Moser steel bike frame question

[=?iso-8859-1?q?F=F6rster_vom_Silberwald?=]

Hello: To cut a story short: I had a really good bargain on ebay. I got
a 9 year old Moser steel frame road racer for a price of $420 (I guess
$1 = EUR1). The original price was around $1100,-. It, though 9 years
old, was brand new. The 70 year old man never had a ride with it. For
the components side: steel frame, Mirage equipement, and Campagnolo
"Zonda" wheels. I am not sure whether the fork consits of alu or steel;
there is no indication.

Some random observations:

a) I have been very impressed over the stability of the road racer. I
come from MTB and never thought that a road racer drives like a train
on the street (I am 180 centimeters tall and weigh in at 72kg).

b) I live in a very mountanian area and the Moser features as granny
gear of 39/23. Never thought I will make it up on a hill which measures
1000hm on an average of 10%. It is possible. I was a bit of surprised
at myself.

c) I never had the feeling the steel frame is flexy quite to the
contrary. I never rode a (okay a Casati in my youth) another road bike
and lack some comparison measures and the geometry is maybe perfect for
me.

However, my question: I am not particularily impressed by the quality
of the finish of the steel frame itself. I can spot and indicate 2
pronounced patches where it seems some **** has been left over (I do
not think this are paint remnants).

Is this an attribute to a small company who made steel frames by means
of "hand building".

Schneewittchen

 

[Mike Jacoubowsky]

> Hello: To cut a story short: I had a really good bargain on ebay. I got
> a 9 year old Moser steel frame road racer for a price of $420 (I guess
> $1 = EUR1). The original price was around $1100,-. It, though 9 years
> old, was brand new. The 70 year old man never had a ride with it. For
> the components side: steel frame, Mirage equipement, and Campagnolo
> "Zonda" wheels. I am not sure whether the fork consits of alu or steel;
> there is no indication.
....
> However, my question: I am not particularily impressed by the quality
> of the finish of the steel frame itself. I can spot and indicate 2
> pronounced patches where it seems some **** has been left over (I do
> not think this are paint remnants).
>
> Is this an attribute to a small company who made steel frames by means
> of "hand building".

Your bike is representative of the "value" end of the bike biz, an area
where you get something that's functional, but typically not as pretty or
finished as the higher-end. Steel frames, Italian ones in particular
(although French, when they existed, certainly weren't immune) would tend to
have pretty ugly "lugwork" (brazing that oozes out in some places, gaps
between frame & lug in others) at this end of the scale. Functionally, it
has little, if anything, to do with performance or strength.

Having said that, I've also seen some fairly expensive Italian frames that
looked pretty ugly as well... in contrast to some of the absolutely-stunning
works of art which many associate with Italian craftsmanship.

If the bike works great and is comfortable (correct fit), I'd not worry
about it and literally enjoy the ride!

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

"Förster vom Silberwald" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Hello: To cut a story short: I had a really good bargain on ebay. I got
> a 9 year old Moser steel frame road racer for a price of $420 (I guess
> $1 = EUR1). The original price was around $1100,-. It, though 9 years
> old, was brand new. The 70 year old man never had a ride with it. For
> the components side: steel frame, Mirage equipement, and Campagnolo
> "Zonda" wheels. I am not sure whether the fork consits of alu or steel;
> there is no indication.
>
> Some random observations:
>
> a) I have been very impressed over the stability of the road racer. I
> come from MTB and never thought that a road racer drives like a train
> on the street (I am 180 centimeters tall and weigh in at 72kg).
>
> b) I live in a very mountanian area and the Moser features as granny
> gear of 39/23. Never thought I will make it up on a hill which measures
> 1000hm on an average of 10%. It is possible. I was a bit of surprised
> at myself.
>
> c) I never had the feeling the steel frame is flexy quite to the
> contrary. I never rode a (okay a Casati in my youth) another road bike
> and lack some comparison measures and the geometry is maybe perfect for
> me.
>
> However, my question: I am not particularily impressed by the quality
> of the finish of the steel frame itself. I can spot and indicate 2
> pronounced patches where it seems some **** has been left over (I do
> not think this are paint remnants).
>
> Is this an attribute to a small company who made steel frames by means
> of "hand building".
>
> Schneewittchen
>

 

[jtaylor]

"Förster vom Silberwald" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> I am not sure whether the fork consits of alu or steel;
> there is no indication.
>

Magnet.

 

[Art Harris]

Förster vom Silberwald wrote:

> I am not sure whether the fork consits of alu or steel; there is no indication.

Try a magnet.

Art Harris

 

[Matt O'Toole]

On Wed, 14 Dec 2005 16:34:50 +0000, Mike Jacoubowsky wrote:

>> However, my question: I am not particularily impressed by the quality
>> of the finish of the steel frame itself. I can spot and indicate 2
>> pronounced patches where it seems some **** has been left over (I do
>> not think this are paint remnants).

>> Is this an attribute to a small company who made steel frames by means
>> of "hand building".

> Your bike is representative of the "value" end of the bike biz, an area
> where you get something that's functional, but typically not as pretty
> or finished as the higher-end. Steel frames, Italian ones in particular
> (although French, when they existed, certainly weren't immune) would
> tend to have pretty ugly "lugwork" (brazing that oozes out in some
> places, gaps between frame & lug in others) at this end of the scale.

A lot of people see this as just adding to the handmade character, and
they actually prefer it.

> If the bike works great and is comfortable (correct fit), I'd not worry
> about it and literally enjoy the ride!

That's the bottom line.

Matt O.

 

[=?iso-8859-1?q?F=F6rster_vom_Silberwald?=]

Mike Jacoubowsky wrote:

> Your bike is representative of the "value" end of the bike biz, an area
> where you get something that's functional, but typically not as pretty or
> finished as the higher-end. Steel frames, Italian ones in particular
> (although French, when they existed, certainly weren't immune) would tend to
> have pretty ugly "lugwork" (brazing that oozes out in some places, gaps
> between frame & lug in others) at this end of the scale. Functionally, it
> has little, if anything, to do with performance or strength.

I was simply surprised since my other MTB bikes are all in the $1000
price range. And the finish, though alu frames, were all good. I do not
have a car but happen to buy some bikes from time to time. Last year I
bought a Schwinn MTB and the $1000 bike has one of the best paintings I
ever had. This summer I happend to buy a Corratec MTB (the one with the
peculiar bow design) in the $1000 price range.

> If the bike works great and is comfortable (correct fit), I'd not worry
> about it and literally enjoy the ride!

This is my biggest problem: I do not have any gauges of other road
racers. I mean I am not sure whether I should keep my road racer once
it has worn out. I like the style of the bike since the Campa "Zonda"
high profile wheels look very good. However, I have seen that nowadays
steel frame road racers are very pricy and I should be happy having
such a treasure in my garage.

My idea was once it has been worn out I give it to a Master for some
new paintings and mounting new components. On the other side I will get
likely a new road racer for such a money.


Schneewittchen

 

[Jasper Janssen]

On 15 Dec 2005 04:47:15 -0800, "Förster vom Silberwald"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>I was simply surprised since my other MTB bikes are all in the $1000
>price range. And the finish, though alu frames, were all good. I do not

That's robots for you. A cheap alu frame, such as you'd find on most
department store bicycles, can be bought wholesale in the far east for 5
to 10 dollars apiece. A $1000 bike typically has at least a mid-scale
frame.

>> If the bike works great and is comfortable (correct fit), I'd not worry
>> about it and literally enjoy the ride!
>
>This is my biggest problem: I do not have any gauges of other road
>racers. I mean I am not sure whether I should keep my road racer once
>it has worn out. I like the style of the bike since the Campa "Zonda"

If you spent 420 euros on it, it's worth maintaining, rather than letting
it degenerate till 'worn out'. Primarily, that means cleaning and oiling
the chain regularly and replacing *it* when it wears out, *before* it
damages the gears. Secondarily, that means occasionally taking all 4 main
bearings (front and rear wheels, bottom bracket (where the cranks attach),
headset) apart, cleaning them, and putting fresh grease in them. With even
a modicum of maintenance, you'll get ten times the life from your
components.

>My idea was once it has been worn out I give it to a Master for some
>new paintings and mounting new components. On the other side I will get
>likely a new road racer for such a money.

If you have even a little mechanical aptitude, you can do most jobs on a
bicycle yourself easily. The one exception is installing and removing
headsets (which mount the fork to the frame), and facing&chasing the BB
threads, but that should be a one time operation.

If you do decide that it's time for a repaint and new components, why
don't you try taking the bike *apart* first yourself. That's even easier
than putting it on, and you can't ruin components that are destined for
the rubbish anyway. It might help you decide if you're able to rebuild it
after the repaint, as well.

Jasper

 

[Sasha]

OK, this is kind of off topic, but recently when I was visiting the Spanish
town of Bilboa in found a bikeshop that had a bunch of brand new
Colnago steel frames (with funky 1980's paint jobs, chrome forks and stay
etc) for sale. Asking prices were between 140-180 Euro per frame.
I thought this was kind of a bargain, but unfortunately wasn't prepared to
drag them back to Oz with me. Apparently steel is real (cheap) in Spain.

I will go back into lurking mode now.

Sasha


"Förster vom Silberwald" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Hello: To cut a story short: I had a really good bargain on ebay. I got
> a 9 year old Moser steel frame road racer for a price of $420 (I guess
> $1 = EUR1). The original price was around $1100,-. It, though 9 years
> old, was brand new. The 70 year old man never had a ride with it. For
> the components side: steel frame, Mirage equipement, and Campagnolo
> "Zonda" wheels. I am not sure whether the fork consits of alu or steel;
> there is no indication.
>
> Some random observations:
>
> a) I have been very impressed over the stability of the road racer. I
> come from MTB and never thought that a road racer drives like a train
> on the street (I am 180 centimeters tall and weigh in at 72kg).
>
> b) I live in a very mountanian area and the Moser features as granny
> gear of 39/23. Never thought I will make it up on a hill which measures
> 1000hm on an average of 10%. It is possible. I was a bit of surprised
> at myself.
>
> c) I never had the feeling the steel frame is flexy quite to the
> contrary. I never rode a (okay a Casati in my youth) another road bike
> and lack some comparison measures and the geometry is maybe perfect for
> me.
>
> However, my question: I am not particularily impressed by the quality
> of the finish of the steel frame itself. I can spot and indicate 2
> pronounced patches where it seems some **** has been left over (I do
> not think this are paint remnants).
>
> Is this an attribute to a small company who made steel frames by means
> of "hand building".
>
> Schneewittchen
>