For Sale: 531c Raleigh Frame and Forks 53cm recently powdercoated

For sale, a frame I had powdercoated three months ago and have done nothing with since.

1983 Raleigh 'Road Ace'
Reynolds 531c tubing
53cm c-t-c seat tube
55cm c-t-c top tube
126mm rear spacing
Prugnat lugs with cut outs
Gipiemme road ends
Aero crown fork

Good stuff:

• Rare and collectable Raleigh high end model (600AX Groupset as standard, top mounted gear lever boss on downtube for aero gear levers)
  
• Freshly powdercoated in gloss white
  
• No stickers apart from NOS 531c stickers on seattube and forks
  
• Looks super clean and has tough new paint
  
• Will supply with a NEW seat post binder bolt
  
• Will also supply a correct Raleigh Headtube badge.
  
  

Not so good stuff

• BB is stripped, so needs a threadless BB (easyish to source - velosolo)
  
• Ding in top tube (wasn't found as had been filled and filler removed when shot plasted prior to painting)
  
• Road end adjusters are broken off, leaving the remains blocking the drop out adjustment
  
• Seat post has been stuck in the past leaving a few off marks where idiots have tried to sort it, its OK now, but there is an odd dimple and a small crack on the tubing where the lug meets - nothing fatal at all, providing you use a 27.2mm post as it should have.
  
  

Will post up some pics shortly, but its a tidy frame that needs to be built up and ridden, not sat around my office.

I'm looking for £125, at this price I am loosing a great deal of cash as I bought the frame in good faith before noting all the above issues, and have since paid out to get it re-finished. I can help with period correct parts if you want to restore to original spec, or cheap options to help build it up generally.

Thanks!

that is well expensive for a frame with so many problems but good luck with the sale

Thanks. I've got some pics here, given all the problems I have listed above - its a very smart looking frame and will build into a nice bike. As for price, well its open to offers but if no interest will be ebayed.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/32223378@N05/sets/72157623920648363/

that is well expensive for a frame with so many problems but good luck with the sale

+1

I can appreciate that you got ripped off with a poor frame, that sucks, but I think it's a bit much to expect to others to help you recoup even some of what you have lost. What you have here is an unusable/dangerous frame until the cracked seat tube/lug joint is fixed at the very least. Until then it's scrap.

Like a classic car, a shiny coat of paint does not guarantee that underneath it's not a death trap.

Your honesty is appreciated though, good luck.

Thanks for your valued input. I have decided to keep the frame and will be riding it at my own risk daily. I'm pleased you enjoyed my honesty, I wouldn't want to end up on Watchdog and generally try my best to play nicely.

Honesty is always the best policy- especially amongst LFG folk. I hope you get some pleasure from the frame but go careful!

Funny that as the chap I bought it from via another site is quite a regular seller on here too. I will leave it at that... But yes sound advice, and I would suggest that the things I have listed are standards to ask about before buying any similar frames.

Did you tackle the seller about this? What kind of response did you get?
Ok, so you trusted the seller which is no bad thing, but just because you didn't ask specific questions doesn't really give them the right to sell you a knackered frame. At least, not in the spirit of things any way.
I guess it does serve to remind us all that there will always be chancers out there happy to screw good people over.

Harsh, but good advice and lesson learned I guess...

Name and shame I'd say, so others can be warned.

The chap I bought it from is currently selling on here now. A bit of background is the frame had been painted as a more exotic bike - highly collectable but obviously wrong to anyone who knows their stuff. I spotted it was a Road Ace which is what I was after... The ding on the top, I thought had been done by the powdercoater being careless - I've used them since and I'm 99.9% sure it was a sing that had been filled before it was then tarted up to look like a Quinn. Why anyone would do this god only knows! (and yes original seller was trying to sell it as a Quinn) Anyway there you have it, I wasn't 100% about parting with it anyway - so I guess I have just gained a soon to be Road Ace fixed. Cheers all.

+1
Name and shame