Educate me: Keith Anderson frame & Campy 7 speed

[mcallen]

Background: I was poking around the attic of my local shop and found this Keith Anderson bike. It was a perfect fit for me, both in terms of size (58cm frame) and type of bike I was looking for (I had a fixed gear, Cross/Gravel bike, mountain bike, and touring bike, but no road bike). Guys at the shop didn't know much about it, but owner traded me straight for the touring rig.

What I know and want to learn: I don't have much experience with handmade frames or Campy, so I'd love to learn more about what I have here. Looking around the forum and online shows that Keith Anderson has been in the game for a long time and is well respected. Sticker says Colombus. Drivetrain is indexed DT shifter and seven-speed rear cog. Anything else you can tell me about the builder and the group would be much appreciated.

Photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Vziv3eVnRivNvr5i1

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by mcallen

Background: I was poking around the attic of my local shop and found this Keith Anderson bike. It was a perfect fit for me, both in terms of size (58cm frame) and type of bike I was looking for (I had a fixed gear, Cross/Gravel bike, mountain bike, and touring bike, but no road bike). Guys at the shop didn't know much about it, but owner traded me straight for the touring rig.

What I know and want to learn: I don't have much experience with handmade frames or Campy, so I'd love to learn more about what I have here. Looking around the forum and online shows that Keith Anderson has been in the game for a long time and is well respected. Sticker says Colombus. Drivetrain is indexed DT shifter and seven-speed rear cog. Anything else you can tell me about the builder and the group would be much appreciated.

Photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Vziv3eVnRivNvr5i1

Group is ‘A-B’ Chorus, shifters are ‘Syncro2’...Campag had a variety of shifter inserts to match speed, chain and freewheel type. Made from about 1986 thru very early 90s....didn’t really shift very well.

[Cicli]

I got nothing other than to say thets a really cool bike.

[choke]

That's a really nice bike....congrats.

Campy 7sp and 8sp spacing are the same, so any 8sp Campy shifter will work fine...you can even use Ergos if you want. If you want to stay with DT shifters there are later index ones which are better or you can of course go friction.

The 7sp cogs are the same as 8sp ones so that's not a problem....buy an 8sp cassette and leave one cog out, they aren't pinned.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by choke

That's a really nice bike....congrats.

Campy 7sp and 8sp spacing are the same, so any 8sp Campy shifter will work fine...you can even use Ergos if you want. If you want to stay with DT shifters there are later index ones which are better or you can of course go friction.

The 7sp cogs are the same as 8sp ones so that's not a problem....buy an 8sp cassette and leave one cog out, they aren't pinned.

Not really with that rear der. Get any Campag 8 shifter, Syncro 3, ERGO and a 1992+ rear der, even 9/10s ones....that’ll work well.

[AngryScientist]

i think you scored mcallen.

frame looks pretty mint.

depending on how you want to use the bike really will decide on what to do about the drivetrain.

for better or worse, drivetrains of that era were much more "race" oriented with high gear ratios. the market has shifted (for the better IMO) to more relaxed gearing, and most casual cyclists would be more comfortable riding with lower gearing than was available at the time.

if it were me, i would swap in a new centaur or potenza silver group on that bike and ride it happily.

either way - enjoy, it's a looker!

[thwart]

I would say you've scored a very nice bike.

If you like the vintage Campy stuff, stick with it. If not the aforementioned silver Potenza stuff would work out well, and with a wider range cassette it would be a nice replacement for your touring bike.

You will do well on eBay for those Campy parts.

And... it is St. Patty's Day green...

[Spaghetti Legs]

Unless your touring rig was a very special bike, you scored on that trade! Beautiful frame by a respected builder. Sticker suggests Columbus SL, although Columbus SP (thicker walled) was mixed in on larger frames. My guess, if group is original to bike is that it is from 1989-91. If set up right the Syncro 2 shifters work fine. I have it on 6 speed C-Record, two 7 speed Athena/Chorus bikes and an 8 speed Record/Chorus bike. I've found that using a modern 8 speed chain like a KMC Z72 or SRAM helps out. I think some people use 9 speed chains.

[skiezo]

Im loving the dual colored/different shades of green.

[Mzilliox]

Wow, you got a good one there. Keith used mainly high end columbus tubes. That stay/seat cluster treatment is my favorite from him too. Great work with the fork and paint as well.

It almost looks like it could have been his bike at one point!

[soulspinner]

That's nice.

[mcallen]

Thanks for the info. It was a St. Patty’s Day miracle! Touring bike was nothing special, but it was shop owner’s previously so he had a soft spot for it.

I am taking it out for a ride today and I am hugely happy with the ride quality. Seems to glide over these rough Indiana roads much better than my other bikes. I will probably swap out drive train to modernize it a bit, especially to get more range in back. Looking forward to many happy miles.

[oliver1850]

Great find Matt. I'd leave it pretty much as is. If you want wider range gearing, that derailleur in B position will handle up to a 32 large cog. If you have a cassette hub the cogs will be hard to find but if it has a freewheel finding one won't be hard. You can file down 9 speed cogs to fit the C7/C8 freehub. You can buy individual Miche 9 speed cogs up to 29 teeth. If 26 is large enough, keep your eye on ebay for a Campagnolo 8 speed 13-26 cassette. They still turn up new occasionally.

[Clean39T]

Originally Posted by oliver1850

Great find Matt. I'd leave it pretty much as is. If you want wider range gearing, that derailleur in B position will handle up to a 32 large cog. If you have a cassette hub the cogs will be hard to find but if it has a freewheel finding one won't be hard. You can file down 9 speed cogs to fit the C7/C8 freehub. You can buy individual Miche 9 speed cogs up to 29 teeth. If 26 is large enough, keep your eye on ebay for a Campagnolo 8 speed 13-26 cassette. They still turn up new occasionally.

Seems to be most Keith Andersen frames live in IN these days - that’s where mine came from. I thought the craftsmanship and ride quality of the one I had was superb - just a touch small for me though. I’d grab another in a second if I had room and the sizing was right. Congrats!

[EricEstlund]

Keith was originally and Indiana guy. He also built bikes in Utah and Oregon. He's since moved on from the bike industry, but he was a talented builder and world class painter.