figure the bike to be 1980. I had figured
> 27''s were obsolete by then specially with custom builders.
> Are there general dates we can attach to the swing away from
> 27'' wheels to 700c ? I know it might be different between European and
> Japanese/Asian makers.
> With the base line and midrange bikes, when did they or did they
> ever switch? I left the business in 1980 and 27'' were still common but
> since I slumbered for the rest of the 1980s I missed the transition if there
> was one.
>
> BOB FREITAS
> gloriously Sunny in MILL VALLEY, CA USA
>
> Best of Holidays to Everyone...............................
>
> _______________________________________________
>
--
Ken Freeman
Ann Arbor, MI USA