Originally Posted by
Picchio Special
OK, but now you're contradicting yourself - you said in your pervious post that the flatter crown "speaks of '80-81 models," and now you want to push that all the way to '83. Bulgier gives '81 as the date for that catalog, BTW.
yes, contradicting myself... for sure...
but thats what I've been saying, there was no real 'spec' for any year during those years.
Colnago was an artisan shop, like the many artisan shops around in those years. They became swamped with orders from the US (and rest of the developed world) and did what they could, used what they had to build and fill the demand. Not saying in a 'bad' way. I believe they stayed as true as possible to their 'concept' of Colnago, or at least tried.
and the tubing manufacturers were 'experimenting' with new pipe also, 753, Gilco...
and the japanese had stormed the market in a big way...
it was a crazy time for higher end bikes... alot of the U08 buyers were now dumpin the french gaspipe for the same, but even pricier stuff (or similar stuff) from the EYE-dees. And Pantographing was like so much more kool...
I remember one kid (he was 18 at the time, I wuz training a bunch of these snotnosers...) showing up at the weekly training ride with a powder blue 'Super' (made me gag... where he found it, he would never say) panto'd everything AND had had glued on Clement Crit Setas with BLUE Rubber for tread. Gawd, it looked like a '56 red cadillac from Newark (NJ...) !!!!
I've ridden a bunch of nagos, from a range of years and, given the condition, they all were slightly different and also close enough to feel like nagos...
In all cases I believe they (the Colnago folks, and really all the small shop builders...) held to the 'build' geometry which, in large part, makes the ride.
Not necessarily better than many other Marks, just different.
then there was that West Coast Guy distributing Colnagos and supposedly also selling Nagos labeled under his 'House' Name - I forget that label... I was an East Coaster until '89.
anyway, I think 'handgrenade' close is mostly what you can hope to do, unless you were the 1st buyer. In which case you know when it was on the sales rack, just not when, or by whom it was made.
I think its all cool, and I love imagining there was some sweaty Italian laboring in a dark and dirty coal bin 'brazing' together my frame (and others). I have visited a few shops in Europe and many were like that...
(AS well as Vic & Mike Fraysse's basement in NJ - shortterm Shop for many a great builder).
From all that, I have HUGE regard for the guys who still work gaspipe into the magic we can call a bike...
BTW, miamijim - nice! you'll have great fun with that! enjoy!
its all good