Brings a whole new perspective to BNIB:





















The coolest of time-capsules, isn't it? It's for auction you-know-where...

DD

Wrapped up & Boxed up....
And it is still offered as "Local Pickup Only"

Although, I suppose I'd strip and repackage if I was to ship it.

It is a pretty extraordinary find, but the price sure reflects that too.

Those are some pretty good pics, Jeff. Looking through then, I assumed the whole package was sitting on your kitchen floor; not some you-know-where seller's listing.

You are absolutely right DD, that is pretty cool.

I thought the same about this.

https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/bik/d/new-old-stock-raleigh-super/6543665573.html

That actually looks like a pretty good deal to me.

Sounds like you need a facilitator.

That's what I thought, too. Either way, those are cool pics. Someone'll feel like a kid on Christmas morning. 😎

Fantastic time capsule, top line C&V bike!!......but the saddle and bar cover are the gems for me on that Bertoni!

You know you kind of gasp when you see the price, but then you go to the Performance Bike website and look up Road Racing bikes and see $8,000.00-$6,000.00 and realized what a steal/bargain this NOS vintage Road Racing bike is. And the parts to keep it running are still pretty abundant and robust....unlike so much of what is new and will never be supported past the show room's door.

Just my two cents.

Where? What auction?

A bike auction?

I seem to recognize that...

I think there was a guy here who rode 21" frames that bought it a few years ago-

Wow, what a treat! Curious if there's any clue in the packaging that would indicate whether this one was built by Bianchi or by some other Italian contractor (Torpado/Toressini)?

None of the Italvegas or Bertonis were built by Bianchi.


Italvega's/Bertoni's owner did import Bianchis at one time, and that is where speculation about Bianchi building bikes for him came from.

I always avoid NOS as I know as soon as I take it out of the box and ride it, its no more valuable than a lightly used alternative. I'm too thrifty to pay a 3X premium or more for NOS.

Now if I happen across some NOS parts at a sweet price, I'll buy them for sure! Then I resell them to help offset my crazy bike spending.

The thought entered my mind. As a matter of fact: if that were available for pick-up near me, I'd be into negotiations right now. It's a classic French size for me, it's a great color, it's got Reynolds 531 main tubes. Where else can one get a brand new bike with those qualities for that kind of money?

Let me know, I'd be happy to enable, I mean facilitate.

FWIW I think the price is ok too, maybe not so much, been up for 12 days so maybe some wiggle room as the buyer that has to have it has not come along yet.

Wow. Went for tirty-tree fiddy. Better not unwrap it.

+1

The whole thing is supercool, but when I saw the tape and bars I went from zero to those-are-the-new-mini-grail in about a half second.

s-l1600.jpg

And then there's this up for sale, not auction, at the bay, but when you see the price, I think it's the art, rather than the bike that's for sale.

Price???

$110,000.00

^^^ I'm seeing spots...

This was my first serious bike - and only my second-ever geared bike. Same color, same components - almost the same size, too! Yep - bitd, I was astride a gigantic 62cm Raleigh Super Course 12 for about 3 years.

DD

Very cool, imho these are one of the best value, most magical , bang for the buck bikes ever, tough, durable, well balanced all around great ride.

Yes, I loved mine. It was too big, but it was the bike that took me through my formative cycling years. I rode it thousands of miles, did my first wrenching on it and began my long love-affair with upgrading on it, too

DD

X2. Not a Bertoni fan but a neat bike in that condition.

$6-8k on one bike is more than my fleet combined, though it may be closer to 6 than I'd like to think (slow and steady goes the value increase!). But yeah, certain things help bring context.

As for modern components, I think many of them will be fine. Speaking for Shimano (due to interest and experience), the cranksets aren't going anywhere (as they are made well) and they still run a 24mm BB spindle which works with a standard BSA BB shell. FDs and RDs are robust, too, and should last a while. 11-speed cassettes will be consumables like lesser-cogged ones before them. The rim brakes will be fine as well. The sticky part is the shifters. And here I think the advantage goes to Di2 for longevity because to shift is to just press buttons and not worry about a cable and mechanism dying.

As for other companies, I'll see how Campy's various cranksets and BBs go. SRAM? Have no clue as I have no experience or really any interest in them.

The biggest losers in the future may be second, third, and fourth owners having to work with a million BB standards that shift about like sand dunes. Headsets, too. Will I get a creaky frame with its press fit BB interface? Modern carbon is strong and well made (from the correct companies, of course), and any damage/delamination/chipping may take out many bikes. Thankfully, all this stuff is well inside the internet age, so the information has a lot better chance of still being available down the road.