The Red Headed Bianchi
 

Hello to all,
It is my understanding that most people regard Celeste painted Bianchi's as the most desirable but I always like to chart my own path. Although I had promised myself not to buy another bike, I had a hard time passing this one up. It was the first day of class and I had a few seconds before the starting so I decided to check out some local adds, this one popped up the moment I opened the site.
Normally I try to do a little research on the model but with full Campagnolo and the right size, I quickly messaged the seller saying that I was in and no haggling. The price seemed too good to be true and I thought I might be on a wild goose chase....I received a call from the seller and a time to meet.
I thought it could still be a scam but the meeting place the seller suggested just minutes from my home so I felt it was worth giving it a go. When I arrived I gave the seller a call and the rest was good. The bike has no dents or paint loss, it needs a change of HB's&stem, new consumables and a good spit shine but at the moment it appears that's all that is needed. I will know more when I break it down.
Best, Benhttps://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...d65404cb82.jpg

As purchased, before teardown...I will know more this weekend.

I love those bars! (so does Jon Cannings of GCN!)

Very nice!

At lest it has one Celeste tire.
Looks good from here.

Thanks
Yes, I Celeste tire :lol:...I guess that makes it almost a "real" Bianchi.
Posting a few more pics, not sure of the group...any help would be great, the bike looks to have been barely ridden. The paint is very nice and should shine once cleaned.
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...428610dcf6.jpg

shifters work click through all the stops
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...70bb8ba3d0.jpg

rusty bolts but chainrings show little wear!

Nice. I can't wait to see this all shined up.

You beat me to it, on the tire. 😁

Even if you think it's the wrong color, at least it was made in Italy. Nice grab. 👍

We seem to be in the middle of a Bianchi happening lately. They're all over the forum, at least. 😉

Good for you Ben!

Celeste is Bianchi but RED is Italian ;)

...and the Control Tech stem!

+1... plus red bikes are faster.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c1afa0f02b.jpg

No way someone actually rode that. It's minty.

It was rode hard before I bought it. It was a total wreck. It was worth fixing up though.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...038786625c.jpg

Sweet find,Ben! Looking forward to the build!

Ben, wonderful job on getting this bike looking superb. Red is so very Italianate, full of Brio. Red is faster even standing still. Nice Bianchi classic. Thanks for posting photos.

Thanks to all that have responded, I am looking forward to the clean-up and have a feeling that the headset may need a real overhaul..seems to be indexing but at the price, it won't be a heartbreaker....wish me luck.
I will be posting some additional pics soon.

you said it..it must be raining them!

your right!

Don't know much about these, are they any good...I was going to replace it, same with the bars.:p

2cam, me too, tomorrow I will know more and begin to post some pics..any idea of the group on it?
I get confused with all the changes campy has made

Agreed I, like red too, I have a Celeste but red just pops and as you said looks good standing still!

You have a real nice bike there. Bianchis are usually celeste, but why not stand out in a crowd, and be different. Enjoy building it up the way you want it to be. You have a great start.

Sorry Ben. I'm neither a Campy nor Italian expert. :(

same, same :o

But.......you're an expert on what you like and that's all that counts. :thumb:

Hey [MENTION=367427]xiaoman1[/MENTION], do you think it would be cool to paint all of the white lettering in celeste? I like the red, and I'm not stuck on the esteem of celeste like some other folks, but it would certainly add some uniqueness. Just an idea.

NC,
Hmmm, I never thought about that but think it would certainly look great...where would one find the decals is the question!
Best, Ben

Sweet find 4 sure!

TT cable routing is interesting. Have you pegged the year?

TT,
Yes, I am very pleased with the find and really like the color. I have not pegged the year and don't know how to do that on Bianchi's...seems a later model because of the uni-crown fork.
I bought it from the original owner and was told that the group was not changed (other than the tri-bars).
He put the rubber grommets on the cable to keep it from rubbing the paint.
Going out this AM to start a service and clean. I want to change out the bars and quill as well as the seat etc.
There is some corrosion on the aluminum brake adjusters that may be problematic as well as paint loss on the plastic brake covers but all else seems like it will clean up well...we'll see.
Best, Ben :thumb:

Congrats on the Trofeo catch. Like others, I'm no Campy expert, but that crank resembles Athena which I have on a couple other bikes. Memory is hazy, but I think they were labeled "Athena" though. Trofeo frames have a great ride.

Here's a poor pic of my Trofeo. Purchased for $90 as a bare frame from a guy walking to parking after a Cascade Seattle Swap meet years ago. Said it was a 1990, newer than yours, as mine has a unicrown fork rather than the classic one on yours. Took a while to gather parts. Started with a NOS Triomph crank + a Stronglight Delta headset. All arts were bargain priced, but either NOS or very lightly used.
Don P.S. I think the red is just as attractive as Celeste! P.P.S. Woops! overlooked that uni fork in 1st pic, picked up on a later pic by [MENTION=463764]76SLT[/MENTION] in thread.

Ollo Ollo,
Thanks for the input, your bike certainly does not look poor, in fact it looks great. It appears that mine is a around 1990 like your bike. I got mine for a bargain price too.
There are no markings on the components other than Campagnolo, I am not sure what it is but looks good to my untrained eye.
Best, Ben