Is this an old Alan?
 

Hi there to all of you, this is my first post!

I was riding near my city and I found a guy on a good looking road bike. I asked about it and he said it was an italian bike named Fanini. I was looking through Internet and I have found here (Example 1, Example 2) some post that mention that (probably) the real brand is Alan.

Can you guys help me with this? Is this a real Alan? Can you tell me the aprox. year of build? The components says Shimano, do you guys know if this brand came from factory with the bike? What do I have to keep in mind if I decide to buy it? Is USD $300 a good value?

I let some pics and thank you very much in advance for your help.

Yes bike pictured it is an Alan built frame. It is a Super Record frame as can be seen by the fancy lugs (cut-outs) and different set stays than the "regular" Alan frame...Alan built frames for a lot of high-end Italian builders.Guerciotti, Fabo and Colnago to name a few.
It is Italian built and uses a very different type of construction than other aluminum frames of the era....Alan's used the glue and screw method to build their frames. The Super Record also uses a thicker tubing to reduce frame flex a little.
There are many good articles on the net that have good information.
The price that you mention is a good number depending on the groupset....if it checks out I would buy it at that price, it is a great price if nicely equipped...I do not care for the crank in the pictures (too modern)....see what groupset is on the one you are considering as well as the lugs for cutouts to determine if SR.
There are a lot of naysayers out there regarding aluminum frames....Alans are a different breed...and most of the frame failures are based on anecdotal evidence. All materials wear out, but Alans have a good rep.realitive to other makes that have the tubes merely glued to the lugs.
As I said check it out..look at headset and bottom bracket for any cracks, that's where the most damage occurs.
I am prepping one for a build now and will start a thread soon.
Best, Ben

It sure looks like an Alan headbadge on the front of the bike. And if that weren't enough, the frame construction details DEFINITELY say Alan.

Yep and the decals also say Guerciotti so this is a re-badged re-badge! I had a Fanini frame that was a re-badged ALAN Carbonio pass thru my hands some years ago, clearly yet another brand that had ALAN re-brand frames for their sale.

Nice little bike. Yes, it's an Alan badged as a Guerciotti having Fanini sponsorship. May have been raced bitd for a pro/semi-pro team?

I note it has a couple cool little details: one, an Alan-pantographed seatpost and two, a pair of curved Campagnolo gear levers. Those are both uncommon items. Dura-Ace calipers - first generation? - are very nice bits as are the Campy Nuovo Record and Super Record front and rear derailleurs. Campy Super Record headset, too. Too bad the crank got replaced :(

I think if you spent 300 bux on that, you could look around for a retro crankset and be all set with a very nice vintage rig. IF it checks out well (as [MENTION=367427]xiaoman1[/MENTION] points out) and there are no cracks showing at any of the lugs, buy it :)

DD

If it's in good shape $300 seems like a decent deal to me.

Nice Alan. :) I always thought they were cool bikes. In fact the current version is about the only modern bike I currently lust after.

For kicks, here is the one old jersey I kept from my teen years. Fanini is a car dealership group or something IIRC.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/rB...-=w688-h917-no

they're good until they're not, and then , it costs a fortune to ship to Italy for cheap repairs by the company,
or this was so in the 80's when the factory did repairs..

cracks are a bad sign..

Regarding cracking at the lugs on the ALANs, the place to watch out for them is at the lower head lug, at the front where ALAN pressed in a wreath pantograph, right above the brake caliper. It is suspected that this caused some microcracking right from the factory on some bikes which were exasperated by flexing at th juncture. Cracking there is still relatively rare but is usually the first place one should check before buying a used ALAN frameset.
Cracking sometimes also happens at the seat cluster lug, but even less so than the head lug I mentioned.
Good thing about ALAN's screwed and glued construction is despite some lugs cracking in these areas, most owners do not experience catastrophic failures while riding, as the internal design/structure of the lugs will not just let go of the frame tube when this happens.
Anecdotal evidence shared by most owners that had this happen usually are not even aware that the lug has cracked till they discover it when cleaning their bikes after rides....

Thanks for the information, didn't know about the Fanini car dealership. By the way good jersey [MENTION=424205]Salamandrine[/MENTION].

Looking for information about the Alan bike I've found another Alan bike, I just saw it and check has lug cut outs and “Alan” engraved into the fork crowns; Everything looks good for me. The owner says he is the second owner and he bought it 2 years ago and since that day is practically on a room because he wanted to put a Campy Novo Record and restore it to exibition (It has Shimano 600 and said it is sacrilegy to put it on a classic italian) but he didn't do it because of money. As a anecdote he says: Look how it keeps its balance despite is not supported on anything (It was catchy, I'm a rookie) As I said: Everything looks good except for the money. I will keep you updated on how this is going.

It doesn't have paint, not a single drop of paint, does this mean something? It can give a clue about version, model, year?

Thank you very much for each message. I'll keep in mind each comment from you guys.

2nd Gen; BA200/DA7100.

I think before you buy any bike, you need to get sized. The two bikes you've shown are quite disparate in size, at least in cycling terms.

Also, I see a pair of Campy gear levers, curved, just as on the blue Guerciotti-branded Alan. Wth? I wonder if these frames came so-equipped? 'Cause they aren't very common...

DD

It is an early Alan and not Super Record...look at the lugs and compare them to the pics of the blue Alan you posted. Not all Alans were color coated....you could buy both as they both were still in the lineup for awhile. Ben

Totally agree. Know your size before you go bike shopping, its really important to get a bike that fits you properly.

I hope you bought it. Beautiful bike, I ride my Alan Super Record a lot, and it is a wonder to ride. Mine is completely Campagnolo Super Record equipped, which is what this gem deserves.
I also just bought an Alan Competizione frame, and are looking forward to equip it, probably With Gipiemme parts this time.