tk1769

I am new to this forum, also to vintage bikes. I just obtained a Carnielli Bottacchia bicycle, and am trying to find out a few things about it. First I would like to know what vintage it is, secondly an approximate value. The number stamped on the bottom bracket is M4 3749 59. It has campo GS cranks, a campo front derailer, a shimano 105 rear derailer, and modolo speedy brakes.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!

Fivethumbs

You really need to show a picture that displays the tubing sticker. It could be anything from an old hunk of junk to a classic collectible.

tk1769

Here is a pic if it helps anyone identify the year and approximate value.

Fivethumbs

Based on the fact that the brake levers are not aero and the frame sports a two tone fade, I would venture to guess it is an early to mid '80's. It appears to be a lower level frame due to the following: 1) no chrome (except the fork). Not even the drive side chain stay; 2) rear brake cable routing is external; 3) fork crown does not appear to have the signature pantographed "B"; 4) no braze-on derailleur tab.

I don't know what type of tubing is used but I am sure it is a lower grade of steel. Unless the tubing is Columbus SL or better I would say the bike is worth very little, maybe a couple hundred bucks to the right person.

Kommisar89

I'm going to disagree just a bit with Fivethumbs - I'll go out on a limb and say '87. Why? The decals. I've never seen the script decals on the downtube/seattube prior to '87. I'm going to take a guess and say the tubing is Columbus, either Aelle or Gara tretubi but that's just a guess. Which one would depend on the model year. Nothing wrong with that. There is something wrong with that crank. The arms maybe look like Campy GS but the rings don't look anything like that. Triomphe maybe? Need more/better pictures to give you a better idea. And check what appears to be a Columbus decal at the base of the downtube. That should tell you what tubing it is.

tk1769

Yes, the sticker on the down tube says Columbus/testubi Aelle. Here are a few more pics to help you identify the bike.

I am more interested in finding out what vintage this bike is, but would also like to know an approximate value for it if possible. The only thing I know for sure is it was previously owned by an affluent homeowner in Vail.

Thanks for all your help, as I said before, I am very new to vintage bikes, so your help is appreciated.

Fivethumbs

As far as the sticker goes, I'm sure it says tretubi rather than testubi. Tretubi meant that the three main tubes (top tube, down tube, seat tube) were made of the higher grade steel (in this case Aelle) while the seat and chain stays were a lesser steel. Unfortunately, Aelle was pretty much at the bottom of the Columbus tubing hierarchy already. It is straight guage (non-butted) steel. It's not chromoly but rather a carbon/manganese alloy. Here is some info about Aelle from a Columbus tubing brochure: SET FOR AMATEUR AND TOURING CYCLISTS. BUILT OF COLD-DRAWN, MICROALLOYED-STEEL THIN-WALL TUBING WHICH MAKES IS ESPECIALLY LIGHTWEIGHT. CMn STEEL - WEIGHT 2345 g. Aelle bikes were known to ride nicely; however they were not sought after and were inexpensive when compared to their higher level counterparts (i.e. Cromor, SL, SLX, TSX, etc.) Unfortunately, I can't tell you anything about the vintage other than I believe it's an 80's product. But it is really one of Carnielli/Bottecchia's lower level offerings.

Kommisar89

Like Fivethumbs is saying, it's not a high-end model. I wouldn't call it bottom of the line though. Bottom of the export line maybe but there were a lot of bikes below that in the Botecchia lineup. They just weren't exported to the US in the 80's. I think their US line had frames of Aelle Tretubi, Cromor, SL, and SLX at the time. Aelle Tretubi is not top of the line but it's ok stuff. A frame made of it will weigh about 1/2-lb more than an SL frame but still have a nice ride. That crankset still has me wondering. I had to look it up in the Campagnolo catalog: it's a 116mm bcd Gran Sport. The last year it appears in the catalog is 1985. As I mentioned before I've never seen that decal scheme prior to 1987. My guess would be that they were still using up the old stock of GS cranks in '87 but at any rate you can figure it's between a 1985 - 1987 model. Bare frames like that have been going in the $200 range give or take, complete bikes in nice condition in the $400 range on eBay.

Picchio Special

Maybe it was experimental.

tk1769

The sticker does say Tretubi, it was a typo on my end...