Fuquay reborn

I'm assembling a road bike to make use of parts I've got lying around and can't bear to get rid of. Frame is a Fuquay from the mid 90's, built by an ex-US Air Force technician who made bicycle frames near Hadleigh during the 1990's, before returning to the states. His frames were welded, rather than brazed, as practised by most UK frame builders at the time, and had a reputation for lightness and strength. This particular frame was built for a review in Cycling Weekly, but not submitted because he had forgotten to fully ream out the recess for the rear brake allen nut and consequently the nut sits proud of the hole. He found he couldn't get the drill in position once he'd welded on the rear triangle! A flawed masterpiece!

 It was worth visiting his workshop just to hear him yarn about bikes, which he was happy to do for hours. I suspect he went out of business because he talked more than he welded! The frame is made from a mixture of Tange Prestige and Richey Logic (seat tube) tubing, rather than the more usual Reynolds or Columbus. It was pretty much 'state of the art' for a steel frame at the time, although subsequent aluminium, titanium and carbon frames are likely to beat it for weight. I'm looking forward to seeing how it rides again and I'll be kitting it out with mid 90's 8-speed Campagnolo kit to keep the period look. It's funny how steel looks quite 'exotic' now, compared to the huge tubes of modern carbon frames, whereas the converse was true when it was built! Wheels next...