Asking for help to ID a Colnago – now with the answer!
 

Hello there!

I just bought an early eighties (I think) Colnago but I have never seen this exact model before. What is it?

First of all, the decals on the top tube are "wrong". They normally would have been on the down tube. When I first saw this bike I thought for a moment that it wasn't a Colnago, but everything else seems to be correct.

The frame has internal routings for rear brake as well as for front and rear derailleur wires. Top- and downtubes are "not round" (I dont know the english word, look at the pictures). Chromed fork and rear triangle. Colnago stamped on chainstays. Clover cutout on BB shell. Frame number is D247. There is no tubing decal, what can it be?

specs:
Front derailleur: Super Record, braze on
Rear Derailleur: Croce d'Aune (not original, was probably SR)
Record high flange hubs
Nuevo Record crankset (45/54!)
Universal CX brakes (original?)
Dura Ace AX brake levers (probably not original)
Modolo carbon shifters with Colnago logo
Campy aero seatpost
Cinelli stem and bars

If anyone knows what model, tubing and year this is I would be really grateful to know.
I'm sorry about the bad pictures.

Jonatan

Some sort of Profil CX? The shaped tubing (we'd say "crimped") is most likely the patented stuff made by Gilco, a joint-effort company of Colnago and Columbus. As for a year, I'd guess late, not early, '80s.
That's all I have for you, others will have more, I'm sure...Nice Bike!

It reminded me of a CX frame also - but it's not. The tubing looks to be ovalised. I have a very similar Benotto frame with many ovalised (aero) tubes and internal cable routing. I think my frame is a mid to late '80's frame. I was interested to see 'Colnago' stamped on the rear stays like the 'Super' or 'Mexico' models.

A very interesting frame. What a great bike to own. I would like to know more about the frame also.

There is a variation called the OvalCX, but I couldn't see the tubing clearly on my monitor so assumed the striping on the tubes highlighted crimping. Other details are a bit different from the pics I've seen of a mid-'80s OvalCX (mainly the headlugs and seatcluster), but this could be a "missing link" or a model-year varient from slightly before or after.
Here's a link:
http://bulgier.net/pics/bike/Catalog...valcx/col3.jpg

There is an Oval CX frame for sale on ebay right now. It is easy to see how special these frames were. It is also possible to link the frame in question with the Oval CX frame. I think you're right Unworthy; this frame could be a 'missing-link' or developmental frame between a Super frame and an Oval CX frame.

Thanks for your input. Unworthy1 assumed right, that the striping highlights the crimping (new word to me). So it is not oval. Fun to have a bike this unusual. I'll tell people that it is "the missing link between Super and OvalCX". At least untill someone has more info. Oh, it is really nice to ride as well.

Thanks again
Jonatan

I have ridden it for almost two weeks now and it feels better and better. But it would be great to know more about it. Gilco tubing? The other crimped Colnago frames I have seen pictures of say only Columbus on the stickers. And still, what year can it be? Well, I don't know. Do you?

I still don't have a good guess as to the year, I say sometime from '85 to '90.
As to the Gilco tubing, here's another page that shows one of the stickers used for that tubing in 1988, but you'll see other variations, too
http://bulgier.net/pics/bike/Catalogs/colnago-88/22.jpg
I'm told the company name comes from Gilberto Colnago, Ernesto's baby boy. As you see it's got the Columbus Dove and the Colnago Club.

Hello again
Then it is probably not gilco as it is round at the lugs. The middle of the toptube and downtube is crimped only at the side of the tubes.

By the way, I found this site. Gilco is still in business. I don't speak much italian but the name is short for Gilberto Colombo.

http://www.gilcodesign.com/doc/GILCOstoria.htm

Thanks for that link and the subsequent education: Now I know the truth about the Gilco name and what they actually produced and for whom. I was wrong, I thought ALL the shaped tubing that Colnago used was "Gilco" but clearly it was not...and Gilberto was not Ernesto's son, either. I didn't know that Gilco tubing was used on the Cinelli Laser or on a Tommasini.

Did you email colnago?

Just after I started this thread I sent a letter with photographs to Colnago asking them for help to ID it. Today I got an answer by e-mail:

"Dear Mr Sahlin,
I'm sorry to reply to you only now.
I have asked about the bike showed in the photos directly to Mr Colnago:
He told me that it's a 25 years old bike, there was not a particular name..it was a model produced in few pieces, just for friends,
Something special...
Best regards,
Silvia"

Guess if I'm a happy cyclist!

'JUST FOR FRIENDS ' !

WOW !


Regards,
J T

Let us know how dinner at Ernesto's house goes. Seriously, that's cool. No wonder it ws so hard to nail that ID down.

crap. I've never even been invited to Mr. Murray's house...