Classic & Vintage - Italian frame-lovers out there?

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peripatetic
05-22-06, 07:05 AM
Marinoni here in NYC. Looks nice:

http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/bik/163001204.html

Anyone have any history/info about Marinonis?

Barnaby
05-22-06, 07:20 AM
I just won one off of e-bay this month. When I lived in Ottawa I was going to get a custom Marinoni steel, but something happened and I went the other route. This was in '82. At that time the company had a very good reputation. I think the seller is confused by calling it "Italien made" though, as I remember, the factory is in or near Montreal. I bought mine a bit blind, but was attracted by the SL lugged frame. If I were you I would contact the shop directly, or get in touch with someone like Mike Barry Sr. who runs Bicycle Specialties outside of Toronto as far as researching the quality of these bikes, but I have never heard a negative reference, and the deal should be good in the US as they are not well known there.
T-Mar
05-22-06, 07:58 AM
Marinoni are manufactured in Canada and not Italy, though Guiseppe was born in Italy. I have owned three Marinoni, including a custom model. I raced extensively on two of them, though they were re-badged for my sponsor. In my 30+ years of cycling I would say that Marinoni is my favorite brand. They are an excellent frame and you would be hard pressed to do better, provided the frame in question fits you properly and has not been damaged. The Raleigh frames ridden by the many of the 1984 US Olympic team members were actually re-badged Marinoni.

Marinoni made some mid-range models using Columbus Cromor and Matrix tubing. This appears to be one of them and would explain the 105 equipment and relatively low price.

cyclotoine
05-22-06, 09:51 AM
When purchasing a Marinoni you can specify what "grade" you want and they have a full line of bikes now. For someone like me he builds the bike to your measurements. Luckily i found one and bought it off a guy who had it built for him and he was the exact same height as me. Another nice feature is the frame is a Columbus SP/SPX mix. This is due to the fact that at 6'3.5" (to be exact this is the measurement of the guy who sold it too me) the thicker tubing is great for added stiffness plus I am weigh in at about 185 lbs, so on the "heavier" side in the cycling world. Phenominal craftsmanship.