revchuck 

First, sorry about the lack of pictures. That's going to have to wait for a few days - I'm away from home.

I'd like to thank both Robbie Tunes and afilado for their gracious, unsolicited welcoming PMs which helped me understand what I'm getting into...in a positive way.

Oh, the bike? It's a relatively recent Bianchi Trofeo. I don't know what year it is, but it's recent enough to have a bar coded serial number and eight speed Campy Avanti drivetrain and brakes, as well as Campy Melbourne 700c wheels. The tires are 700x23 Michelin Ironman - I'm unfamiliar with them; the last owner said he put them on and then never rode the bike after that. Seat tube is 63cm, top tube is about 58.5cm. The paint and chrome are generally in good shape, just some spots from having been moved around the garage. I'm not sure the crankset is original; it's a Miche standard double of unknown tooth count. The saddle is a Selle Italia Tieffe. It looks original, and will be replaced with a Brooks Team Professional that I have. The bike is in dire need of a cleaning and tune up. I paid $300 for it - from what I've seen in my searches, about the going rate.

I'm going to replace the brake pads, tubes and eventually the tires...and the bar tape, which also appears original. I might need to change out the stem for a shorter one. I'll be cleaning the bike up this weekend, and hopefully will get a short ride in as well. And pictures!

Puget Pounder

boooooring.

Pictures please.

Just kidding (half)

revchuck 

Ask and you shall receive...these are definitely "before" pictures.
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cehowardGS

IMO, a great find.. Well worth it.. My size too...

scozim 

More than likely a 1997 - that was the first year the Trofeo went with brifter shifting. Pretty much identical to the 53cm one I bought new in September 1996. The Melbourne wheels are a real pain to get tires on and off. I eventually developed a crack in the rear wheel and replaced it after running it that way for 3 years. It never got worse, but it was time.

The Miche crankset was a decent one, just a little heavy. I eventually changed it out to a Campy Athena crankset and rings. The Miche is still functioning on my winter training bike. The Trofeo came stock with 39-52 chainrings and I opted for a 53t ring when I bought the bike. The stock rear cassette was a Campy EXA drive 13-26 8 spd. The great thing about the drivetrain is I never touched it. Never changed cables, made adjustments, etc. - it worked flawlessly for 14 yrs. Really about the only thing I had to do to the bike was go through the bearings, change bar tape, change to a different saddle and put tires on it.

It was an excellent steel bike, albeit a little heavy. Lighter wheels would have made a huge difference. I only sold it to buy a Klein mtb. Sometimes I still wish I had it.

revchuck 

I checked Bikepedia and I think you're right - the specs they list are what's on my bike, less the tires. I'll find out about the wheels this weekend - replacing the tires with the 700x25 Gatorskins from my Allez, which in turn is getting new Michelin Pro Optimums. I've got two modern wheelsets I could use if necessary, but I like the 32 spoke wheels.
I'm going to keep it as is for the time being. My first road bike was a Cannondale CAAD9 6 which came with a standard crankset and a nine speed 12-26 cassette, so I'll have the same gearing less the 12 tooth cog. If I could find a cheap 38t chainring I might switch the small ring out.
Boy, howdy! My main bike is a Look 585 Optimum, which weighs about 18 lbs. When I first picked up the Trofeo to put it my truck, the weight difference was REALLY noticeable. But then, I'm not racing it, and just wanted a good steel bike. And tough grades where I live are 4%.