Mid-1980's De Rosa BB thread?
 

Hi, Im selling an old De Rosa, purchased in 1986 if I remember right. One of the bidders wants to know whether it's got English or Italian BB threading. Can anybody help me out? I pulled the cranks but there's nothing on the BB to indicate which kind it is, and I don't have the proper tools to get the fixed cup off to see which way it's threaded. Your expert help would be appreciated!

Measure the shell. If its 70mm it's Italian. If it's 68mm it's English. I'd bet all my bikes it's Italian.

Is there some marking on either the fixed or adjustable cup, i.e. 1 x 24 or similiar?
if so we can let you know what you've got.

Off hand I'd say it's probably an Italian thread, of course I could be completely wrong,
wouldn't be the first time.

Marty

All of your bikes?

Against my $ 1.29!

Done deal! (R O T F L M A O )


Regards,
J T

Italian bikes are still 70mm shell width and Italian threaded as standard. For a bike of that era made by Ugo -one of the strongest proponents of "Tutto Italiano" - it's pretty much a slam dunk. I'm not worried about my bikes.

Italian threading is 36 x 24, BTW.

Back then an Italian bikebuilder would rather die than use an English BB.:D
Pinarello probably would have had a coronary if they knew that I had used Shimano Dura-Ace on my '87 Montello back then. My shop made me pronounce it "DUR-AHHHCHEE" when ever I would come in.:rolleyes:

D R A T !

Regards<
J T

Thanks for the replies.. there's no markings on the cups. I got out my tape measure and the width is 70mm. Picchio, you get to keep your bikes! Grazie.

Easy test: unscrew the BB lockring and try to thread on a known English or French/Swiss unit. If it will not even go properly over the outer face of the adjustable cup, you are trying to put a 35mm = 1.375" ring on a 36mm (Italian) cup.

Editorial: The only good thing about Italian or French BB threading is that one can microadjust the chainline by installing adjustable cups on both sides.

Italian will have right hand threads on both sides, English will have left hand threads on the drive side.

To test, if either of the cups thread into both sides of the BB, it is Italian, if either of the cups can thread into only one side of the BB, it is English.

italian.

Ain't no way De Rosa ever put an English threaded BB into one of his bikes.

This is not quite true. Back in the later part of the 80's, De Rosa built some mountain bikes that had English threading. No racing bikes however.

Perhaps a concession to the fact that those mountain bikes would inevitably wind up with Japanese parts on them?

That's what I'd guess: Mtn. bikes would "properly" use JIS standards, so a BSC thread BB. But just to keep us on our toes, I serviced a late '90s Bianchi road bike, made in Italy with Reparto Corsa decals all over it, and it had a BSC BB...kind or surprised me, it was a Campy sealed unit, too.

usually i just look on the BB cup. it almost always has the threading written on it.
1.37x24 is english, 36x24 is italian but since it's not written on there just measure the shell width. it's probably 70mm.

Uh, did you actually bother to read any of this thread, or just jump right on in there?

:):)
Been my experience here that most people only seem to read the first post then jump right in with out reading further to se if their solution has already been mentioned.:D
I too after looking at my old shimano italian BB was going to post the thread size but poster had already stated there was nothing on the outside of the cups. Seems unusal but he is the one looking at it.:D