Reynolds Tubing

[80sDave]

I now have three frames made from Reynolds tubing:

1984 Mercian Reynolds 531c
1991 Peugeot Galibier Reynolds 531
1994 McLachlan Reynolds 708

I had read somewere that the Peugeot may be Renolds 531SL? Does that sound right?

Also, it appears that the Reynolds 708 was a short lived tubing material. Anyone know the reasons why?

[brauluver]

Are any of them set up to ride?
How does 531 compare to say columbus or tange to ride in springiness stakes?
I can't believe the difference between High ten and the tange frame i fitted out recently.Its poles apart in it's flex and responsiveness.

[80sDave]

braulever - Yep two out of three set up.

Mercian has shimano 600EX componenets and I have been riding it for about 6 months. Very nice bike. It just wants to go fast! I am going to strip and rebuild with Campag Record/Super Record.

McLachlan has just been built up with Cinelli bar and stem, Selle Italia Turbo 3 saddle, Campag Victory FD, RD and Crankset and Modolo brakes. Also has Campag Sydney 2000 rims with Sach hubs. I haven't ridden it yet but can't wait.

Peugeot Galibier - Most recent purchase. Will Inherit Shimano 600 EX off Mercian or Shimano 600 Ultegra Groupset if I don't sell it first.

[sittingbison]

...it appears that the Reynolds 708 was a short lived tubing material. Anyone know the reasons why...

I think it was because there was a perception it went 'soft'.

My kenevans 'rattlesnake' is 708, stiff as a Brooks Pro

[WyvernRH]

I now have three frames made from Reynolds tubing:

1994 McLachlan Reynolds 708

Also, it appears that the Reynolds 708 was a short lived tubing material. Anyone know the reasons why?

IF I remember correctly, 708 was basically unbutted chrome manganese tubing of 531 composition/standard but internally it was profiled with 8(?) spiral flats to give stiffness. This only applied to the main tubes all the rest of the tubeset (stays, forks etc) were normal 531c standard I think.
Meant to be extra stiff but was quite heavy compared to 531c/753 and competing manufacturers stuff. Good for straight line time trials maybe?
Dunno, not my scene, but it was overtaken by better (well more trendy...) steels/aluminium etc and it really had no advantage over a well designed 531c or 753 o/s frame. I never heard of any frame problems from careless brazing when building like the ribbed Columbus suffered but you are right, it faded very quickly. Maybe cost more to make and was uneconomic if no-one fell for the sales talk?

Cheers
Richard

[IdealCyclesWA]

I now have three frames made from Reynolds tubing:

1984 Mercian Reynolds 531c
1991 Peugeot Galibier Reynolds 531
1994 McLachlan Reynolds 708

I had read somewere that the Peugeot may be Renolds 531SL? Does that sound right?

Also, it appears that the Reynolds 708 was a short lived tubing material. Anyone know the reasons why?

there was Columbus SL and SLX in Reynolds you had 531PRO which morphed into 653 in perhaps late 80's?
purple Peugeot 753 bikes were quite common in the late 80's.

[531db]

I now have three frames made from Reynolds tubing:

1994 McLachlan Reynolds 708

Also, it appears that the Reynolds 708 was a short lived tubing material. Anyone know the reasons why?

IF I remember correctly, 708 was basically unbutted chrome manganese tubing of 531 composition/standard but internally it was profiled with 8(?) spiral flats to give stiffness. This only applied to the main tubes all the rest of the tubeset (stays, forks etc) were normal 531c standard I think.
Meant to be extra stiff but was quite heavy compared to 531c/753 and competing manufacturers stuff. Good for straight line time trials maybe?
Dunno, not my scene, but it was overtaken by better (well more trendy...) steels/aluminium etc and it really had no advantage over a well designed 531c or 753 o/s frame. I never heard of any frame problems from careless brazing when building like the ribbed Columbus suffered but you are right, it faded very quickly. Maybe cost more to make and was uneconomic if no-one fell for the sales talk?

Cheers
Richard

Manganese Molybdenum, not Chrome Manganese

[WyvernRH]

IF I remember correctly, 708 was basically unbutted chrome manganese tubing of 531 composition/standard <snip>

Manganese Molybdenum, not Chrome Manganese

Quite correct, I shouldn't e-mail after two glasses of wine

But I'm still pretty sure that I got the 708 stuff right(ish)

Cheers
Richard

[sittingbison]

the stays and forks are usually 753 not 531

My bike is very light. I'll see if I can weigh it tomorrow.

[80sDave]

Thanks All for the feedback. Very informative discussion.

Unfortunately I didn't weigh the McLachland before it was built up. I think it would have been slightly heavier than the Mercian 531c but I am just guessing at this stage. I need to ride the McLachlan for a while to get a feel for it.

[WyvernRH]

the stays and forks are usually 753 not 531

My bike is very light. I'll see if I can weigh it tomorrow.

Hmm, I reckon the 708 stuff was supplied as a three tube set and the remaining tubes were up to how flash the framebuilder wanted to be.
Given you need a 753 licence to use any 753 in a frame, I am still pretty sure the default supplied 'other bits' were normally 531c but of course a qualified builder could use what they liked.

Richard

[sittingbison]

okey dokey, I won't tell you what the AGGREGATE weight of moi and kenevans is but I can tell you this:

rattlesnake, my Reynolds 708 kenevans weighs 9.8kg

59cm frame
Centaur gruppo
Ksyrium Elite wheelset
Vittoria Open Corsa Pro tyres
SI Flyte saddle

[Rob74]

Retro Thread Dredge.

Some say
" 708 was a tube set in Reynolds' range in the 1980s. It has main tubes with special section. These were not butted, but had 8 flats running along the length of the tube. The rear stays would be 753."
=>> Problem with this is if the bike builder was not licenced for 753 then rear stays would have been 531 or what ever else the builder had on hand.

Reynolds response:
"708 was a tube set in our range in the 80's, designed for track frames. Same material as 531 main tubes but not butted or double butted rather there are 8 internal flats running along the length of the tube. The rear stays would typically be 753."

=>> Does anyone have a 60cm or greater frame made from Reynolds 708? Have you had a chance to ride it a bit for comparison to your other steel bikes? Do you think the 708 is a stiff frame comparitively? ie does bottom bracket move with the back stays like a tail wag like some of the larger 531 frames.

Reason for asking is I'm looking at a 63cm 708 frame and wondering how it will fair as a riding comparison compared with my 62cm 531C & 63cm Columbus SP frames. (Had thought the frame was full 753 initially but turns out it is actually 708)

Bottom line...What does Reynolds 708 ride like?

Does any one have any additional information on Reynolds 708?

Rob

[sunho]

you might want to test ride this? Paconi syd Lilyfield