When did hex bolt on calipers disappear ?

[oldgit]

I'm collecting a frame plus a few bits this weekend, it's not at all common but it's 531 Professional so about 82 and on?
Though in the only image I have it shows hex bolt on calipers.
Seems odd, would a hand made of this quality be specced with this type of fixing?
Seems odd to me.

Will it all become clear when I collect it Saturday?

 

[Midlife]

I "left" cycling in 1978 and at that time all the brakes were nutted and not allen key......It might be that the frame builder was simply using up stock that he had bought in bulk. Downstairs in the bike shop where I worked, and where frames were made there would have been enough lugs, bottom brackets and stuff to keep going at low volume for a few years.

Or the brakes are older and the allen key recess is covered by a washer and nut

or the frame is older

Post the pic you have

Shaun

 

[oldgit]

 

[Midlife]

Ohh what a lovely looking frame, nice tight angles and the killer seat cluster

VDO's, under BB guides and those shocking bollock catching rear brake cable guides equals early 80's most likely, brakes look very early monoplaner with nuts, most likely covering the allen ket recesses.

I'd buy it for the rear seat cluster alone.......if done well as sign of a classy frame

Stickers look in the wrong place to me, looks like a Woodrup reapainted?

Shaun

 

[Toff]

My 1979 Colnago Super has allen key brake calipers, but I don't think it would be unusual for high-end frames around 1982 to still have nutted calipers, especially on hand built custom bikes. Even back then, there were retro grouches who would have turned up their noses at newfangled parts like allen bolts. Plus the small shop framebuilders would have quantities of old style brake bridges in stock to use up before ordering lots of "modern" ones...

 

[Citoyen du monde]

Cinelli was already selling frame-building bits (brake bridges and fork crowns) set up for allen key mounts in late 1976.

 

[gavr]

I bought a couple of quality 531 frames in the eighties, about 82 and 87 and both still had nylock nut fixings. One was a lovely metallic blue Tom Bromwich that was stolen in Manchester (frame number was stamped 666 or 999 depending which way up it was if anyone has seen it since). The other was a Graham Weigh and I think old stock because I wanted a 'plain colour'. My feeling is that there would have been a mix still for most of the eighties.

 

[oldgit]

Thanks, guess I'll have to wait to see what I've bought.
I'd love those old brakes to be monoplaner, but they look a bit 105'ish to me? And the chainset, Strada? SR? early Shimano?
Plus there's the mystery 'alloy' wheels that the chap has.
I feel like a kid at Christmas.

 

[otherself]

My 83 Wes Mason had allen fitting (sold) it was 531.

My Atala from 1987 (Aelle pipes) is nutted, which did shock me to be honest. I've not seen nutted fittings on a high end bike this late.