John Thompson says that 753 would be too stiff for him. Is that true? Everything I have read about frame materials has indicated that other things being equal all steel tubing is of the same stiffness but high end tubes are stronger and can therefore be thinner gauge, lighter but less stiff. If the above is true how come the 753 is stiffer idea is so popular ? Maybe because 753 was usually used on racing frames and a bike with 16in chainstays will seem stiffer than a 531 touring bike with 171/2 in chainstays? In an earlier post I stated that 3/10mm 531 tubing was used in "Tour" bikes in the late sixties. I agree that it seems unlikely given that a 753 was 5/10mm at the thinnest. Furthermore in the sixties many roads in Northern france were pave. My source was Le Cycle mag. Of course as I don't read French (or as Sergio from Pisa has pointed out, Italian either) I may have got it wrong. The quote is "On aura sans doute adopte a la fabication des attaches brasees en raison des tubes suffisamment epais, porte pompe et butees de gaines ce que l'onne peut pas faire sur des tubes de 5 et a plus forte raison de 3/10" Any linguists know if I'm right?.
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