1985 Woodrup Giro Touring:

a 10.5 year project!

 Photos! [ Set 1 ] [ more from time to time ] 

The story: I bought this frame in 2008 off eb. The original idea was to replace the frame of my Surly LHT with this frame. After a little more inspection and reading I decided the frame was more of a 'sport touring' frame (as they used to call shorter chainstay touring frames back then). So I decided to build it up to it's own bike, and began squireling away parts that might fit.

Specifications:

Frame: 1985 Woodrup Giro Touring, made in Leeds, England by Steve Woodrup & Kevin Sayles at Woodrup Cycles for US import & sale by Ten Speed Drive Imports.
23", made for 27" wheels (but fit 700c also), 126mm rear spacing, non-recessed brake mountings.
Serial 85065, which means "it was made in 1985 for Ten Speed drive imports ... the frames were built in batches of around 5 or 6 between Steve and myself. Sadly we don't have any other info such as specifications etc. but I can assure you it will be Reynolds 531 tubing throughout" according to Kevin Sayles.
I've read somewhere, not sure, that the frames were imported bare & painted in the US.

One of the most beautiful parts of this frame are the Cinelli investment cast Medium-point lugs, fork crown, & bottom bracket. Cinelli cast lugs, & bottom bracket shell. It's also got forged horizontal Campagnolo '1010' dropouts with single eyelets & wrapover seat stays.

Materials: Reynolds 531ST tubes. Top tube and down tube are possibly: .8/.5/.8mm, butted seat tube, seat stays 'standard taper style', chain stays .9/.6. Fork blades 'thin oval taper gauge' (from Reynolds brochure ca. 1985), or:
1.0/0.7/1.0 Double Butted Top Tube, 1.0/0.7 Single Butted Seat Tube, 1.0/0.7/1.0 Double Butted Down Tube (from ca. 2000 brochure).

Geometry: Seat Tube C-T 58.5cm & possibly 73°, TT 57cm, HT xxcm & possibly 72.5 or 73°, fork rake possibly 4cm, chainstays 42.5cm (43 all the way back), wheelbase possibly 102cm, BB height possibly 28.6cm, standover 84cm.

Frame bits: TT cable guides (3, housing-through, 12:00), two pairs of 'star' bottle bosses top & bottom of DT, cable guides above BB shell, R chainstay rack mount, shifter/cable mount stay under DT, CS cable stop.

Colour: blue with white cutout paints.

Chainset: Avocet triple (used).

Chainrings: 36/41/50: 36 (Avocet, 102mm BCD), 41 & 50 (TA aluminium 144BCD). Maybe a little mismatch on the 36t., but because the Ofmega/Avocer bolts have a non-standard thread and bolt hole diameter, it's all I've got for now.
Plans are to replace that with a 30t when I either 1) drill out the chainring for a wider bolt hole, or 2) get a set of Stronglight 'Mygal' bolts, which apparently use the same bolt thread, but with standard chainring hole size. So when that happens, will use a Shimano 30t stainless - I'm all into SS inner rings lately.

Derailleurs: Campagnolo Super Record front & Campagnolo "Super Tourist" rear (SR with Freeman/Soma long cage mod). (These are the real Super Records, not whatever ugly shit they make now with that old name.)

Freewheel: Suntour Winner Pro (WP-6000 = normally spaced 6 sp). 14,16,18,21,26,32
[NOS, 1980s mfg., Freaked upper 21/26/32 cogs from LHT freewheel].
Originally intended Sachs-Maillard 7sp 13,15,17,20,23,26,30 [bought ca. 1990 & used on my 83 Cannondale several years], but a little too wide for the space.

Here's a gear table for the ST WP-6000 14-32 & based on the future 30,41,50 chainwheels. I get decent spacing though a bit higher since the smallest chainwheel possible on the crank with 144mm BCD is 41.

	30	36.7%	41	22%	50
14	58.2		79.6		97.17
14.3%
16	51.0		69.6		84.9
12.5%
18	45.3		61.9		75.5
16.7%
21	38.8		53.1		64.7
23.8%
26	31.4		42.9		52.3
23.1%
32	25.5		34.8		42.5

      (with the 36 inner I get a 30.6 low)

Shift levers: suntour top mount LD-2300 (u).

Chain: Sram PC-870 (n) (minus one link for proper fit, what you know - had one on hand I'd stolen a link from for the Kibo).

Bottom bracket: Avocet 70mm #3 spindle (u), Campagnolo thin cups & 10 ball bearing sets (nos).

Pedals: MKS Sylvan quill, with Christophe clips & straps (new), & Campagnolo strap-pull (nos).

Wheels: Super Champion 27" rims, 36° f&r, Campagnolo 1034 (small flange Record) hubs, 3x with DT stainless spokes: 126mm rear, 100mm front with Campag QR skewers (u).

Tyres: Swift "Sand Canyon" 27x1³/₈", Michelin tubes, Velox 13mm rim tape of course. [wheelset I bought used fall 2018; ~ca. 1980s mfg]

Brakes: Suntour Superbe 4700.

Brake levers: Campagnolo SR with Modolo 919 'Anatomic' hoods in translucent 'bronze' colour (levers used off my LHT; hoods NOS).

Brake cables: Something from my parts box, braided stainless cables

Headset: Campagnolo Record (probably original with frameset as they were sold with this) (u). Loose balls +1 to overcome slight brinelling.

Handlebars: Nitto mod. 177 'Noodle', 46mm Heat Treated (n).
Stem: Nitto Technomic Deluxe NTC-DX, Long, 100mm ext. (n).
Bar tape: Newbaum's (or Cat-eye?) cotton tape (blue) over Cinelli cork tape (red - originally bought ca. 2005 for my Colnago!).

Seat: Brooks B17, black.
Seat pillar: Campagnolo Super Record 27.2mm (u, ex.LHT).
Seatpost binder: Campagnolo.

Rack: Rivendell 'Silver Hupe', may add something light platform rear - blackburn maybe?
Water bottle cages: Jim Blackburn silver x2 (u).
Bell: Lion Bellworks brass (made in England), mounted on stem extension (new). That is if they had any available...
Pump: Zefal HP (any one of my several in use).
Mirror: Mirrycle bar-end, left.
Mudguards with 700c: SKS Bluemels 'stingray' blue with Rivendell 'Sackville' mudflaps in blue f&r (new). (None with 27" as not enough clearance.)
Chainstay protector!: Stainless steel (NOS of course, as these are uninvented & extinct). After installing this one I have just two left...

And: Carradice 'Junior' saddlebag, Zefal or Jandd ankle strap, Zefal and other water bottles...

Weight: Unknown, unimportant.

A few sources of parts for this build: North Road Bicycle Imports, Yanceyville, NC (wheels), Boulder Bicycle (919 hoods, misc. hardware), Ben's Cycle (stem, bars, chain, pedals; flips; & clips, misc. hardware), Rivendell (mudflaps), my stash of good bike parts ca. 2005-2015 (brake levers, brake cables, bar tape, gear shifters & cables, rack, pump, chainstay protector, etc.). Other stuff from eb sales (the frameset, pillar, & headset for one!) or bicycle group sales (seat, brakes, etc.).