I have an old steel framed Bill Nickson road bike, made from Deddacai tubing and welded, not brazen or lugged. I got it 3rd or 4th hand, and it was built up with old 8 speed DurAce and decent wheels. It rode really nicely until it rusted through at the bottom of the seat tube.

Now everyone talks about how classic steel frames have lugs, but is a welded steel frame inferior, or just different? I am thinking of having the frame repaired but it will cost around £200 to have a new seat tube welded in and a repaint and I can’t make my mind up whether it is worth it. It’s a nice frame, but could it ever be a classic?

Any views on what it is that makes a classic road frame?

I reckon if you thought it rode nicely then £200 doesn’t sound too bad. Does that include a respray too?

Paint job.

Would £200 get you a similar or better second hand frame?

Not sure I’d be happy/confident on a re-welded frame, I would be on a re-brazed frame though as my HT is a custom brazed one & has been altered/changed about 6 times since it was made in 1992.
Ready for metallurgists to put me right though!

I wonder (only slightly factitiously) if part of how it rode was because the seat tube was so compliant, what with it having much of its structure eroded. Would a new tube and welding change its characteristics much?

The tubeset is certainly going to be important, as is the method of joining them.

The real question I’d want answering is whether the tube to be substituted would match the original and what the process of reheating the joint to weld temperature would do to the metal around the joint.

It might be better to show the remains to a good builder and ask for a replacement frame (tubeset, geo and construction same) rather than a repair if you want to have that bike again. I’m guessing that finding a new bike to love is going to be cheaper and possibly more successful.

I recently had a seat stay replaced on my frame (Pegoretti oversized Columbus Spirit) and the builder said no problem, apart from the long wait. Surprising as the tube wall is paper thin… Proof of the pudding and all that though – it’s sitting waiting to be built up – but I don’t envisage any problems.

Any views on what it is that makes a classic road frame?

Geometry.

Lugs are nice and brazing is easy to repair. Not so sure about re-welded high-end steel though. Won’t air hardening cause some problems on re-welding?

I’ve repaired loads of welded steel frames by putting a brass fillet over the joint.

This is the whole dilemma, replace or repair. Rewelding a new tube in is commonplace and places like Mercian offer this service, but a new seat tube plus quality respray is £200.

The question for me is whether a welded frame can have the same kudos as a lugged frame?

…is a welded steel frame inferior

I doubt it. Guy Martin’s 112mph bike was welded 853 steel

…what it is that makes a classic road frame?

It’s in the eye of the beholder

I think that a classic is Reynolds or Columbus steel tubing and fork, spear point lugs (with some tasteful cutouts), and brazed together
Then it becomes non-classic (maybe) because I’d have STI downtube fittings, vertical dropouts and a rear hub spacing of 135mm