My 1981 Holdsworth Special

[Jim Cardiff]

Now fully restored - a real labour of love. Campag Nos mechs, levers and hubs , but Mavic open pro rims rather than tubs, and Shimano 600 brakes, and Nitta stem and seat pin
First, the original advert

Now for mine

 

[midlife]

Very, very nice , Yours is the slightly later than advert frame with under BB guides.

Is it the original paint?

 

[raggydoll]

That is stunning!

 

[lazybloke]

Looks lovely; much better than my slightly newer model. Pretty sure I have the same chainset and pedals!

 

[FrankCrank]

If you lend it to me for a few weeks I'll give it a thorough check over to make sure it's roadworthy.

 

[Jim Cardiff]

Very, very nice , Yours is the slightly later than advert frame with under BB guides.

Is it the original paint?

The paintwork is new, carried out by Argos Racing cycles. I bought the bike second hand in the mid 1980s, when the frame was white. The frame no. is 036255 which I think dates it to 1981. Off hand, I can't recall whether I had the cable guides altered.

 

[GuyBoden]

Beautiful, well done

 

[T4tomo]

Very nice, I saw the Holdsworth Crankset on planet X and was tempted for mine which i'm about to start on, but the shimano 600 one is v nice so sticking with that, provided I can man up to a 38T inner ring. Did it come with 700c wheels or have you changed to them? mine is on 27" but a marginally earlier frame number at 032285 and a Mistral not a Special

 

[Jim Cardiff]

Very nice, I saw the Holdsworth Crankset on planet X and was tempted for mine which i'm about to start on, but the shimano 600 one is v nice so sticking with that, provided I can man up to a 38T inner ring. Did it come with 700c wheels or have you changed to them? mine is on 27" but a marginally earlier frame number at 032285 and a Mistral not a Special

 

[Jim Cardiff]

I Really can't recall original wheel size. My guess is 700c as it had Fiamme sprints and Wolber tubs. The 1982 frameset catalogue refers to mudguard clearances with 700c (not 27") tubs. Did Fiamme ever make 27" sprints?
For years I used this frame as a single speed winter bike and have no idea what I did with the original wheels.

I don't pretend to be a purist and used a new "Holdsworth" perforated chainset (in place of SR) and Grande Compe perforated brake levers (in place of Univeral) as looking most like the originals as fitted. I used modern MKS pedals as NOS Campag ones cost an arm and a leg
Restoration using NOS or good quality new parts is something of a money pit, as the total cost, including frame respray, inevitably exceeds the value if the completed project as few people want a steel frame nowadays.
I did try to sell it a couple of times but no takers; I'm not complaining as I undertook it out of the pleasure of the rebuild and breathing new life into a classic bike.
I guess that the Mistral has slightly more relaxed angles and bigger clearances, but is otherwise similar quality to the Special

 

[midlife]

The 80's Holdsworths were in advance of some others moving to 700c wheels and under bb guides.

 

[T4tomo]

I guess that the Mistral has slightly more relaxed angles and bigger clearances, but is otherwise similar quality to the Special

spot on, it was the "Touring" option so has slightly slacker angles, weinmann centre pull calipers, so a bit more clearance for wider tyres, mudguard and rack mounts, but still made from 531steel, and the frameset cost the same back in the early 80's. it also has a double chainset 48-38 (and 130 BCD so 38 is the smallest option), unlike my slightly later Peugeot tourer, which has a nice 50-40-30 triple up front, so is a great option for the hills. That Holdsworth chain set handily comes with a 34T inner I think, and looks the business drilled out