Nice Bianchi and the clean up work is fabulous!! I had an '88 with SL and loved it but always wanted to try the SLX frame. Don't forget to switch that RD from A-A to B-B for the wider freewheel. and watch the chain wrap max! https://www.velobase.com/Pages/ViewC...=108&AbsPos=31

I'm not sure what you're used to riding with but I'd consider just using a pair of Simplex Retro Friction type shifters.

I love my Celeste Bianchis but I'm not a fan of the Celeste "Full Monte" and prefer to use blue cable and tape, like on my '90 Proto. I also like to sit more upright and accomplished that via a hybrid style stem

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Thank you for the exploded views of the components. Very helpful!

Why replace old suicide pads with new ones? I have had consistently scary experiences with Modolo, Campagnolo, and Shimao pads, which I long ago switched to KoolStops exclusively.

That Chorus derailleur looks like a huge improvement over my crappy old Campag. NR.
The three things I have hated about my otherwise lovable Bianchi are:
1) Brakes simply don't work. That is why I now have Shimano dual-pivots (I know, shame on me) with KoolStop pads and Shimano aero levers. (Sorry, I don't have a long and strong enough grip to grab a "handful of brake" in an emergency situation without shorter-reach levers like Weinmanns or Shimanos.) I already explained why I rely on KoolStop pads.
2) I am limited to a 38 (with my replacement 130mm BCD crrankset) / 26 low gear -- I simply cannot go any bigger in back with my 1980 NR.
3) The super-tight (and admitted fun and responsive) Bianchi racing frame geometry limits me to about 25-26mm tires. I use 700C x 28 Contis, which run a bit small. 700C x 28 Specialized are out of the question.

As my post said, I'll give them a try. They're easy to change out if need be.

Your Bianchi looks great!
I'll be running the 42/52 crankset with a 13-31 freewheel, so I'm at 29t, within the max cog (32t) and chain wrap (33t) of the "B-B" setting. I'm going to do my best to get the original Syncro shifters working. If not, I have several options I can use. I have a set of Mavic (Simplex) retrofriction shifters on my Vitus 979 and they perform beautifully. Bar tape color is still up in the air, but part of me wants to go as original as possible. That said, I'll be using a Nitto Technomic stem to get the bars higher. Last year's neck surgery won't let me get as low as I'd like. The original stem will go with the bike whenever it gets sold.

Brad L Thank You.

Which Bianchi do you have? The NR and even the SR and C-Rec were all basically the same RD from the 1950s. The cosmetics were different but the basic dimensions were the same. The first Chorus was Campanutella's first slant parallelogram RD and it unfortunately got a bad reputation because it was paired with that persnickety Synchro shifting system.

What brakes are you talking about? The Chorus and Deltas (despite how strong they may look) weren't meant to stop you on a dime but help you modulate your speed better, and the Monoplanor design was intended to eliminate chatter or squealing

I'm running 4th generation (1985-87) NR levers on my 1969 Colnago. They have a much shorter reach than the earlier generations and "look" correct to everyone except those in the know. I also clean and polish all the mating surfaces (washers, spacers, etc.) when restoring calipers. There's no way to grease those surfaces without disassembly, and they work far better for it. I've had no issues with stopping.

The Chorus levers needed only a good clean and buff - except for one small area of road rash on the end of the right lever. I didn’t remove the rash completely but made it less noticeable. The original hoods are still soft and flexible so it wasn’t terribly difficult to remove and reinstall them. The hoods were pretty dirty but cleaned up well with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, then were treated with 303 Aerospace Protectant. I bagged them before putting them in the box to keep the aero cable tab from going AWOL.


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It’s been a little while what with Thanksgiving, my unheated shop, and other family commitments, but I haven’t stopped, just slowed.

The original ITM/Bianchi etched stem cleaned up nicely. Unfortunately, due to my fusion, I’ll need a taller stem. This one will not be installed but will go with the bike when eventually sold.

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The ITM Mondial handlebar wasn’t as lucky. The prior owner had crashed the bike so it suffers from some road rash. But the worst part is they installed aero bars and cinched them down so tight as to crack the bar. The bar is toast, but I’ll save it for the future buyer.

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So, here’s what I’ll be using: It’s a Cinelli Giro d’Italia handlebar and a Nitto Technomic stem. It’ll be easy enough to change this back when I decide to sell the Bianchi, but in the meantime, I’m hoping I can get comfortable enough to do longer rides than my neck can currently handle on the Merckx. I currently have 375 miles on the Merckx with the longest ride being around 37 miles, but my neck pain flares up at about the 30 mile mark.

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Still moving along, but family commitments and surgery 8 days ago on my hand has slowed me down. Anyway, I’d almost forgotten about the wheels as they were put in a different location from the rest of the parts. The QRs are now almost finished and I’ll make a post about that later.

The tires are the original Vittoria Zefir “22” shown in the catalog and show little wear, but they are terribly dry-rotted. I was able to remove both tires without too much trouble, and both left a pile of crumbs afterwards.


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The next decision is: do I polish them as-is, or disassemble them to make the individual parts easier to restore? One is tedious and the other is a huge PITA.


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Looking good, excellent work so far

Brad L Great job! Hope the hand is doing well.

I'd grab an old toothbrush or two and some quetips and just scrub away. I've never been a huge fan of over polishing Campi parts since they were originally sort of a satin finish any way

Any idea for tires? I'm think you can probably slide a x25 Pannaracer Pasela into the rear triangle with no problems and it will give you a good ride and performance without breaking the bank

Thanks! And yes, the hand is doing well. The 1/2" diameter hole the doctor took out is right between the thumb and forefinger (where the hoods hit), but it's healed enough I'll be riding on the road tomorrow.

I don't really "polish" the anodized Campy parts but "buff" them. It brings out a nice sheen and not a shine. I'm leaning towards disassembly of the wheels because I could use the wheel building practice.

I already have a pair of Vittoria Corsas set aside for this build. I've been riding them for decades and have never had an issue.

The restoration work is more than equal to the bike, incredible job and documentation! Can't wait to see the finished product.

Beautiful bike. But don't forget to check the derailleur hanger alignment upon reassembly.

Now that the holidays are over and the house is free of company I can get back to work - weather permitting. My shop is unheated, but it was actually 66° this morning before my ride and is currently 79°.

Anyway, I chose the tedious route for dealing with the wheels. I’ve disassembled the front wheel and have completed the hub. It was cleaned, polished, waxed, and had new bearings installed. I’ll reuse the spokes and nipples as they never really saw any use, but not before they get cleaned up.


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LOVE the half n half

The Bianchi’s front wheel parts are ready for reassembly. The rim has been cleaned and polished, while each ferrule had the rust removed and then protected to deter its return. Each spoke was cleaned individually, and each nipple was cleaned AND polished. I’m not OCD at all. 😜


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Assembly may take a bit as I had jury duty on Friday and was chosen for the jury. I’ll be sitting in the jury box from Tuesday thru Friday on a criminal case.

One and a half days in the jury box and three and a half days of deliberations in a murder trial had me exhausted. It was a stupid 19-year-old kid with no real record who got in a brawl and ended up shooting someone. They tried self-defense but we didn’t buy it. Guilty!

Too tired to ride this morning so I took care of a few things around the house that have been left undone since I was out of pocket. Then it was time to lace the wheel. It was my first time lacing 4x but I just paid close attention and took my time. I laced it asymmetrically since that was how it was laced originally but flipped the rim around to read from the drive side. Now for the tedious part of trueing and tensioning.


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Sorry you had to serve on that jury. That must have been heavy.

Definitely! The victim’s mother’s statement was heart-wrenching.

The front wheel is done. I’m slow when it comes to trueing wheels, but I get there.


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The rear hub is done! I ran into an odd issue with this one. I usually measure the OLD before disassembly but I forgot on this one. So, during assembly, I measured the axle length (140mm) and subtracted the rear frame spacing (127.5mm), then divided the result in half. This gave me 6.25mm on each end. I installed the drive side cone, spacers, and locknut and locked it down with 6.25mm of axle exposed. Then installed new 1/4” bearings into the hub, inserted the axle, and installed the other cone, spacers, and locknut. To my surprise I was left with less than 2mm of axle showing.

There is an extra silver spacer on each side of this hub totaling 4.5mm that can be seen in the “before” photos. I removed both spacers and now the hub fits perfectly between the dropouts. I’m not sure why this hub was spaced so much wider than the dropouts.


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