waterford

[maxdog]

considering picking up a waterford for a build project. this is one thats been on my wish list for a while, along with eisentraut,zanconato,kirk,if,weigle,della santa,pegoretti,holland and gaulzetti. and that's the short list. anyone who owns or has owned a waterford please raise your hand. thanks.

[hankchong]

I own a 2200 from 1999. It's a fun ride. I love climbing the Berkeley hills on it. The frame has a lively road feel, though I do feel more fatigued after rides longer than 80 miles than I do on my other bikes. The tubeset is on the light side. I was able to torque the bottom bracket significantly and felt the front-end dive and swim on me on hard downhill banks (like coming down Centennial Drive in Berkeley) when I weighed 215lbs or so. I receive comments regarding how beautiful the frame is every time I take it out. Go for it.

[fogrider]

I found the 2200 has pretty quick geometry, more for crits than road riding. I like stable rides that handle well on descents. I too have della santa, pegoretti on my list...I would pass on waterford for those.

[RudAwkning]

I found the 2200 has pretty quick geometry, more for crits than road riding. I like stable rides that handle well on descents. I too have della santa, pegoretti on my list...I would pass on waterford for those.

The 2200 only designates the tubeset used and that it's a lugged model. It doesn't have anything to do with the geometry. The prefix will tell you the geometry (ie RS-2200, R-2200, RST-2200, etc.).

[joelh]

I ride a RS 22 and love it. It is a quick but very comfortable ride. In my opinion, it is also a very beautiful bike. Very nice lug work and a distinctive paint job. Would highly recommend a Waterford.

[bobswire]

Serotta's are pretty nice also. :rolleyes: The '89 I purchased from Joelh was a great ride and the only reason I sold it was to get a Serotta CDA, either of which I'd take over two Waterfords I've owned.

[joelh]

Serotta's are pretty nice also. :rolleyes: The '89 I purchased from Joelh was a great ride and the only reason I sold it was to get a Serotta CDA, either of which I'd take over two Waterfords I've owned.

Man, you get up early on the left coast :) Bob has a point. That frame was an older colorado and was an awesome ride and a very elegant paint job. The only reason that I sold it, was it was too small.

[sg8357]

If you want a stiff Waterford, True Temper S3 tubing is available,
it is super oversized. Regular oversize tubing and for
the Francophile, normal size tubing. Waterford still
makes steel forks. There are a bunch of them in my club, sometimes
half the bikes on the ride are Waterfords, the next most popular are
Serottas. The RS series geometry is a good recreation of a vintage
racing bike.

[oldpotatoe]

considering picking up a waterford for a build project. this is one thats been on my wish list for a while, along with eisentraut,zanconato,kirk,if,weigle,della santa,pegoretti,holland and gaulzetti. and that's the short list. anyone who owns or has owned a waterford please raise your hand. thanks.

Own a R32 and have sold them for over 15 years. BIG fan. Well made, all custom, not expensive(even the 953 one, when compared to other stainless offerings), great paint options..pretty much the pinnacle of steel manufacturing IMO. Rides like a dream, looks great, will last forever.

Most are TrueTemper Platinum tubes..S-3, Oversized and shaped for the R22.

Richard has never done the blended materials thing either. He realizes that steel, w/o carbon 'bits', rides like a dream. He has never been swayed by marketing, like some have(carbon back end of steel frames).

Mine

http://waterfordbikes.com/now/home.php?newstype=r953over

Plus Richard is a great guy, does most of the design work himself.

[oldpotatoe]

The 2200 only designates the tubeset used and that it's a lugged model. It doesn't have anything to do with the geometry. The prefix will tell you the geometry (ie RS-2200, R-2200, RST-2200, etc.).

There really isn't any 'geometry', as they are all custom. I guess if the custom geometry fits a category, that would dictate the decal but they are all made to order.

[veloduffer]

There really isn't any 'geometry', as they are all custom. I guess if the custom geometry fits a category, that would dictate the decal but they are all made to order.


No, they had a stock geometry. I had the 2200 for quite a while and it was a really nice bike. The stock geo had a steeper seat angle than I prefer and eventually sold it to a friend, who still rides it. It had a steel fork and all the liveliness that one enjoys on a steel bike. Used it for racing as well - solid in the turns, definitely exudes confidence on the course.

[oldpotatoe]

No, they had a stock geometry. I had the 2200 for quite a while and it was a really nice bike. The stock geo had a steeper seat angle than I prefer and eventually sold it to a friend, who still rides it. It had a steel fork and all the liveliness that one enjoys on a steel bike. Used it for racing as well - solid in the turns, definitely exudes confidence on the course.

When I sold them 14 years ago, they did have 1200, 2200, etc models, mostly lugged and did have standard 'geometry'. Now they are made to order, mostly tig welded altho they still offer 2 lugged models.

[55/Rad]

LOVED my 2200. One of my favorite rides I ever had.



http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/5788/wfhero11gu8.jpg

[Ken Robb]

I had an RS1100 and it was a wonderful ride. It was a stock frame but could have been built all-custom at no extra charge. I loaned it to a pal whose ti Dean was stolen and he "made" me sell it to him.

[RudAwkning]

There really isn't any 'geometry', as they are all custom. I guess if the custom geometry fits a category, that would dictate the decal but they are all made to order.

You are correct. I should have said "ride style" or "handling" instead of geometry. I've got a 33 that's designated an RS-33, due to the 58 trail. But unlike an RS, I had the bike spec'd with a 7 bb drop and a 41cm chainstay length, which is more like their R series.

[katematt]

A fixie now, but made by the Waterford folks, 853 tubing, from '90. The only time I ever went over 55 MPH on a downhill with a 1" HT. Stable as could be.

[joelh]

A fixie now, but made by the Waterford folks, 853 tubing, from '90. The only time I ever went over 55 MPH on a downhill with a 1" HT. Stable as could be.

I got my RS 22 up to 48 once. Bike felt good, but all I could think about were little tubes and skinny tires. A daredevil, I am not.

[maxdog]

Serotta's are pretty nice also. :rolleyes: The '89 I purchased from Joelh was a great ride and the only reason I sold it was to get a Serotta CDA, either of which I'd take over two Waterfords I've owned.

i agree serotta's are more than nice! the custom colorado concept tubing serotta i had built back in '94 is still one of my best fitting/riding bikes i own. i also own a hand built '82 trek (headbadge, no model designation) campy record equipped i bought in '83 (my first high end ride), a vitus 979 dura-ace, an '85 3rensho dura-ace, '85 specialized expedition (touring bike) a late '80's or early '90's (can't remember) kestral which basically desintergrated on me (i guess they hadn't perfect cf yet), '87 myata pro superbe (sold), '89 specialized stumpjumper (no suspension),cinelli supercorsa campy record (bought in early 90's, but from mid '80's as i recall, sold),'92 burley bossa nova tandem suntour, '99 gary fisher xtr (front susp.), '06 moots vamoots sl dura-ace w/campy fd and sram red cassette (for weight, about 16 lbs w/ brooks swallow titanium), '07 fetish cycles beater ultegra, and now, the bike i've wanted for 20yrs, a richard sachs road i'm building w/campy record. you see i too am a bike enthusiast/addict who has been riding for over 30 years. okay, back to the financial markets to pay for my habit. thanks for all the feedback.