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I hope I'm wrong about this but thought I'd make this post about a Paris Galibier that recently came up for sale in what can only be called, dubious circumstances.

The bike was/is in what could be called a 'socially challenged' area of Wolverhampton. It was advertised for sale at £45. The only contact method with the seller was via email, the seller plainly knows nothing about the bike. It is most likely hand built by Tom Board of Condor Cycles and if you know Paris Galibier cycles they are a very distinctive frame design. These bikes are both rare, valuable and sort after in cycling circles.

A link to the advert was posted on another cycling forum. The number of responses including by myself probably made the seller realise the bike was worth a lot more than £45. I was involved a loop of emails along with, as it turned out, other forum members. Each email continually inflated the price but also offered a completed deal to several people. Only one person got address details for collection but after a few days it appears we've all received the same email saying the bike was sold for £450. We don't know who the buyer was if indeed there is a buyer.

It is a very curious sale of a rare bike, but allsorts of valuable items can slip through the net and end up on boot sales or the like. However, if you think you know the history of this bike and have a legitimate connection to it please send me a PM and I'll try and help out with further details.

Happy cycling
Rob

Its a bit of a shame that lead to a dead end, it would have been a result to reunite the bike back with the same family. Its probably more than likely that FR "Nutty" Russell built several bikes to the same spec and design.

From the photo above it might be worth checking that frame size. To me that looks around a 23" frame. Its hard to tell from a photo but your Grandad looks at least 6' tall so a 21.5" would seem a bit small.

Anyway, we'll have to consider this thread the collection point for anything F. R. Russell related :)

Those are brilliant photo's Will, this is getting quite bizarre! I assume these are photo's of him on his Fred Russell?

I can see your Grandpa is obviously a tall guy in the photo, just the right height for a 24" frame! I can plainly see a Major Taylor stem and what look like the same shape bars. No rear caliper and fixed gear. Its very hard to tell on the photo but the left side rear drop out looks like a horizontal drop out and not a track drop out as you would expect to find. Its in the back of my mind that we could be setting up a big disappointment here, but it is a very strange set of coincidences!

Because there are no records of frame numbers the date of 1955 came from the Williams crank. The left crank is 1955 and the drive side is 1958. I assumed the sprocket had worn and been replaced leaving the original left crank. If this was your Grandpa's bike I would guess the amount of cycling would mean the cranks could be regularly changed, and the bike could be much earlier.

If the article is from 1941 do you have any idea when he bought his bike or any other photos?

I'm waiting for Robbied196 to confirm but I'm pretty 90% sure this belonged to my Grandpa, and my Nan sold it when he died, the details fit just too perfectly for it not to be! If it is I will fall off my chair as I've been trying to trace these frames in recent years.

There were two which were sold one set up as a fixed gear the other as a road bike. FR "Nutty" Russell made them for him in his workshop, both identical and sized to him. My Grandpa was a lifelong memeber of Walsall Roads Cycling Club and even when he was too old to ride he used to stand in laybys on summer evenings timing the TT's ;-)

Put me out of my misery Rob!!!

Will

Will. This would be a an amazing connection if it turns out to be your Grandpa's. I sent you a PM before I saw your post here so I've just read the extra bit of history :) It would be a result if its the right bike.

'IF' its totally seized then use a Hacksaw blade. There's a link below, that one must be about the 20th seat post I've had to cut out.

Forget trying to twist out in a vice, if its truly seized the frame can bend before the post moves.

http://forum.ctc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=63229&hilit=siezed

If the forks are going off for a respray you'll need to remove the remaining plug. You could then use it as a template to make another, although you need it upside down as a pattern for the new one. Alloy is easy to work and will buff up like a mirror.

I could do one for you if you can wait a week or so.

before pictures of the whole bike? Just so we can see the start and end point. ..... the end point looks great by the way...... also whats the history of the bike?

F. R. Russell Cycles are still in business and still have their shop in Walsall near Birmingham. I contacted the owner who is the grandson of Fred Russell. Fred used to build frames in their workshop during the 1950's although they don't hold any records of frame numbers.

The bike has had one owner from new. Unfortunately, the previous owner and Fred Russell are no longer with us so that's really as much as I know. The bike came via the owners widow and although he had a couple of bikes this was his favourite.

Here's a pic of the bike as it was picked up. I don't think it had been cleaned since 1955!

Very nice :)

Clean with nice details such as stem/lining to make it stand out.

(I like minimalism bar when there's chrome involved lol)

Same goes for me, I love a bit of chrome and lug lining :)

Ah seen yours before when Flickr-ing (That doesn't sound as good as Googling...) it's lovely :) Can't beat stamped crown forks, what do you use to protect chrome?

I heard Vaseline is good, as water sets in those stamps which then get under the chrome and starts Trouble. Fork on mine needs rechromed at some point, it's shot on top.

Mine doesn't have lug lining and lugs seem to have a slightly different shape. Will post more pictures nearer the time and throw in some higher res ones.

You can't beat chrome lugs either, I must have magpie dna because I can never resist a nice bit of chrome!

I think the Christobal had a few revisions over the years. You've probably come across it, but there's an amazing one on the Ray Dobbin's website and that has slightly different detailing.

http://www.raydobbins.com/ciocc/index.html

I just wax mine with autoglym although it only goes out when the weather is perfect. As you can imagine, that isn't a lot!

I know a good chrome company who've just done a stem for me in the F. R. Russell post. http://www.lfgss.com/thread103936.html Good value as well so PM me if you're interested.

Rob

Amazing masterpiece!!

Thanks evasee :) Just added a bottom bracket grease nipple, and tweaked the chain alignment so its now complete :)

i have a major soft spot for Major Taylor stems. any before pictures?

To be honest, I had to research a bit to discover it was a Major Taylor stem. I've seen a couple turn up on Ebay where they seem to fetch crazy money! Here's the stem before. Not only had most of the chrome worn away, it got the red hand painted treatment along with the forks.

Black cotton bar tape...........

I think to much red is going to detract from the awesome paintwork

then.........

large flange hubs.....oooops :)

Lovely looking bike! Needs some foot retention though - some nice toe clips?

How does it ride?

Thanks :) Yep, it definitely needs some toe clips! Not had chance to get out for a first ride yet but hope to go out over Easter. Be the first time on a fixed as well!

Thought I'd post this. Not my first project but my first fixed! Although its not a track bike all the components suggest it was built originally as a fixed or single speed.

It was in a pretty bad state when I got it although the frame paintwork cleaned up well. Its been re-lug lined and had new decals. The forks had to be resprayed because someone in the distant past had hand painted them red.

The Major Taylor stem was re-plated along with its nuts and bolts, the seat post bolt and the bottom headset cup.

Wheels are Dunlop Lightweight 27 x 1 1/4", Brooks Swallow saddle, Williams crank, Statalite Madison Bars and Bayliss & Wiley Bottom Bracket. Reynolds 531 frame and forks.

Some better pics here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/62249235@N05/sets/72157633056899641/

Be interesting to know what the fixed experts reckon?

Cheers
Rob

Great post and looking good :)

I have a San Christobal built by CIOCC but branded for Tom Crowther (Mercian) mine dates from 1981. Some photos in the link although its had a few updates since they were taken.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/62249235@N05/sets/72157632155865998/

Be good to see some close ups of your lug work :)

Cheers Jase, appreciate you taking the time :)

Good to see a Rourkie thread :)

Crikey, a rare beast indeed

A Roy Thame/CIOCC frame came up on Ebay recently so they are out there, but I imagine there can only be a handful.

Thanks for the post Crispin :) I actually found out more information but I'd not got around to posting it.

I had some very interesting information off an ex Belgian pro team mechanic. One of their team sponsors was a shop who was a CIOCC agent. When the CIOCC factory closed several blanks were delivered to the shop and 'distributed'. It seems these were bought by Tom and also Roy Thame, possibly some others. They are all panotographed with either Crowther or Thames names in an identical way. I can only assume they were all done together by the same person.

I guess this makes it Toms hats off to Italian cycling, a Crowther CIOCC :)

I'll do some digging when in office, no doubt about who painted it, Bob dawson and I would say without fail Paul built it. Can you PM me the original owners surname that will make it easier.
Regards
Jase

Brilliant, thank you for the info Jase. I'm hoping I've still got his contact details so I can get a surname. Will PM you if I can get it :)

P.S. Should it be 'Brian' not Brain LOL

Not a good start calling Brian, Brain!! I put it down to my eagerness to make the post! lol

Can you please quit putting apostrophes on decades. They are plural, not possessive. Thank you.

Looks like we're stuck with it now as I can't edit the post title.

Back in the day, when I was a teenie in Congleton Cycling Club, (which thinking about it is over 36 years ago) the bike to have was either a Bob Jackson, Harry Hall or a Brian Rourke. Unfortunately, my Sunday club runs all took place on a Puch Alpine 5 speed. A Brian Rourke was something you went to look at in the shop window, something I remember doing on one of the Sunday club runs.

The bike was built for one very careful owner who had it made to measure he thought about 25 years ago. The frame number is 872. The paintwork is superb and near perfect. Its had a couple of component changes including the chainset from Campagnolo to Shimano 600. Its a bit of a mix of Shimano and Campagnolo including the Dura-Ace stem and seat post.

Galli calipers, Record hubs with Mavic G40 rims, wheels are replacements. Oddly though, they don't seem to be stainless spokes. Not sure of what model the Campagnolo pedals are but they have the original Campagnolo leather toe straps with plastic button ends.

It was worth the wait

I've noticed Jason hovers around the forum so I'm hoping he drops by and shed's some light on its history :)

Looking for a pair of 979 forks, will need them posting to Shrewsbury if anyone has anything :)

Another Harlequinn guide: http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/articles/diamondweave/

Thanks Mr Laser for the pics!

Any ideas on where I buy this stuff ^ and price?

An update :)

Well I've had a bit of a result off another forum where the name 'CIOCC' came up. Google led me to Giovanni Pelizzoli the Italian craftsman himself! The other name that came up is the Ciocc San Cristobal http://www.raydobbins.com/ciocc/index.html

I'm waiting for a confirmation from Giovanni Pelizzoli, but it seems Tom Crowther ordered personalised San Cristobal frames from Ciocc just before Mr Pelizzoli sold the company. I hope to find out how many were produced, but in any event this could be a very rare beasty :)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/62249235@N05/sets/72157629419088740/

Ok, I'm thick! I've tried embedding photo's in a listing but it never seems to work. Can someone explain please :)

Can a listing be previewed so I can see they are embedded before making the listing live?

I'm looking to do something like this:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/150797698238?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

I'm off to see a man about a bike tonight :)

I'm more into vintage stuff so does any one have a ball park value on this?

Cheers