Mark,
During the 1970s Reynolds and Columbus tubing stickers were just about impossible to get in the US. Same thing with frame decals for most of the better known bike brands.
Someone I spoke with at Reynolds commented that they were frugal with their decals because they didn't want unscrupulous people putting them on lower cost frames to increase the sale price.
During that time period, "All Reynolds" frequently meant only 9 tubes were made of Reynolds 531 tubing not all 11!
1 Top Tube 1 Down Tube 1 Seat Tube 2 Fork Blades 2 Chain Stays 2 Seat Stays
Head tubes were frequently made of low grade seamed tubing and steering tubes were either cheap taper gage or a straight gage piece of tubing with an internal sleeve at the bottom.
Boxed sets of Reynolds 531 tubing had a 12th tube, a 1/2" x 6" long piece for brake bridges and so on.
Reynolds sold 1 1/4" x 1mm head tube material in 24"? and 20' lengths (plus metric equivalents).
I suspect that many bike makers weren't above grabbing any old tube when needed. Some one I know has a down tube out of a crashed 70s Pogliaghi with a perfectly intact decal. Inside the tube is a 1/8" high seam standing proud!
The real problem with most seamed tubes is that they were/are made from low quality carbon steel rather than the higher strength alloy steels used in the name brand tubing.
Chas. Colerich Oakland, Ca USA
Mark Bulgier wrote:
> john strizek wrote:
>
>> In the recent posting regarding Norris' comments about seamed
>> Reynolds tubing; IMHO it is very possible. Puch/Austro-Daimler
>> contracted with Sears department stores in the US as a sometimes
>> bicycle supplier. It has long been rumored that the Reynolds 531
>> labeled models had seamed tubing. I do not know if this was an
>> error by the constructor in "decalling" or an intended
>> misdirection. The result being frames labeled for a higher quality
>> than actually built.
>
> I seriously doubt Reynolds made seamed 531. A simpler, more likely
> explanation is the frame maker substituted a seamed tube here and there
> (or even everywhere?), and put the 531 decal on anyway.
>
> I don't know the law on the subject -- it seems unethical, but it may be
> legal if the substitutions are kept beneath some threshold, like if the
> majority of the frame is the tubing proclaimed on the decal. Certainly
> we know quite a few '70s Motobecanes had 531 decals on the fork blades
> and a cheap unbutted (sleeved) non-Reynolds steering column. It was so
> obvious -- surely they didn't think no one would notice. Leads me to
> believe it must be legal, or else that there is no enforcement.
>
> Reynolds has made seamed bike frame tubes, probably still do, but it has
> some other moniker, not 531. Sorry I have never paid attention to the
> lower-tier Reynolds products so I don't know which tube set that is.
>
> Mark Bulgier
> Seattle, WA USA