Classic & Vintage - Andy Hampsten's Motorola Merckx

Listed by a very reputable seller with provenance:

http://cgi.ebay.com/92-Eddy-Merckx-Andy-Hampsten-Tour-de-France-Dura-Ace-gc_W0QQitemZ360067240830QQihZ023QQcategoryZ56197QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Definitely a centerpiece for someone's collection, especially someone like me who digs the 7-Eleven-Motorola team stuff. Unfortunately doesn't fit either my body or wallet size.

I know someone it would fit on both counts.

Not me, obviously.

There are a couple of threads on another Andy Hampsten bike for sale on Serotta:
http://www.serotta.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46598
http://www.serotta.com/forum/showthread.php?t=30981

I wonder if this is a De Rosa built bike, as well?

:thumb:<drool>

It's MY size! Unfortunately, i'm not in a position to buy at this time. Thanks for the post though, at least I can look at the nice pics of it :)

--WT

I wonder if this is a De Rosa built bike, as well?

I kinda doubt it given that it's not titanium and the BB shell has EM engraved on it and what seems to be a cast-in area for the serial number...no sign of a DeRosa mark.

What year were brifters introduced?

Nice!
Rangy toptube and short stem. too bad for me that he didn't ride a 60cm.

niiiiiiiiiiiiiice!

I kinda doubt it given that it's not titanium and the BB shell has EM engraved on it and what seems to be a cast-in area for the serial number...no sign of a DeRosa mark.

It's a distinctly De Rosa fork, and De Rosa built other bikes for Merckx racers, and Hampsten, in that year, so why not?

Just asking, I don't really know. The fork sure looks like an Ugo fork.

I really don't know either...Ugo, Eddy and Andy know for sure.:D

Unless I'm missing something (always a possibility), plenty of Merckx's have that fork - including my '88 Corsa. I have no doubt the design came from De Rosa. All of the frame bits on the Hampsten bike have the Merckx logo or name stamped on them, so I'm leaning heavily toward that being a Merckx-built frame. Two people have already written Stefan, BTW, to say that the bike is actually built with Reynolds 753 as one of Andy's climbing specials, despite the TSX decal. I have read interviews with Hampsten where he mentions that Merckx built him some 753 bikes for mountain stages.

The fork is the same as my 1983 Merckx, and my 1987 De Rosa. I've always considered the Merckx to be a close cousin of the De Rosa.

Very cool that it may be 753. I've seen a couple 753 Merckx's, would love to own one.

I have an article posted here that interviews Ugo:
http://picasaweb.google.com/A2UsedBikes/DeRosaArticle

He tells a prospective German customer to buy a Merckx instead, tells them it's closer to home and every bit as good as his own.(thanks to caterham for the article).

Seems as though there is quite a bit of controversy regarding this bike.

All bids have been canceled, and bidding has renewed. There are further descriptions/excuses listed on the auctions page.
Bottom line...reserve not met with less than a day to go, and it may or may not be the bike it was purported to be.

I believe the Serotta forum played a lead role in sniffing this one out.

Regardless, it is a nice bike, but perhaps not THE bike.

Seems as though there is quite a bit of controversy regarding this bike.

All bids have been canceled, and bidding has renewed. There are further descriptions/excuses listed on the auctions page.
Bottom line...reserve not met with less than a day to go, and it may or may not be the bike it was purported to be.

I believe the Serotta forum played a lead role in sniffing this one out.

Regardless, it is a nice bike, but perhaps not THE bike.

I don't think all the bids were canceled - the top two bidders (the ones who met the reserve) chose to cancel their bids. I don't think it will meet the initial reserve based on the fact that it now seems very doubtful that the bike is the Alpe d'Huez winner. The gist of your post is spot-on. Stefan is generally a very reliable seller, and I think the interest in this bike caught him a bit by surprise. I'm surprised it caught him by surprise, but there you have it. And the reserve isn't way out of line for a geniune Hampsten race bike - though I think a bike that won on Alpe d'Huez is a bunch of levels higher in the pyramid.

Well, I was wrong abut it not making the reserve.

Well it seems that is a 753, and was Hampsten's Motorola team bike, so I'm not surprised it made reserve.

I'm not sure why the seller was surprised at the interest, it would seem this is a perfect time to sell such a bike.

I wouldn't be shocked to see it go for right around $4k, we'll see in a couple of hours.

Boy, was I off...$6300 to someone from Oz!

How about that. Only reason I thought it might not make reserve is that folks might have been spooked by the bid cancellations and Stefan might decide to relist the bike. I had forgotten until your recent post that it is definitely a 753 bike and therefore one of Andy's climbing specials - whether or not it's the Alpe d'Huez bike is a different story, but Stefan apparently believes it is and that belives further that he can document the fact adequately to the winning bidder.