Identifying a Concorde frame...
Here's a link from a few years back with a lot of information about Concordes:
PDM and Concorde frames
One poster's claim:
"...all the team issue frames for the PDM squad were SLX on the early editions 86-87 eventually all ending up as TSX on the squadra model of frame. These frames were produced mainly by Ciocc this can be traced via the italian flag bedded into the steel at rear of the top tube."
From another poster:
"I have the 1992 Concorde catalogue here.
From top to bottom the order is:
Carbonne TVT - Bonded carbon
Squadra - TSX
Aquila - SLX
Prelude - SL
EL35 - EL
MAX - MAX
Classic - Aelle
Colombo - Aelle
Mistral - Aelle
Astore - Cromor
All frames could be specified with any paint scheme."
This is a great link showing Concorde frames... Note the solid color models.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/qualit...7633242790398/
Now, the rest of the story...
A lot of Concorde frames were made by Roberto Billato a little known Italian company that specialized in contract built frames including most of the Lemond Z Team frames.
Billato Company History (translated to English by Italians):
"August 1978 – July 2007 (29 years) Padua Italy
Since 1954 Meneghello & Billato, as a lot of small bicycle frames factories in Padua area, was producing steel brazed frames for important Italian brands as Legnano-Coppi-Vicini-Boeris- Piave-Spezzotto- Pinarello-Scapin. I jointed my family business in 1978 and I learned the art of frame building and how to develop new road racing frames from the most experienced workers of the factory and from my father.
Soon I started to expand our business to the foreign markets to increase the production. In 1979 a Belgian company commissioned us the production of a cyclocross model and later some new road frames with Columbus tubing. On that year Mr. Gianni Giacomini became world champion with a Spezzotto bike with a custom frame made on my own. In 1981 I started to produce MTB frames with Reynolds tubing for a Californian frame builder Ted Kirkbride , owner of Cicli Masi Inc, and later I extended the production to the road brand for several years.
At the same time the Belgian company was bought by a big group in NL [the Netherlands] and I started to produce the complete CONCORDE range of frames for them, including their professional team PDM. Some of the PDM riders rode with those custom made bikes and won the most important races in 7 years ( Tour de France - Paris-roubaix- world cup- etc etc).
Moreover, I was doing the same with other important brands, like: Greg leMond and Look Cycle (with its teams Credit Agricole-Kelme-Big Mat Aubier- etc). I also collaborated with many other international brands like Stevens from Germany, Cicli Fondriest (and Simoni won a Giro D' Italia with one of my custom frames) , Casa Masferrer in Spain, Cinelli , Tommaso USA, Marin MTB USA , Diamond Back , Rossin, Pearl Bikes DE, Dynatek, and a lot of other professional brands in Italy , EU and USA."
I question the quote that Coicc built the PDM Concorde frames. Reasons being, there was so much inbreeding in the Italian bike industry, it's hard to tell who did what. Don't get me started on Colnago and Masi!
The now defunct Ten Speed Drive Imports (TSDI) that was located in Florida brought in a lot of bare Italian built frames and painted them here in the US. Some of the work was farmed out to painters in Southern California. TSDI even imported Coicc frames.
A lot of top end Italian cycling products were shipped to the USSR so the orange paint may be original.
A brace of Billato built Z Team Lemonds:
verktyg
Chas.