4Rings6Stars

It certainly didn't end up the ugliest bike ever, but I would go as far as to say it's the ugliest Cinelli I have seen...

Started with a Cinelli built Centurion I received in a trade with local forum member orrery (he got a beat up Colnago). It has been collecting dust for months and I have considered trading or selling it many times, but when I recently purchased a vintage red Cinelli CCCP jersey I decided I should build up the Centurionelli. I should note that I don't really ride road bikes any more and I despise friction shifting, so it took a lot of motivation for me to build a road bike with vintage parts and I didn't want to spend ANY money so I raided the absolute dregs of the parts bin. (I did have to buy the quill adapter and the cranks)

Some highlights: The paint on the top tube was horribly touched up by a previous owner (not orrery), the wheels are from different decades, tires don't match, crank arms don't match, the brake levers are the worst bike component I have ever touched, has carbon stem on a quill adapter, 9s cassette and chain, bar tape has a gap I am too lazy to fix.

It actually rides very nicely and I don't hate how it looks. With matching wheels and tires I might actually like it. Still, I thought dumpster behind my building would be a fitting location for the photoshoot instead of the flowering shrubs I usually use

shadoman

Nice. The only thing that might make it a little more Frankenbike would be different size wheels...Or a knobby in front.

jeirvine 

I like it. It may someday turn into a swan.

balindamood

Your seatpost melted.

4Rings6Stars

I have considered having it resprayed in Cinelli SC red, adding black decals and building with Campy Athena 11...but I doubt it would get ridden much. I will ride it like this for a little while and if I like it and find myself actually riding it, I will probably upgrade it. More likely is that I will eventually sell it and build something else, that's how it usually goes.

I really don't like the look of the Thomson set back, especially when only the crooked portion is exposed like on this frame...this is why it has been relegated to the bottom of my parts bin.

RobbieTunes

It deserves a shot at life. Pretty nice frame, Columbus SL, to be a street urchin.

I like the idea of flat black with the panto's in gold.
Then, get gold Cinelli decals, omit the SC ones, and drive the snobs nuts.

OldsCOOL

Still a brazillion times classier than a fixie. Love the tires!!

Shp4man

It has nice lines. It's worth a restoration. My $.02.

no_safe_HAVEN

Leave the frame as is. M atching hard anodized wheel set and a different seat post. And leave the Commy red on it... (that flag is great!!)

4Rings6Stars

I just sent Paypal for a carbon fiber Merckx LXM frameset...so the resto budget is in the red. Eventually this frame will get a repaint...whether its done by me or by Robbie is yet to be seen!

Ill add pics of the top tube paint later...it's pretty bad. And the commie flag is actually a vintage jersey!

KonAaron Snake 

It's an ok looking Centurion.

This is the ugliest Cinelli:

no_safe_HAVEN

I see that now. Even better.

KonAaron Snake 

I've got a thing for old Soviet jerseys as well - I've got quite a few Lutch jerseys.

RobbieTunes

All I have is a Soviet-era Frisbee, and a Spetznatz camo blouse (traded well before the wall came down). I'd be glad to re-do the Equipe for you, but it would have to wait behind cehowardGS's pair, maybe September.

IthaDan 

One brifter. On the left.

RobbieTunes

zandoval 

The thing is to get out and ride...

No matter what the bike - I even had to stop and tell a guy on a burnt out Murry rat bike that riding is riding and they are all good...

If its the only bike you have then its good enough...

onespeedbiker

Your forgot to mention the Sachs dust covers on the Campy left crank arm and what looks to be a Gipiemme crank on the right; are they even the same length? Still, nice partial Athena gruppo

Popeyecahn

This. The Thompson ruins what lines are there.

rootboy 

Cinelli? What Cinelli?

Italuminium

Better an ugly cinelli than a pretty Crabon fibre bike! Ok, I kid, but heck, it looks good enough to me.

4Rings6Stars

They are both campy and the same length. Just that one is fluted and the other isn't.

Shifters, brakes, and rd are all Athena. I have the fd too but it's brazeon.

Agreed.

That's part of what makes it ugly. The frame was built in Italy by Cinelli. Robbie knows more of the history, but it's all a little fuzzy.

I built this on Friday and took it for a rest ride Saturday morning. My first time on a bike with friction shifting in years... Coincidence that later that day I bought a new carbon frame and a SRAM group to hang on it? I think not...

JohnDThompson 

This.

That seatpost is just ... WRONG.

RobbieTunes

The Cinelli Project Centurion is kind of fuzzy. Alan Goldsmith apparently was offering them just prior to the production run of the Cinelli Equipe Centurion. He offered them in a catalog only made available to dealers, I believe through Bikeology. The Cinelli factory was not making them, nor did the factory make the Equipe. Andreas Cinelli was in charge of Cinelli under the Columbus umbrella. However, Cino Cinelli, after the agreements were signed, took Goldsmith to the Chirico shop in Bussero, Italy, made introductions all around, and then showed Goldsmith his olive groves. Chirico was already making Cinelli frames, as assigned, for one reason or another. Chirico built the Equipes. One of the Chiricos had just returned to the shop after apprenticing and making frames, at Cinelli, under Cinelli's master builder for 14 years. The Chiricos had also just patented an automated fork making process. From time to time, one can find Chirico dropouts on some Italian bikes.

I hear you, it must be infectious.

Italuminium

it's hard to argue with brifters. I'm just in from another two hours of great riding on my brifter-equiped gravel grinder, I really can't imagine what kinda of nutz those guys had that tackled off-roading with clips+straps, 5 speed index and leather saddles.