Steel Audax or Steel Italian???

stuographer

Hello

Im looking at a new bike but Im unsure what I want. I commute by road and also do ride with, and intend competing with a local bike club. Im thinking of buying a second hand steel frame but with drop outs to take a 10 speed Campagnolo group set and going from there. Although Im looking for a road bike primarily, I do have back problems so the pannier rack and mudguards are essential to keep weight off my back. The things I have in my mind are either a Dawes Audax, or buying a Columbus frame in need of refurb, brazing the eyes for mudguards and pannier and then having it refurbed. Will the older Columbus frames take the newer group sets?

Thank you in advance

g00se

Older steel frames will have narrower rear dropouts. However, you can 'cold set' steel frames easily (permanently bend the two triangles apart). Either with a bit of 4x2 or get a local shop to do it: http://sheldonbrown.com/frame-spacing.html

huuregeil

Adding braze ons for rack/guards is a bit of a waste of time. If the frame doesn;t have either of these, you may find it either lacks the clearance for the guards or lacks the stiffness to carry the rack without negatively affecting the handling. Look at audax bikes, these sound perfect for you. Bob Jackson frames well worth checking out if you're on a reasonable budget and want something custom-ish.

daviesee

A word of warning - You are really looking for 2 bikes.

Any bike that takes full mudguards and panniers is likely not going to have the geometry and stiffness required for a proper race bike. Sure, you can race on any bike but if you are going to take it seriously then you will need 2 bikes.

Something like the Genesis Equilibrium would probably do you well to start off with.

stuographer

Thank You for your sound advice. Think Ill go for an Audax first and see how it goes, maybe look at something faster as a project later on.