Originally Posted by
Picchio Special
They were nice in the early 70's - that was when they established the reputation Ernesto nearly killed when he expanded production too fast.
Look what happened with Supers from '71 on, as the attention to detail gets less and less (lugs not as well finished and thinned, fewer cutouts - though those were crude anyway). Having said that, Colnago seemed to know what he was doing when it came to designing a contemporary race bike - probably one reason Eddy worked with Colnago and rode his frames. Colnago was ahead of Masi in this regard, IMO. I believe he contributed to the trend toward smaller, stiffer frames (with correspondingly smaller seatposts) starting in the 1960's.
(No one on this list will accuse me of being an Italian bike hater.)
If you check out the nude frame pics in my ongoing post of my Super restoration, I think you'll see some pretty thinned lugs, pinned everything and super brazing across the board. This frame, it has been suggested is either a 73 or a 74. Granted, this is only the third I've ever seen stripped to the bone, but the other two at EBB are just as well-finished.
However, I do have to agree concerning the later dropout socketing treatment on the early 80s frames - that half-scalloping that must have been a shortcut to quicker mass-production. However, that became the norm for the Masters and all other ferrous frames for quite some time afterward, so it was not confined to the later Supers and Mexicos.
Still, the ride is really what it's all about.