1983 55cm Serotta Nova

This one's a real junkyard dog! Found in the midst of a pick for bikes to flip at a local buddy's, this Serotta Nova proved to be worth holding on to. Received with some miscellaneous components and a bent rear dropout, after a tweak and scrub it was ready for some components!

This bike takes a break from the Campagnolo fashion displayed on this blog by utilizing Japanese components. Starting off housing the Nitto stem and bars is a Suntour headset. Comfortably sitting on the bars are Dia-Compe Royal Compe non-aero levers. The levers control a set of Suntour Superbe Pro brakes that perform excellent.

When viewing the drivetrain aspect of this bicycle, the Suntour Superbe Pro derailleurs and crankset make for smooth cadence in any gear. Also, a uniquely designed pair or Suntour Symmetric downtube shifters cut down on chain rub and overall derailleur wear. For those who aren't familiar with these shifters, they are quite neat not just aesthetically. When shifting rear gears, the other shifting lever moves therefore moving the front derailleur to compensate for chain angle. This in turn, gets your front derailleur out of harm's way as far as the chain is concerned. The advantage of the shifter taking care of the compensation instead of the rider is pretty nifty in my eyes. With that said, this is another component that you will not want to disassemble without heavy documentation and/or photographing.

Moving on to the final aspects, keeping this bike rolling smooth is a set of Araya Aero 4 tubular rims with Suntour Sprint hubs. Finally, lock into the Suntour Cyclone pedals and sit comfortably on the Selle San Marco Laser saddle held afloat by a SR Sakae seat post to cruise on real deal steel.

Lastly, I'd like to thank the fellas at The Paceline Forum for helping me date this bike and giving some great suggestions during the build. I think it came out a winner and is proof that sometimes you find gold when digging for steel!

Full Bike Shot

Rear Angle of the Drivetrain

Suntour Superbe Pro Brakes

Suntour Symmetric Downtube Shifters

1995 58cm Pinarello Treviso Catena

First and foremost, my father and I had a lot of fun trying to date this Pinarello frame (sarcasm heavily intended). With that said, the lack of Pinarello serial information and catalogs on the web is somewhat depressing. My father said it was reminiscent of Colnago in the sense that you don't really know what year it was made, but that it is quality due to its name. Well this fine Pinarello was no exception. Lets get down to how I ended up dating the bike first.

With a little help from the Campy Bike DVD (highly recommended for anybody trying to date Campagnolo components), I was able to narrow this bike down to a 1995. First, I noted that in 1995 Campagnolo began putting the groupset name on the actual component. As seen in the pictures to follow, the Chorus groupset on this bike had indeed been labeled. Also, in 1996 Campagnolo began including the “BB System” in the Chorus groupset ergo shifters (or brifters as some call them). This meant that the bike was leaning towards '95 on the account of the Chorus being labeled yet the ergo shifters not containing the “BB System” logo above the levers (it only says “CARBON”). So while I cannot guarantee the frame is a 1995, all the components which I believe to be original would appear to date 1995. Finally, enough Campagnolo dating jargon and on to this beautiful bike!

When viewing the front of the bike, sitting in the Campagnolo Chorus headset is a 3TTT stem harnessing Hsin Lung bars. The Campagnolo Chorus ergo shifters comfortably seal the deal as far the handling aspect of the bike is concerned. The front and back derailleurs are Campagnolo Chorus (closeup of rear featured in pictures), along with a matching crankset and bottom bracket. Lastly, a nice touch is the Campagnolo Chorus pedals with Campagnolo leather straps to fully deck out the drivetrain department. The bike then rolls around on Mavic Open Pro rims with undoubtedly Campagnolo Chorus hubs. The Continental branded tires make for quality all around. After awing at this beautiful cycle, it only gets better while riding on the Selle San Marco Regal Gerardi saddle held up by a Campagnolo Chorus seatpost. Don't forget to take a nice drink from the rare Campagnolo water bottle that is sure to catch the eyes of Campy freaks. Lastly, if one has to stop and drink/think/etc, the Campagnolo Chorus brakes slow the bike down safely and efficiently to put the finishing touches on a smooth and enjoyable ride.

Full Bike Shot

Rear Angle of the Drivetrain

Campagnolo Chorus Ergo Shifters

Campagnolo Chorus Rear Derailleur

Rare Campagnolo Water Bottle

1980 58cm Masi Gran Criterium

When my father received this frame along with some miscellaneous components, it was clear the bike had seen better days. The frame was pretty tore up paint wise. My father decided to have me order a set of decals from Velocals (highly recommended). Shortly there after, he had the bike repainted by a local motorcycle body shop.

The original paint of the frame seemed at first glance to be very hard to replicate. It had at one time beautiful fades from red to white, white to blue, etc. Throw some custom decals in and I'd assume you have quite a bit to tackle. With that said, we couldn't have asked for a better job. Now we'll move on to the bike.

While dating this frame I came across a website called Masi Registry USA ran by a man named Bob Hovey. It helped me narrow the dating of this bike and finally nail it down to 1980. Thanks for your website Mr. Hovey. This allowed my father to proceed with era correct components.

From front to back the bike features components that not only perform great, but look the part of a full restoration. Starting at the front, the Cinelli bars and stem sit comfortably in a Campagnolo Record headset along with some Campagnolo Record levers to finish out the handling aspect of the bike. One might also notice the gum rubber hoods that are still intact.

The Campagnolo Record levers are in control of Campagnolo Record brakes that stop the Mavic GP 4 Tubular rims perfectly. Helping to keep the rims on the frame are a set of Campagnolo Record hubs. Now lets take a look at the drivetrain.

Pick your poison as far as gears go with a set of Campagnolo Super Record derailleurs controlled by Campagnolo Super Record downtube shifters. The Super Record trend continues with a crankset and bottom bracket to boot. The Campagnolo Super Record Strada pedals round out the crankset nicely. The bike then finishes off nicely with the fluted Campagnolo Super Record seatpost with nothing less than a Brooks saddle.

Overall, this bike proved to be a true road warrior that stood the test of time. With a little TLC, a lot of Campagnolo, and a great repaint, it doesn't hurt a thing on the road or sitting in a living room.

Pre-Restoration

Full Bike Shot

Rear Angle of the Drive Train

Beautiful emblems from VeloCals!

Brooks Leather Saddle

Late 80s Eddy Merckx Road Bike

Named after the greatest cyclist ever Eddy Merckx, this 55cm road bike holds up to the name it bears by featuring top of the line components through and through. For those who do not know of or about Eddy Merckx, he was the winner of 5 Tour De Frances from 1969-1974. During that era, the only year he did not win (1973), he was ordered to not race for the good of the event. He also held the hour record on a velodrome for a good part of the 20^th century. Some purists will say his record still stands due to the circumstances in which he completed the event. For more on Eddy Merckx, a simple Google search brings up loads of information along with many highly regarded biographies including one released just April 1^st of this year. Now, on to the bike.

As stated previously, this bike has the cream of the crop components on it for the era in which it was produced. One should expect nothing less when building around the Merckx name and also the highly regarded Columbus SL tubing. Seated in a Campagnolo Super Record headset are Cinelli stem and bars with Modolo levers mounted on them. Moving down to the front fork and rear triangle, the black Modolo brakes give a great contrast to the orange paint and are in great shape. While doing a front to back look over of the bike one cannot help but notice the Campagnolo Synchro downtube shifters also. These Campagnolo shifters can be switched from friction to indexed operation depending on preference by positioning the outer switch seen in the photos. I would not advise taking these shifters apart unless one has a schematic handy. They are quite complex inside. What the shifters control are Campagnolo Super Record rear and front derailleurs. While we're talking about Campagnolo Super Record, one may notice the crankset and strada pedals which are also of the Super Record groupset. These are mounted undoubtedly to a Campagnolo Super Record bottom bracket. Avocet hubs help the bike roll around on Ambrosio tubular 700c rims. The final touches include a Campagnolo fluted Super Record seatpost along with my fathers 1973 Brooks saddle from his early riding days. Overall, a beautiful ride that stays true the Merckx name of quality and performance yet with style and elegance. Rest In Peace Bob Lee.

Full Bike Shot

Rear Angle of the Drivetrain

Campagnolo Synchro Shifters (Note selection switch on right)

What's rolling out soon...

With this blog I hope to uncover some of my father's bikes that have been meticulously rebuilt and restored to the point of not only flawless performance, but striking looks as well! A list will soon be unveiled and each bike will be documented with upcoming posts.