jamesdak 

So, I've had my eye on this frame for quite a while. Finally couldn't resist any longer and made an offer. Then came the agonizing wait as it seemed to get lost for a month and then started to move again. It arrived in a terribly mangled box but pretty much intact for the most part. Couple of small shipping damage issues that I'm working with the seller on. It's a mid 90s Luciano Paletti made with Columbus EL OS tubing. The quality of the craftsmanship and paint is what really got me. It's 55 cm square frame. The frame was 4 lbs 1 oz. pounds as you see it and the fork another 1 lb 4 ozs. Surprisingly my Excell Podium tube Giordana was a few ozs lighter as a 56 cm frame when I got it. That Excell really is some light stuff.

Anyway, the current plan is to build this up with a Campagnolo Record 10 speed setup I have with Campagnolo Eurus wheels. I pretty much have everything on hand short of sorting out what size stem I need. The rear dropout adjusters are a rusty mess so I'll be replacing those. No other rust that I can see on it.

And now some pics:

jamesdak 

and More:

rccardr 

Sir_Name 

Schwing! Can't wait to see more as the build unfolds.

squirtdad

wow

scozim 

That is stunning.

Chombi1 

Wow!! I even see hot rod flames!!

Danbianchi881

unworthy1

Bike porn! Hide it from the kids and NSFW!
looks like a winner, subscribing for the build-out porn!

Sir_Name 

Lascauxcaveman 

Geezus. That thing is over-the-top bonkers. Are you going to actually ride it?

jamesdak 

It's a bike and deserves to be ridden, so yes.

repechage

noglider 

That's something!

crank_addict

NoThiNg LiKe NeKiD piCtUres!!

Cheers to a neato frame and best of build~

jamesdak 

Just a little update as I finally make some decisions and start mocking things up for fit and such. I decided I wanted an all silver groupset on this and found an almost mint looking 9s chorus group at a good price. So I grabbed that. I think that will look better than the black and silver 10s Record I was going to use. That also means the black Eurus are out. Right now I've planning to use some silver well made Velomine handbuilts on it until I get some proper silver tubulars ready for it. Once I sized things out today I was able to determine what size stem I needed and then order that in. I went with an old silver 3T Mutant because it seems like it will match up better to the frame than my usual choice of Cinelli stems. It will get my usual Cinelli Giro d'Italia 64 bars though. I'm thinking white bar tape and saddle but that may be too much white. Go black, match the blue paint, or the pink, himmmm....

Seatpost will either be a silver Thomson I have on hand or I may steal one of the Campagnolo Aero's off another bike. Not sure yet.

Anyway, a quick grab with the cellphone while I had it mocked up. Oh and silver Record headset, of course.

BFisher 

So hot!
I LOVE pearlescent paint.
Can't wait to see this beauty all built up.
I don't think white tape and saddle would be too much, personally.

RiddleOfSteel

Absolutely gorgeous paint and fillet brazing! The masking of the chrome and the seat cluster just add to the sexiness. I would not get tired of looking that!

I like the idea of an all-silver groupset. I mean, I love black etc, but this bike would look so lovely with a 'fairer complexion'. The black wheels and other elements, while contrasting on other normal-er kinds of white paint, to me, don't play nice with the exquisite pearl paint or accent color/detailing. Add in the brilliant chrome, and I think a nice high polish wheelset (TB14, polished MA2, etc rims) that mimics the chrome well enough, with tan wall tires, would just let the paint and coloring really sing. I think a traditional stem would look just fine on that. Mutant, or any of it's variants, seem to work on so few bikes--their often inelegant nature being a jarring disruption of a bike's clean aesthetic. But that's me. I like a white saddle and bar tape, and don't think it would be too much. You would have to be fine with there being two different kinds of whites on the bike 1) frameset 2) bar tape & saddle. Accenting pastel-ish blue or pink would be fun, and certainly more to the whimsical end of things. Put a bunch of white on it and call it an angelic look!

delbiker1 

That is a gorgeous frame. You are absolutely right, it should be ridden. It would be tragic to build it into a fine machine and then let it sit idle. I like the decision of all silver. I did my first rebuild recently, not that it compares to what this is going to be, but I started out with silver and black and realized that I thought it would be much sharper with just the silver. I bought a set of wheels, Mavic open pro with Ultegra hubs, from a BF member and they are the one thing I would cite as being the best choice I made. I got in a 35 mile ride on it this morning and am as tickled riding it as the day I purchased it in 1992 as a 40th B'day present to myself. It is my avatar.

randyjawa 

Though I like older bikes, the workmanship on that Paletti is as good as anything that has ever come my way. Great bike and continue to enjoy the experience that started with: interest, which turned to hope, which was tempered with patience and then finally, got it!

Been there a few times, myself. Isn't this fun!

Mad Honk 

This is as good as Paletti has been in recent years! great lug work and a great paint scheme. I trust it will ride as good as it looks. Smiles, MH

texaspandj

Smoking Hot!

shaqin93

How do the lugs end up sort of disappearing like that? I've never seen anything like it!

qcpmsame 

That's an amazing frame-set, your build choices so far sound really nice. Definitely subscribing to this thread so as to watch this one unfold completely.

Bill

63rickert

Requires pantografata. This guy seems to be current leader in bike porn: cycloretro.com

Prices in Australian dollars, cheap by some standards. Shipping boxes of parts way cheaper than shipping bikes or frames. Phil Anderson takes his work to this guy, I kinda trust Phil.

Keep posting. Burn our eyeballs.