Perhaps not
the oldest Lippy extant, but definitely the oldest that I have seen.
I came across
this Keith Lippy frame and fork a while back, through a fellow cyclist, who had found it
as a complete bike. When I learned that it was about my size, I was intrigued,
as it looked unlike any other Lippys that I had seen. Built of Reynolds 531 tubing and fork blades, it was lovely, though a bit rough in the finish.
While it was
essentially a straight, well used original-paint frame, it also had some surface rust issues. After some thoughtful exploration of the
possibilities regarding restoration, I acquired it anyway, hoping that the rust
was not fatal.
After a
consultation with Joe Bell, and a repair assessment by Rob Roberson, I gave the
go-ahead for repair and paint.
The results
of their labors are beautiful. Repairs included replacing the deteriorated top
tube cable stops and adding a second set of bottle cage bosses.
The new paint
color is an airy, ethereal light blue pearl, a color that I had seen on a
lovely 3Rensho, also painted by Joe Bell and Jon Pucci. The Lippy logo and
badges are a rich purple, giving a beautiful contrast to the blue. Much credit
goes to Jon Pucci and Joe Bell for the outstanding results.
There is no
serial number on the frame. Keith Lippy said that it is one of his very early
frames, from about 1975. The frame and fork clearly show the refined direction
that his work would take, with nicely shaped lugs and elegant form. A look inside the bottom bracket shell confirms the precision of his miters and brazing.
Now the task
comes back to me, to build the bike. It will be fun and interesting, especially
with the certainty that this early bike will be a great ride.
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The headtube and fork, showing original bosses inside the left fork blade for
a Soubitez-style light generator. |
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| Seat stays, showing original bosses for a rear rack. |
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| Elegant seat cluster, with super clean top eye treatment. |
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| Very clean details, with long-point lugs. |
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| Bottom bracket area, with typical Lippy cable guides. |
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Underside of bottom bracket shell, showing cable guides,
with a drain hole in the long one. |
Isn't lippy building again?
ReplyDeleteAnd on the rogue valley collection there is a complete Lippy listed for sale 58cnm
Very sweet restoration. I came across a Lippy Bike this summer while on vacation. I purchased it, got it where it could be ridden, however to large for me, somewhere in the mid 60s size wise. Do you have any suggestions as to where I could post the bike, see if someone is interested? Thanks, Jim
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