A bit bent Butler.....Claud Butler Electron?

[keithglos]

Looks like a bulge just below the bottom head lug. I would say it was bent then given a tug to pull it back as far as possible. This would generally make the seat lug a bit steeper.
To replace the tubes you cut them first and remove one end at a time. These were not pinned, but require more heat than the original joint, plus a bit of wiggling.

As this was a medium range Holdsworthy I would not have thought it worth the cost unless there was some historic connection.
Keith

 

[Peachy!]

Seat tube angle is indeed 73deg. I'll order that sticker!

Next to inspect the forks.......

Excellent news..... and whether or not it's "worth it" Are any of them? :roll:

 

[Jamiedyer]

I think a huge percentage of what we on here restore are not worth it when you consider what the cost could buy outright with regard to another frame or bike, and to be fair, these Electrons are not exactly high end. Sometimes I find it just worth saving something for the pure satisfaction of not seeing it scrapped, though can certainly see where Keith is coming from with regards to swapping out tubes, not sure mine would ever go that far.
It is a sweet little frame though so I may have to get it down and measure up some angles, though I don't think it's as bad as sherlylocks by any stretch.
Watching with interest

Jamie

 

[sherlylock]

Checked the forks last night with a straight edge up against the crown to see if the steerer tube is parallel to the casting at least. Unfortunately I've removed the crown race - ideally need to check that the steerer is square to it. All looks good though - and they are the original forks as they are stamped up with the same serial number. Unless these have been straightened out at some point....

Next check is to refit the headset and see if I can set it up OK - I'm guessing even a slight bend in the steerer tube will present in a headset that binds as you rotate the forks?

Initial thoughts for the frame are to build an alignment jig and have a go at tweaking the frame back to it's correct geometry (before going down the tube replacement route). I've got access to a machine shop at work and some jig making kit.......and an idea in my head........ :shock:

 

[sherlylock]

Long overdue update....the Electron has been shelved - had a play at tweaking the frame and cracked it in an area where it's heavily corroded. Fairly obvious that the only way this frame is going to be ridden is a proper tube replacement.......so at this point its effectively a scrapper so its on the shelf for a rainy day.

So when an advert popped up locally on facebook for a "cycle" and it was clearly a 531 Electron I jumped on it. It was up for £30 but I ended up paying £50 to avoid being gazumped but well worth it......it's been properly looked after in the past and is just suffering from a bit of storage corrosion and dirt. I'll start a fresh thread for this later......but in the meantime some pics. Can't quite believe I've found another one......

 

[Peachy!]

Excellent, don’t forget to log the number on dwscrimshaws “Holdsworth frame numbers” thread as we think these are possible “marker” frames (ie only built in one year) that help us hang the Holdsworth/Claud frame number predictions on.

Btw what a bargain!