Is this a Holdsworth Frame?, DBS La Migliore

[PerB]

DBS was the largest Bike company in Scandinavia, they made their own welded frames for standard bikes and low end touring bikes, but for the proper Racing bikes they bought frames from many different vendors trough the years. The Top model La Migliore got Daccordi frames in the eighties, but the seventies is not well documented, but Holdsworth is mentioned as a possible source for the frames, although we know that some French frames were offered as well. This bike is most likely a mid seventies bike, I base this on the decals and color scheme. Its for sale her in Norway and I am tempted.

 

[Robbied196]

Re:

The frame looks vert like what was a Holdsworth Super Mistral in the UK

download/file.php?id=298643

Excellent frames

 

[torqueless]

Re:

I understand the temptation. Put it this way: I cannot see anything in those photos (apart from absence of orange and kingfisher blue paint) that would rule out the frame as being a '70s Holdsworth factory pro, it seems to tick all the boxes, but you'd be better off getting a reply from someone who knows them more intimately than I do. You may have been here already: http://www.nkilgariff.com/Professional.htm

Caveat emptor:
The back of the seat lug looks a bit suspect- The slot seems to go all the way down the lug- a 'through slot' rather than the usual 'stopped slot', with a possible resultant crack in the seat tube?

I'm trying to discern whether or not the down tube has bottle-cage bosses. I'd guess no, but there are two dark spots on the top of the downtube which could be marks from a band-on cage. Make sure they are not DIY holes that once held self-tapping screws.

Might be just the photos..

 

[Midlife]

Smart looking 70's frame and looks like it could well have come from the Holdsworth / Thame stable. Love the first gen dura ace

I'm not sure if it's a Mistral as they tended to have the eyes on the dropouts and different lugs. The Pro's of that era went a bit silly on the clearance front and had very short wheelbases and had to use very short drop brakes. The pro's also tended to use a hollow wraparound of the seat stays and could be a bit chunkier.

Could well be a Thame frame in the Holdsworth Pro mould. Not a shabby frame by any means and would sit well with my collection of 70's frames, including my Thame

Shaun



Shaun

 

[Robbied196]

Sorry, I meant 'Professional' as the picture link :facepalm:

 

[torqueless]

Re:

Umm... Although I reckon you know all of what follows already, you may have clouded the issue a bit there Shaun!

The link in my post reveals something of the convoluted situation in Holdsworth land. There was the factory, and there was the shop (both of which built framesets). My understanding (which I admit is entirely based on information at the link) is that they had some sort of symbiotic relationship, but were sometimes at loggerheads, especially with respect to these top-end framesets. So much so that in the end the shop was obliged to stop using the name 'Holdsworth' on their frames at all, which henceforth became 'Roy Thame(s)'.

My understanding is that the 'chunky wraparounds' were exclusive to the shop-made frames handbuilt by Reg Collard, and later by Tommy Quick.

I'd assume that 'the largest Bike company in Scandinavia', would be dealing with Holdsworthy (the factory) rather than W.F. Holdsworth (the shop), and that, rather than being strictly handbuilt by one framebuilder, this would be a factory-made frame, - i.e. someone brazed the forks, someone else brazed the bracket, etc.

If I understand correctly, the factory never built 'Roy Thames', and the shop never built 'Super Mistrals', (although they might be on sale there). Both the factory and the shop built a 'Professional'.

 

[Midlife]

Torqueless

I think you are bang on the money, I think I confuse myself at times. I ought to know better as I worked in a bike shop in the 1970's lol

Shaun

 

[keithglos]

The 1971 Holdworthy Company frame I had included 5/8 seat stays with full wrapover, sloping fork crown and was supplied to the trade originally for own transfers.

Keith

 

[PerB]

Re: Holdsworth DBS

Thanks for the replies; the bike is now in the post with my name on the package.

The bike could very well been made by the shop, most La Migliores were tailor made to measure. I guess that the frame number can tell where it was made.
This was not a bike you could go into the bike shop showroom and say I want this particular bike in 58 cm size. No sir, sit patiently and wait until the frame is made according to your measure, you could buy the frame as a bare frame to build with your own components or you could order it assembled at the DBS racing shop. My guess is that this particular bike was one man’s own assembly due to the mix of Campagnolo, Shimano and Sugino components. Normally you should expect the La Migliore bikes to come with full Noevo Record group. The next level called Proffezionale was normally equipped with Dura Ace group. The Norwegian National cycling team road these bikes and not many privateers could afford them. Only a few dedicated bike shops were allowed to sell them.

There is very few of this bikes left here in Norway or Scandinavia (there were not many from the beginning), I have only seen one other. I have another DBS La Migliore in my stable, but that’s a mid eighties bike with Italian Daccordi frame and a mix of Noevo Record and Super Record Components.

Here is a link to some Pictures of my other La Migliore viewtopic.php?f=23&t=345773
BRG