T-Mar

The Lotus with Columbus tubes may be Japanese or Italian built. If it is pre-1986, it is manufactured in Japan by Tsunoda. In 1986, Lotus signed a deal with Cinelli, who designed the bicycles and supervised production in Italy. This was similar to the 1985 deal between Western States Imports and Cinelli that resulted in the Centurion Cinelli Equipe.

While the Japanese had gained quick credibility in the entry level markets, the high end markets proved much harder to crack. Names like Columbus, Reynolds and Campagnolo were inbred with the racers and the high end fraternity. Bicycles with Tange or Ishiwata tubesets and equipped with Shimano Dura-Ace or SunTour Superbe were a relatively hard sell in the 1970s. Larger American marketing brands like Lotus and Nishiki reasoned that they could increase their share in this market segment by having their Japanese sources manufacture bicycles using Columbus tubing and Campagnolo components. Consequently, the early 1980s saw a trend of high end bicycles being manufactured in Japan with Italian material. When that achieved only mild success, brands like Centurion, Lotus and Nishiki made a move towards Italian manufacturers in the mid-1980s. However, the transfer was ill-timed. In 1985, Shimano brought out new Dura-Ace with SIS. It proved to be the darling of the yuppie crowd and Japanese high end bicycles gained instant credibility.

The most reliable indicator of the origin of a frame is the serial number format. Almost all the mass volume manufacturers use formats that are identifiable and decryptable. Even when you have decal, a head badge or brand embossing, it is possible that frame was contract manufactured and a serial number will often allow you determine the actual manufacturer and date.