I built a vintage gravel/Rough Stuff bike.

In the 1950s the UK bike industry was building bikes for RSF type riding (known as gravel bikes these days).

I thought it would be interesting to see how they compare.

I have had a Dawes Windrush frame sitting in my attic for several years, and seeing as those were aimed at RSF riders and anyroad tourers, I built it up with a hodgepodge of period parts and more current stuff that seemed appropriate.

The approach was to imagine it’s a bike I’ve had since I was a lad, and then make the changes to it I would have done over the years to keep it relevant.

The frame has been refinished poorly many years ago and was stickered up with Diamondback logos – presumably when that was a decent make. A quick scrub over got rid of that lot.

The beauty about getting a pre-mangled bike is you feel no obligation to preserve patina or originality. My thinking is if I like how it goes, then I’ll refinish it and bring it up to a as new standard.

So here it is on Saturday night, lashed together ready to go on the morrow.

Needless to say, it was properly put to the test. I’ll add that later.

————————————————————————————–

Detail for fellow bike nerds:

Dawes Windrush frame and forks in R531. I’ll repaint it, once I’ve settled on final config.
Wheels: I built them with modern 700c Mavic rims for convenience of getting decent tyres, plus they’re stronger for offroad stuff, DTSwiss butted spokes, NOS Normandie F/hub, Sturmey SRF-5 rear.
Brakes: NOS Mafac Racers with Weinmann levers. May change to Resilion cantis, and will probably change the levers – feels flexy.
Saddle: Itala 27mm seatpost, NOS Ideale saddle. (Temporary modern seatpost clamp until I work out most comfortable height with the Lauterwasser bars).
Steering: GB stem, new alloy Lauterwasser bars (by Soma)
Cranks: NOS splined Gnutti driveside, patina-ed one lhs, Gnutti BB.
Chain: manky 2nd hand Wipperman ⅛”

Cabling is all ziptied. When I repaint, I’ll run the brake cable properly through frame mounts (I don’t have the appropriate ferrules to fit them). I’m hoping to be able to make up a gear lever for the downtube and run a bare cable through a pulley instead of using an outer (the modern S-A levers don’t fit the braze ons).

What’s missing:
I need a Dawes bagrest to fit the frame mounts. Even if it’s only suitable to use as a pattern for a replica.
Stepped ferrules for frame cable stops.
Gnutti lhs crank in vgc to match the other side – I’ll probably have to rechrome the existing one.

The approach was to imagine it’s a bike I’ve had since I was a lad, and then make the changes to it I would have done over the years to keep it relevant.

Yeah,I have done the same.. 😉

Before

Now

nice thread. The bike looks great, with alot of thought put into it. Just needs modern pedals. If you want to complete the look and want flats go for a bear trap copy style.

fasthaggis

Yeah,I have done the same..

That’s an amazing transformation.

Bet it cost more than mine though… 🙂

If I still had my old BSA to stick on Retrobike ,maybe I would break even 🙂

Nice one epicyclo. This is the sort of thread I’ll follow. Looking forward to updates. First ‘proper’ bike was a met blue Carlton Cyclone, custom-restoration – similar to the one pictured below but with alloy handbuilt wheels, white tape, metallic blue respray, 30c semi-slick tyres, saddlebag.

I rode it all over both on and offroad, usually where it wasn’t designed for and finally into the back of a Ford Capri. RIP f+f. Have a soft spot for Dawes as Dawes was first ATB/MTB and one ‘replaced’ the Carlton. Both bikes were Reynolds 500 iirc*, but the Cyclone was a light(ish) build, while the Dawes was heavy as. A steel rough stuff tourer is useful/desirable for me and so decided to resurrect/combine those two old favourits for my 50th. Like fasthaggis, I took the easy route 😉

1986
2016

*Edit – googlefu says maybe Raleigh TI/Truwel tubing.

Those tyres look awfully small. I know they did use bigger tyres on some bikes even back in the day so that surprises me on a purpose built bike. The only differences I can see between that and the road bikes of the day is the handlebar and the hub gear, no?

That’s what I think the yoot call a nice bike #Epicyclo. I’m at the start of something similar;
I was given a 1938-ish Dawes Efficiency Tourist in a terrible state. The frame and forks are 531 and ridicululously light, though with enough vintage….quirks…..to make it less straightforward.
Headset is one of those headclip types, but at least it’s 1″, so bodgeable. 110mm rear end, but no brake mounts, as it had Resilion cantilevers. So, it’s going to be fixed-gear or coaster braked.
Also, being 26 x 1 3/8, with generous clearances, 650B or possibly 700c wheels for better tyre choice.

molgrips

Those tyres look awfully small…

My preference is for bigger, but the tyres are 40mm, so that’s about as big as we could get back then and on a par with some current gravel bikes.

The only differences I can see between that and the road bikes of the day is the handlebar and the hub gear

Compare it to fasthaggis’s BSA and you’ll notice the wheelbase is longer. It’s also got good clearances in the c/stays to allow for fitting mudguards far enough from the tyre to allow good mud clearance (ie typical tourer style).

The difference between that and a normal Dawes frame of the time was minor, but significant.

A bike for rough stuff will be portaged, so the pump pegs were moved from under the toptube to the downtube thus allowing for comfortable shouldering. Another advantage was you didn’t have to carry the pump in your free hand -that’s useful when scrabbling up rocks in true RSF style etc.

It also came with a bagrest which is a miniature short rack. Its purpose wasn’t for hanging panniers from, but to stop the voluminous saddle bags popular back then from sagging onto the rear wheel on bumpy going.

The handlebars are a nod to something an old guy said to me when I was a lad (ie teaboy/thread stripper) in a bikeshop nearly 60 years ago. He didn’t like the “modern” trend to long stems and preferred the Lauterwasser pattern bar (with a short stem) because it gave a long straight hand position, ie lots of room to move your hands fore and aft. After nearly 60 years I thought maybe it was time for me to try it out… 🙂

The hub gear is a correct fitting. Derailleurs were around then, but many experienced cyclists preferred the reliability of the hubgear – after all, for most people the bike was also their every day transport.

A 3 or 4 speed would have been more period correct, but I figured the imaginary original owner of this bike would have upgraded to 5 speeds when they came on the market (and I just happened to have one 🙂 ).

Bruce WIllies

…Headset is one of those headclip types, but at least it’s 1″, so bodgeable. 110mm rear end, but no brake mounts, as it had Resilion cantilevers…

Dawes always used decent steel, Kromo comes to mind for that period.

Don’t bodge the headclip! Parts are available if you look long enough. I prefer them.

I also have a vague memory – which may not be correct – that’s it’s not a good idea to use an expanding bolt stem in one of those steerers because the metal is thinner than a steerer designed for the pressures of a tightened expanding bolt.

Can you stick a pic of the bike up on here?

Resilions will set you back a few bob, and it’s hard to find a set that aren’t clapped out. The cables being one difficulty. It’s a shame because they are good brakes – as good as modern cantis IMO (got a set on my 1932 Sunbeam Road Racer).

I have a spare set that might end up on the Windrush, but I’m also considering S-A drum brakes. For off road riding the advantage of not grinding your rims away makes descents more pleasant, and they are mudproof.

Period drums are reasonably available, and with new linings work quite well so long as you use high melting point grease in the bearings – most original linings have long since absorbed a heap of oil.

If you just want the look rather than total authenticity, there’s also the modern S-A drums. They are high quality, cheap, and spin like a good Campag hub. Just the sort of mod an original owner would have made. They also stop better. 🙂

I did a similar thing with an old raleigh pioneer, swapped the flat bars for drops, claris 8sp brifters and knobby tyres perfect gravel/cross type thingy

For Bruce Willies

1931 Dawes Special – note the Lauterwasser type bars.