I finally got round to putting together a restoration thread for my old Caygill.
My plan is to restore the bike to the original spec. Where I can, I'll use the original parts, where parts have been lost, I am going to try and replace with NOS parts. There's the odd bit I haven't decided what to do with yet (headset mainly), and I'm going to allow myself a little bit of leeway with some parts that I'd fitted along the way, which might still make it into the build.
It's not a firm deadline because I see enough of those at work, but I'd like to get it all together for a ride to the pub on some suitably period trails on my birthday in June (This year!)
The Bike
I got the bike in 1994 as a replacement for a 1992 Saracen Kili Pro that was stolen from my parents garage (part and parcel of living in Middlesbrough). Rather than being built for me, I think it was built for display or a show, it was hanging in the shop when we went in with the insurance cheque. I was told at the time that it was originally built with Marzocchi forks and they'd been removed for something else, hence the P2 fork.
Here's some pictures of it on the day I got it.
20171130075420221_0001 by Stocktonator, on Flickr
20171130075321840_0001 by Stocktonator, on Flickr
20171130075241991_0001 by Stocktonator, on Flickr
Here's the specification of the bike at the time:
Frame: Arthur Caygill Custom, Reynolds 653 Tubeset. Frame number 380
Fork: Kona Project 2 triple butted
Bars: Ultimate Sports Engineering (USE)
Stem: Kalloy, later replaced with a Caygill custom stem
Grips: ODI Attack
Bar Ends: Zoom Ned Overend L Bend
Saddle: Selle Italia Flite Titanium
Seatpost: Ultimate Sports Engineering (USE)
Tyres: Panaracer Dart 2.1" (Front), Panaracer Smoke Lite 1.0" (Rear)
Rims: Mavic M231CD, 36 Hole
Spokes: DT Swiss Double Butted
Hubs: Shimano XTR (HB-M900 Front / FH-M900 Rear), 36 Hole
Headset: Shimano XTR (HP-M900), 1", Threaded
Bottom Bracket: Shimano XTR (BB-UN90)
Chainset: Shimano XTR (FC-M900), 170mm cranks, 26/36/46T
Cassette: Shimano XTR (CS-M900), 12-32T
Chain: Shimano XTR/Dura-Ace (CN-7401)
Rear Derailleur: Shimano XTR (RD-M900), Long Cage
Front Derailleur: Shimano XTR (FD-M900), 28.6mm, Top Pull, Top Swing
Shifters: Shimano XTR STI (ST-M900)
Brakes: Shimano XTR (BR-M900)
Cables: Shimano XTR (Unknown Part Number, but they were thicker than "normal")
Over the years, bits wore out or got broken and were replaced. The top tube developed a crack and was replaced. It's had three resprays. Here's how it stands at the moment:
Photo 02-12-2017, 12 51 48 by Stocktonator, on Flickr
I've been trying to track down the original colours. Unfortunately Caygill's don't have a record of them, but they've been very helpful with advice and sorting me out with some M900 goodness and a copy of the original build sheet (great to see that they've kept this after so many years!):
Photo 02-12-2017, 14 35 18 by Stocktonator, on Flickr
Caygill's subcontracted their paintwork out back then, but I don't know who did it, and it feels cheeky asking them now they do their own. They were suggesting that they were RAL colours, and the pink looks like RAL Telemagenta 4010, but I can't find a purple RAL that looks close and is available in metallic. I'd reached a bit of an impasse with it, but I called Argos, they've suggested a non-RAL purple and are going to paint some samples for me, so they're getting the work, unlike Bob Jackson, who were dicks about it frankly.
So, my job for this week is to strip the bike down, get it boxed up and sent over to Argos so they can get started with the samples.
I'll update this post as I go on.
Cheers for looking,
Neilios
My plan is to restore the bike to the original spec. Where I can, I'll use the original parts, where parts have been lost, I am going to try and replace with NOS parts. There's the odd bit I haven't decided what to do with yet (headset mainly), and I'm going to allow myself a little bit of leeway with some parts that I'd fitted along the way, which might still make it into the build.
It's not a firm deadline because I see enough of those at work, but I'd like to get it all together for a ride to the pub on some suitably period trails on my birthday in June (This year!)
The Bike
I got the bike in 1994 as a replacement for a 1992 Saracen Kili Pro that was stolen from my parents garage (part and parcel of living in Middlesbrough). Rather than being built for me, I think it was built for display or a show, it was hanging in the shop when we went in with the insurance cheque. I was told at the time that it was originally built with Marzocchi forks and they'd been removed for something else, hence the P2 fork.
Here's some pictures of it on the day I got it.
20171130075420221_0001 by Stocktonator, on Flickr20171130075321840_0001 by Stocktonator, on Flickr20171130075241991_0001 by Stocktonator, on FlickrHere's the specification of the bike at the time:
Frame: Arthur Caygill Custom, Reynolds 653 Tubeset. Frame number 380
Fork: Kona Project 2 triple butted
Bars: Ultimate Sports Engineering (USE)
Stem: Kalloy, later replaced with a Caygill custom stem
Grips: ODI Attack
Bar Ends: Zoom Ned Overend L Bend
Saddle: Selle Italia Flite Titanium
Seatpost: Ultimate Sports Engineering (USE)
Tyres: Panaracer Dart 2.1" (Front), Panaracer Smoke Lite 1.0" (Rear)
Rims: Mavic M231CD, 36 Hole
Spokes: DT Swiss Double Butted
Hubs: Shimano XTR (HB-M900 Front / FH-M900 Rear), 36 Hole
Headset: Shimano XTR (HP-M900), 1", Threaded
Bottom Bracket: Shimano XTR (BB-UN90)
Chainset: Shimano XTR (FC-M900), 170mm cranks, 26/36/46T
Cassette: Shimano XTR (CS-M900), 12-32T
Chain: Shimano XTR/Dura-Ace (CN-7401)
Rear Derailleur: Shimano XTR (RD-M900), Long Cage
Front Derailleur: Shimano XTR (FD-M900), 28.6mm, Top Pull, Top Swing
Shifters: Shimano XTR STI (ST-M900)
Brakes: Shimano XTR (BR-M900)
Cables: Shimano XTR (Unknown Part Number, but they were thicker than "normal")
Over the years, bits wore out or got broken and were replaced. The top tube developed a crack and was replaced. It's had three resprays. Here's how it stands at the moment:
Photo 02-12-2017, 12 51 48 by Stocktonator, on FlickrI've been trying to track down the original colours. Unfortunately Caygill's don't have a record of them, but they've been very helpful with advice and sorting me out with some M900 goodness and a copy of the original build sheet (great to see that they've kept this after so many years!):
Photo 02-12-2017, 14 35 18 by Stocktonator, on FlickrCaygill's subcontracted their paintwork out back then, but I don't know who did it, and it feels cheeky asking them now they do their own. They were suggesting that they were RAL colours, and the pink looks like RAL Telemagenta 4010, but I can't find a purple RAL that looks close and is available in metallic. I'd reached a bit of an impasse with it, but I called Argos, they've suggested a non-RAL purple and are going to paint some samples for me, so they're getting the work, unlike Bob Jackson, who were dicks about it frankly.
So, my job for this week is to strip the bike down, get it boxed up and sent over to Argos so they can get started with the samples.
I'll update this post as I go on.
Cheers for looking,
Neilios
Another forum user tipped me off about a Caygill in the right colours on eBay, I did a deal and picked it up today. This should allow me to get a good match on the colours, but has the potential to end in another project in its own right!
