samec

I've been a regular reader of this forum especially the old italian steel posts. I will soon be getting my first ( second actually ) italian road bike, i live in europe roght next to italy so most of the influence comes frome there and its whats easy to find here, mostly.
Anyways i need you expert oppinion on the following frames, although i know a thing or two im sure some can give me his expert opinion or at least help me with the value. A while back i bought a Ganna road bike frame, but its pretty beat up and i dont know much about the marque let alone the frame it self. Wait for it, wait for it, im sorry to break everyones heart but for financial reasons im building a single speed bike. This chap offered the fsa felice gimondi crank set in exchange for the Ganna frame, which seemd like a sensible deal at the time. Now im in the market for another frame, im currenty looking at three different bikes, a beautifull red Pinarello ( supposedly columbus sl tubing )- 150€, a red Bottecchia ( unknown tubing, but the frame seems to be chromed underneath the paint so im guessing its not a low end model )- 150 and last but not least a beat up Gianni Motta Personal ( columbus gilco tubing )-100

What do you guy think, how important is the frame weight, i know i should test these out for optimal resoults but they are all stripped down to the bare frame..
i will post pics as soon as i find the way

Thank you for the help in advance

samec

This is the ganna
Pinarello
Bottecchia ( seller wants 300 for the whole bike, comes with shimano rsx)

TugaDude

"What do you guy think, how important is the frame weight, i know i should test these out for optimal resoults but they are all stripped down to the bare frame.
i will post pics as soon as i find the way."

Frame weight is of little importance generally. What kind of riding are you going to do? If you intend to climb steep mountains, then weight matters. Do you know what frame size you need? That is much more important than frame weight.

Are you skilled mechanically? If not, searching for complete bikes might make sense. Otherwise you have to source parts, some of which will be easier than others. Do you want to build the frame up with modern components? A lot of thinking should be done so that you don't waste time and money.

samec

Mostly city, little ups and downs, i want to build a versatile bike though.
Yeah i forgot about the sizing im 172cm, so im look for 53-54.
the tools and the skills i have, if not taking it to a local mechanic fot the last touches is not a problem.
rather than buying The complete bike im leaning towards getting a donor bike, just for the odd part here and there.

TugaDude

Did you get a bottom bracket for the FSA cranks? Keep in mind that some Italian bikes might have BB threading that does not match. Worth investigating. Velomine website reports the following with regard to the Gimondi cranks...
FSA says to use a 110mm bottom bracket but we have found the Sugino 103 square taper to work best for correct track chainline of 42-42.5mm.Â

Also, if you can locate a suitable frame by itself, consider a fixed-gear/single-speed wheelset. You may have to adjust for the rear dropout spacing, but that's easy.

Good luck!

samec

Thanks for the bb info !
Do you have any recommendations on the wheelset

samec

still not sure if i should go for the 54 pinnacle with sl or the 54 motta personal with the gilco tubing. How much does the BB actually do to the overall experience, is it worth investing a bit more into it

jimc101

Nothing to the overall experience, just that if you get a frame with an Italian shelled frame, you need to get an Italian BB, as an English threaded one (the most common type) won't fit.

Given the questions you are asking, thinking that your first buy should be a complete bike, learn on that, so you know what to look for in a future frame.

For the donner bike idea, unless both frames share the exact same specs for all parts, you will end up needing to buy more/have parts which don't fit.