cramej

Giant Cadex 980c. I haven't checked the S/N to date it yet - have only had it for a couple weeks and needs some work yet. The butt-ugly bar tape has been replaced with black for the moment. On a side note - does anyone know about the red jockey wheels on the RD. I haven't seen any 105 with those before.

non-fixie 

Welcome to the Unofficial BF C&V 980c Club! There are quite a few of us on this forum. Yours looks to be in great shape.

BTW, I like that SL too.

texastwister

1997 Trek 2300

Chombi

PM sent.....

QuangVuong

Can I be second in line after Chombi? I've got lots of lugged and early carbon bikes as well.

f1russgp

1986 first full carbon frame and ems fork built in America by Kestrel still BEAUTIFUL today28 years later a real classic

q.photo

Very beautiful.

The Giant Cadex up there also has a lot of potential...

Dear Chombi & QuangVuong, thanks for your replies. The mod deleted my post because the rules say, selling isn´t allowed in here (sorry for that & thanks for the hint, tractorlegs). I can just receive but not answer PM´s because I haven´t got 50 posts yet.

q.photo

Dear carbon lovers,

all my research, digging through old catalogues, searching for pictures and informations on my vintage basso CF bicycle have left me no wiser than before. Hence my question - has anyone seen that particular seat cluster on any other frame yet? Do you perhaps remember which bike or where?

I am thankful for any information which would lead me to the origins of my basso. Basso italy would like to charge me for looking up their special catalogues but I am still hopeful in finding info online.

Regards

q.photo

Thanks for your message Chukk, I can´t answer PM´s like I said before (not having 50 posts on this forum means you´re not allowed to PM).

I haven´t got any answer from Aegis - have just sent them another mail.

Papabear505

This is one of my projects. It's a giant cadex from 91/92.
I rescued it from the scrap heap. I'm really looking forward to getting it finished and taking it for a good spin.

RobbieTunes

Nice!

This came by way of sloar, in a trade, of course, and then, like we often say, we went back to square one....
My first cousin has never had a road bike, and she wants to start, and then do the Dairyland Dare.
She lives in that area, so climbing ability had to be considered, hence the compact.

I'm not happy with the bars, will be going to a quill adapter, black stem, and some 38-40cm 31.8 or 26.0 bars if I can find them.
She will be riding the tops/hoods, and Cinelli 64's are just not the type of bar that looks that good doing that... 18.1 lbs as you see it.

5600 STI's, calipers, and RD. SRAM Rival compact crankset/BB and Apex FD. Vuelta Corsa Lites, DA 12-27 cassette w/50/34 front rings.
Elite Ciussi cages, Felt 1.1 seat post to match the seat tube weave, and my Selle Italia Gel Flow saddle. 64-40 bars on 3TTT Bertoni stem.

RobbieTunes

latman

my early 90s tri bike project I sold it (the frame with different parts )to a friend but he gave it back after he loaned it out and it came back badly damaged (BB threads broken away from the carbon shell)

jyl

Vitus 997, oval carbon tube version of Vitus 992.

RobbieTunes

Seller says size is "56-58" I am so tempted. NIB Cadex 980

RobbieTunes

The "friend of a friend" should be taught a lesson, or perhaps he/she learned one, eh?

Not that I haven't seen that before with these same frames, generally cause by over-tightening a bottom bracket. I had one the same color, with a severely stuck crankset. (post #247 above) We simply put the best rings on there we could find, and built it. Hefty attempts to remove the Crankset/BB would likely have resulted in the same fate.

repechage

This thread made me think of the first carbon fiber bike I saw and raced against. A Graphite USA.
Made in San Diego. I found out why I never see them today. According to the Speedplay pedals Flickr site, that does show one, a later one with welded aluminum lugs that have the welds smoothed out... They made only 15, and I know at least one is a track bike.
It was very cool, oversized graphite tubes, the aluminum fittings. To find one will be like winning the lottery.

zonatandem

"almost' old . . . with c/f lugs with window cutouts

dddd

I got lost early on with this thread, possibly the deleted posting has thrown me for a loop!

Anyway, I'm a long-time Epic rider, which I find to be good if the frame size is small enough to allow fitment of a steering-response-calming long-ish handlebar stem, not too small tho!

My more recent interest is in the Centurion Carbon frames, which are among the flexiest, comfiest frame ever made, allowing me to recover from a very bad bruise of the palm from hitting a pothole while riding a steel bike. I am still trying to figure out the origins/manufacturer of these frames, just as I am unfortunately at a complete loss as to who made that rare Basso carbon!

I don't know, but the juxtaposition of carbon material and the familiar dimensions of steel-bike architecture appeals to me, at least in part because I am one of the skinny ones who won't induce some sort of deadly speed wobble at high speed or flat out break the thing.
The Centurion is said to be made with carbon-wrapped aluminum tubes, but all I know is that I love the ride an appreciate that the 740x-equipped bike tips the scales at 18.6lbs with pedals.

And BTW, the Specialized and Giant variants of the lugged-carbon theme use oversized carbon tubing for exemplary stiffness, while the Japan-produced Centurion does not.

crank_addict

Came across this brief history in carbon fiber bikes. Hadn't realized Graphite USA beat Exxon Graftek in producing a riding bike, although in fairness, was only a few months earlier and NOT for production.
Untitled Document

(footnote: Also, the article notes Bill McCready was with Graphite USA in 1975. He started Santana in 1976.)

Chombi

If Graphite USA came out with their bike in 1975,....Technically, it did not beat the Graftek in coming out first, as the Graftek's precursor, the Line Seeker........

Was already on the road in 1972. It was estimated that about 300 Line Seeker frames were built, max. The Engineer who designed and built all the Line Seekers in his house then sold his design to Exxon who then renamed the moderately modified later bikes as the Graftek.

dddd

Such a nice bike! ^^^^^

It's like the one I like to pretend I'm riding, when I'm riding my Centurion Carbon.

crank_addict

Robbie- amazing find! You going for it?

The few I've seen available all had corrosion at the joints. Price bottomed out too. Of course the instigator salt / air environment doesn't help.

Something about these early glued bikes interest me today. Back then, it was curiosity but not something I would want. I've never owned one but did have a CF Kestrel monocoque - bladder bagged EMS, CS-X mountain bike. A different animal and even greatly different then todays. I like them all.

Chombi's Line Seeker is the SR71!

RobbieTunes

Can't go for it, Scott, my curious nature exceeds my bank account.


However, I am going to go back and see if I can find my original post of this. I bought this, built/rehabbed it in tricolor 8-sp STI. It was green with white lettering, cables, even a white crankset. I added a white saddle and wrap, and it looked OK to me. I gave it to a friend after he did me a favor, and he liked it, I think, but didn't ride it much, preferring his Bianch steel ('88 Trofeo, triple Campy). A while later, I finished a Cannondale and put it out there, and he was all over it. We made a deal and this 1994 Kestrel 20SCi came back to me. I put some Spinergy RevX wheels on it, brought it back to black accents, and still, no takers. I stripped it and sold the frame to my friend.

My friend built it, then sold the frame to a flipper. They made a deal on a Saturday, and at 2 am on Sunday, he got a text nixing the deal from the flipper. He picked up the frame and let it sit. Slowly, he formed the ideas in his head, picking up wheel ideas, discarding them, building it, stripping it. His ideas started to pick up steam when a well-known shop offered to fix the chips and repaint it for $400-$500. No way.

This catalyzed him into choosing a local painter we both knew. My friend prepped the frame himself, removed the paint from the dropouts, picked up a new fork, headset, and started gathering bits. He got it back, and went to work on building it. About the same time, his Tommaso came together (STI/Ergo thread) and he committed to the final product you see here.

The ride is amazing. We swapped bikes on a 45-miler a couple of weeks ago, and I can honestly say I doubt Kestrel knew it could ride this well when they made it. The modern components have really brought out the best in it, and I think the fork swap was a good idea, having ridden it before. Kirk had a vision that came to fruition, and boy is it a nice bike. 5700 shifters, DA 7800 FD/RD, and FSA bits. Excellent American Classic wheels, and this '94 model is '14 in ability.

1994 Kestrel 200SCi, by my friend Kirk.

Bearonabike

There is a combination of words that sends shivers down my spine..."vintage carbon fiber."