Bianchi?? Thoughts?
 

Hey everyone, so I'm relatively new to road biking and would like to commute to work, roughly 7mi each way. My only research so far has been done through forums posts. What are your thoughts on this Bianchi road bike as a starter.

Bianchi road bike

Pls, drop some knowledge. Thoughts and insights are greatly appreciated!!

Has Biachi ever made a bike with stem shifters? Some of those parts look of lower quality than what Biachi would use. I'd be weary of that bike.

Looks nice to me, and that's a pretty good price if it's a genuine Bianchi frame. If it was the right size for me I'd buy it then change the handlebars and call it a day.

Bianchi would never have made a dog of a road bike like that. In any case, why would someone want to use this particular bike as the basis of a commuter? IMO the o.p. the bike, the poster vetting it. All are suspect. Yet another reason I don't think much of Craigslist as a source for bikes. I once wasted an entire day going to Portland to see a nice Spec. Allez. When I got there I saw this bike. It looked like a puppy.... its feet were way too big. Then I noticed the tires were 1-1/4 clinchers with schraeder valves. Then I noticed the brakes were uber cheap long reach calipers. Then I stopped looking and hightailed it out of there with my wad intact. Shudder... I don't know... weren't Bianchi's of that vintage, a particular shade of light green called 'Celeste'?

H

Not all or even most Bianchis were Celeste. It was reserved for mostly the Italian made higher end bikes, not the Japanese made lower end bikes.

But I look at a lot of ads, and I know the Bianchi colours and this isn't one, it is a decent repaint, but it is a repaint for sure.

The components don't look right for a Bianchi either.

The headtube badge looks offset.

I've actually had pretty good luck with Craigslist but it can take some patience to find something worthwhile.

Anyway, I suspect that's a repainted frame and a set of Bianchi stickers somebody got off Ebay. There's no sticker that shows frame materials and nothing that indicates what model it is. It's hard to tell but the dropouts look stamped rather than forged.

The wheels and fork are clearly not original, - which might be just as well.

Bianchi or not that particular bike is way over priced for this part of the world. Maybe old cheap road bikes fetch that much in Orange County. I don't know.

Ask for the serial number. Bet you'll never get it.

The lugs look a lot like a Schwinn, possibly a Schwinn World of the mid-late '80s?

http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/e...i/DSCF0155.jpg

Pictured: dog of a road bike

I think a lot of you guys are focusing too much on whether or not it's a genuine Bianchi and forgetting what the OP is going to use the bike for. From where I'm from it's impossible to get a rust free complete road bike for that price, used or otherwise. For everyday commuting it's fine, especially so as a starter bike. It's a shame it's probably not genuine, but hey, rust free bike for sub $300. You could probably even talk the seller down to 200.

Venetian Foam Handlebar grips. They don't make 'em like that anymore. ;)

Bianchi USA began importing bikes made for them in Asia long ago ..

I have a brother that lives in Hawaii and the marine climate seems to destroy stuff pretty quick. I guess I don't know about the OP's area but here unless a bike is left outside all year round for a couple of decades or ridden in the winter the frame won't have much rust on it. Unpainted parts would. Enough people keep them inside forever that there's a lot of old bikes available in decent condition. Plenty were never that great to start with though.

I got a much nicer road bike than that alleged Bianchi for under $100 a few years ago. I'd probably have to spend $150 today, but definitely no where near $300. For that amount of money you could get something new from BD that's better quality.

Anyway, the bigger issue is that the seller doesn't appear to be completely forthcoming about what they're selling and that's a red flag.

I think that bike looks fine. You would have to ride it and evaluate the fit and comfort for yourself. The seat doesn't look very comfy. Many people consider racks and fenders essential for commuter bikes, this bike has no mounts for attaching those, but it would be possible to attach them with clamping options if you wanted. The tires that are on there look maybe 28mm wide already, which is a good bit cushier than racing 23mm tires, and there is plenty room in the fork and chainstays for more if you wanted a softer ride for bad city streets. The gearing looks like it has a fairly wide range -- not like mountain bike wide though -- if you are reasonably young/light/fit that gearing should be able to get you up hills that are not too terribly steep.

When I looked at the ad earlier my first impression was that the decal is too low on the downtube. It just doesn't look right all together.

As far as the price, unfortunately that's pretty much the prices these get listed at in Southern California.

Yes, you're right, I always forget the level of hipster tax/Hawaii cost of living prices are here. Let's just say I'm used to hipster priced crap like these:
custom fixed gear bicycle [$450 generic custom no name]
Kilo fixed gear [$500 generic custom Kilo TT...]
GLOBE DAILY 01 COMMUTER [$350 bare bones SS commuter on the verge of rust]
2013 S&M intrikat matte blk Bmx [$900 trick bike custom to the previous owner]
or exorbitant affluent retiree crap like these:
2014 GIANT Envie Advanced 1, Race Bike [I mean, really? $4200 cash only? Is this a drug deal?]
Cannondale Rush Lefty with Many upgrades [~$3K mountee custom to previous owner]

Most everything else is covered in rust or are big box special bikes that are considered "mechanics specials". At least the OP has what I would call reasonable price options.

That bike is weird.

This one is probably a better choice.

EDOARDO BIANCHI

If you want a no doubt Bianchi, then get this one
Bianchi Celeste Green D'Italia

It definitely has mounts on the dropouts for fenders and/or racks. Bikes of that vintage didn't usually put anything on the seat stays for mounting racks. As far as gearing goes it looks like an traditional 10 speed with friction shifting. I realize that friction shifting still has its fans but most people prefer indexed.

It looks like there's room for a bigger tire on the back. I'm not sure about the front. It's weird how the rear brake pads are mounted as far down as they can go, but the front brake pads are the exact opposite. It's almost as if There's a 700c wheel on the back and 700c fork on the front on a bike designed for 27" wheels.

That's just crazy given you get a very similar bike brand new for less. I'm not saying those BD things are the best, but they're better than this.

I can sort of imagine how the seller can justify it if they were to come clean about the paint job. A lot of the parts on that bike are probably better than the original and they put some time and money into it. Cheap bikes of that vintage didn't have aero brakes. The wheels are probably better than the originals and both the seat post and the handlebars might be newer as well. The fork might even be chromoly (maybe). However the frame is probably super cheap steel and the drivetrain is ancient and wasn't very good even in its prime. It's just not worth anywhere near what they're asking.

I have one simple rule about used bikes.

People who don't know bikes shouldn't buy used bikes without the advice of a knowledgeable adviser.

It's the same as with cars, except the relative costs of repairs vs. original cost can be much greater.

So if you're buying a bike from a stranger, caveat emptor.

Yeah, assuming a bit of a premium for the Bianchi name those aren't so bad, especially if you can get them to come down a bit.

Even though the finish isn't in perfect shape on the road bike it's a much nicer frame with much better components than the one in the OP.

Randumb opinions . . .

I know, right? :thumb: The real corinthian leather/cordoba material of bicycling. I :love: that stuff!

Ive never understood why Bianchi doesn't suffer the same hate-a-palooza that Motobacane/BD does.

Stemmies and kickstands ------> Great stuff :beer:

Bianchi is backed up by having Bike shops retailing them.. and service after the sale


Post made in France .... name only Chinese Motobecane,

BD bypasses them, you are on your own, throwing the buyer a life-ring is an extra cost.

I mean, that most Bianchis are as italian as BD bikes are French. There is nothing italian about them, yet no one says they are 'fake' and all that kind of stuff like they do BD. Also, having a pt. time, condescending 18-year-old assemble my bike is not really a life-ring to me. Nobody treats your stuff like you do :)

I dont want this thread to veer off into the fetid cesspool of BD vs. LBS, though. :)

Too late :lol:

the contract for price was filled lower by going to A major TW company

now even Campagnolo doesn't want to pay Italian Wages & overhead,

they have a factory in Romania ..