outdoorkinetics

Hi All,

I have just purchased this Olmo which has been stripped down and repainted by the previous owner. Decals are not original so don't let them fool you. I love the way it rides and am really happy with it but am also curious to know a bit about the model and age. I have spent hours trawling through forums trying to figure this out myself but every time I think I have worked it out, I spot a bit of detail that confuses me again. Previous owner thinks it's late 70's / early 80's but I think it's a bit later than that. He also assured me it is columbus tubing......... Note that the forks are off of something else.

Key Points
- No pantographing
- Bottle cage mount on down tube but not seat tube
- Brake cable passes through top tube
- Frame size marked on bottom bracket but no serial number
- Rear dropoouts wide enough apart to take a 9spd cassette

I think it's late 80's / early 90's poss a SanRemo (but to be honest I am new to this)

Would really appreciate any assistance anyone can provide

juvela

these links don't seem to be working; they are generating an "invalid attachment" message.

perhaps you can essay a reload...

gitarzan

Thats part of the mystery.

thinktubes 

Even without photos, I can tell that it's not an Olmo. I'm getting a Japanese vibe off of this....

outdoorkinetics

Right, trying again with the images. Thanks for getting back to me guys. None of the components are original (obviously)

Following up from what I said above, there was a model called the 'Sportman' which fits the bill, here are a couple of examples which kinda nail it for me example 1, example 2 and example 3 (images a bit poor).

My frame seems to be very similar to several Olmo models around the head tube, seat clamp and dropouts but it's the design of the bottom bracket shell that really makes me think it's a Sportman.

The slight difference between mine and the examples I have provided is in the hole in the top tube for the brake cable at the head tube end. In mine it is sorta on the top of the tube but in the other examples it is underneath. See last picture.

Does anyone agree with this idea or have other suggestions? What do you know about the sportman in terms of spec, age and type of steel used?

Thanks again

Bianchigirll 

Great looking bike! I do see some things that make me think it is closer to a later '80s frame rather than a '70s early '80s. The cable routing under the BB and the shorter dropouts for starters. I wish the pics showed how the brakes mount a bit better. Are they really recessed bolts/nuts or just halfarsed drilled out?

The paint looks great for what is supposed to be a 30+ year old bike.

T-Mar

It looks like a circa 1990, entry level model. It's obviously been refinished. Unfortunately, in the process it appears that the chrome got removed, leaving the nickel plate. Then it looks like they tried to wrap adhesive foil around the chainstay to improve the appearance. If it's Columbus, I doubt it is SL as indicated by the decal. More likely it's a lesser grade like Cromor or even Gara or Aelle. What's the post size.

The decades (?) older fork is the most interesting part of the bicycle. It's not to often that you see the reinforcing tangs on the outside of the blades! Unfortunately, the replacement fork in conjunction with the repaint, leads one to beleive that it has been a crash victim.

outdoorkinetics

@Bianchigirl Hi, Thanks for coming back to me, the rear brake has a recessed mount but the front one is just a really shallow bolt.

Yea the paint was done last year, certainly not an authentic olmo colour but looks pretty nice :-)

outdoorkinetics

@T-Mar Thanks for the reply, yea I think the previous owner was looking to make it look nice propped up outside of a cafe rather than maintain originality. I suspect this was the motivation for the repaint. Fortunately, I like the way it looks and rides and intend to put a good few miles on it.

Post size is 26.8mm.

Can't say for sure that it hasn't been crashed but have checked the alignment and everything seems ok. Pretty pleased with it as a budget buy

T-Mar

At 26.8mm the post is too small for SL or Cromor. Assuming it is Columbus, it is either Aelle or Gara. Both used the same wall thickness and were available during this era. The only difference was the alloy, with the former being carbon manganese and the latter being chromium-molybdenum.

bici_mania

I came across this thread researching another Olmo. On the off chance someone is still looking for information on this bike, I can say that the seat cluster, lugs and the way that the internal cable routing is done is consistent with the Olmo's I have seen from the mid to late 90's. One thing that seems off is the absence of lugs around the cable ports for the internal routing. Obviously, and as stated previously, it is repainted and the paint scheme is consistent with the 70's. It is most definitely not SL. Most of the mid-level Olmo's from the mid-to-late 90's were stamped 'Columbus' on the lugs and usually also had the dove.

If that fork is original to the frame I will eat my bike shorts.

The absence of a pump peg, no panthographing anywhere and no Columbus or other stamping on the drop outs leaves me wondering though.

I expect that there is a number stamped somewhere on or near the rear, nds droupout and would also expect to see a size or other number stamped on the underside of the bottom bracket shell.