Zumkopf

I rescued a '99 Bianchi Brava frame from the LBS, which had put it out by the dumpster to rust because they couldn't extract the stem. (They tried hard, I'm sure; they even cut the handlebar clamp off, maybe for leverage.) I managed to get the stem out, got out the decayed bottom bracket, prepped it for painting. I liked the braze-on rack and bottle mounts, and I figured it would make a nice touring bike. But I still needed some componentry, so I kept cruising CL looking for a suitable donor.

Then I found one: another Bianchi as it happened, an '87 Brava, missing some parts, but it had everything I needed to finish the '99. I went to pick it up. It's Black with the Celeste accents. Purty. Sweet.

Hence my dilemma: which one do I make operable? I can't do both. I guess it boils down to which frame is better, and I really can't tell. The '87 is Tange DB Chromoly; the '99 says "Lite Steel" DB with a chromoly unicrown fork. Any opinions out there as to which is the better frame?

chadwebster

build whichever one is closest to your size, after that id say better condition because i think the frames are comperable