Hi all,
Found this place while scouring the web for info on my spur of the moment holiday buy.
This is my first "roadie", so I know nothing about them, but liked the look of it and the price was good.

Hoping somebody has an idea of its age?

It looks black, but is a dark purple. Weighs in at~9.5kgs. I cant find a serial nos etc.

It needs a good clean up, but I couldnt wait and rode it to work (in the rain), so in the pics it actually dirtier.

Nive bike. I'd try to date it off of the compnents. Campagnolo didnt start putting names on their parts untill the late 90's and there were 8/9/10 speed cross over periods for each group.

How many speeds in the back? 8 or 9?

1993/4 Colnago Elegant.

Wordperfect scheme.

First ones were all Columbus EL while later models were ELOS.

Don't let the Columbus decal fool you, as they used a mix of the two tubesets on the models I've seen.

Not many of these out there.

I have one as well and it is likely the best riding steel Colnago I have owned.

Will post pics if you want me to.

cant answer that till I get home

Would love to see pics




Thanks for the quick responses guys

I'll post some this evening.

According to the previous owner of mine, it has fewer than 500 total miles on it.

According to the bloke I got it from, mine has somewhere in the vicinity of 70k kms on it, all near the ocean (salt water), so it has a little surface rust which I need to attend to, its not bad though.

I dont want a show bike, I plan on riding it (maybe not in the rain anymore though )

Here you go...

Both beautiful. I remember the Wordperfect paint scheme - loved it then - still love it today.

You know Gary, the op mentioned the purple coloration in his post.

When I snapped the pics today, the low flat light of fall really brought out the purple/lavendar/pink hues.

Unfortunately, I was unable to capture the colors successfully in my shots.

gomango,

Thanks for your help, and pics which I waited until I was at work to view, but now the web filter wont let me see them , so now I must wait till I get home.

If you need any other id shots, let me know.

'Subtle' isn't a word often used in the same sentence as 'Colnago', but..........The paint highlights of the Wordperfect, Colnago paint scheme are subtle and do add a very pleasant surprise when you view this 'quiet' bike in a favourable light. I love it.

I love the flamboyant side of the Colnago experience. Cheeky, loud, brash and at times even outrageous.

Life's too short to ride a boring bicycle, that's what I thought when I was rolling through a string of Master Extra Lights.

Then this one came along.

Absolutely low key in comparison.

Best part of this one is the ride and the performance though.

The stronger and faster I get, this bicycle answers every single call.

What a fun bicycle!

I'm certain the op will enjoy their new Colnago as well.

Im loving it, never had a roadie before so its a whole new experience, I just need to stop riding it and clean it.

I love putting it next to my missus' roadie and telling her how mine has soul, hers is just mass produced characterless cold soulless carbon

very nice gomango,
I might have to get rid of the blue tyre I think, your bike looks a lot better with both black tyres.
Where the brake cable goes through the frame, what is there?, both holes are siliconed (brake cable still goes through though), wondering if I should remove the silicon or not?
Wheels, mine are labelled the same as yours, although my front also has "Ceramic" on the label, mine are dark grey whereas yours appear silver **********?? spose I'll never really know what has happened to this bike over the last 20 years **********?


So I need to go clean it properly now, and ride it to work tomorrow

Black would look better than two different colors. I have a set of very nice blue tires that don't match any bike I own. Don't know what to do with them.

I am under the impression that all in-tube cable routing has an internal tube brazed into the frame tube. How would you rout a cable that was removed without one? I would remove the RTV and clean it up. If you ride in the rain a lot, this could be of some concern. I don't know what the cable tube material typically is, I would use steel or brass, both of which could have corrosion issues over time, hence the applicaiton of the RTV.

"Ceramic" coatings were an option on the same model rims. You should use different brake pads made for them. The "Ceramic" should not be confused with dark anodized rims. Some do confuse them, they are different.

A bike can have a lot of replacement parts changed over time, often wheels and or rims as a result of damage.

Great looking bike. I happen to have an affinity for Colnago's and hope in time to experience some of the different models of the 80's. My 83 is a Superissimo, which I really enjoy. Went for a 33+ mile ride the other day. It felt like it would coast up hill. My next one will have to be a version of a Master.

Have decided to leave the proper clean up for when the snow hits, then I'll pull it down and see what I find.
Tonight she just got a wipe down and chain clean, although the chain is totally rooted, so that will have to be the first purchase.
Rims are mounted on Campagnolo hubs, and the front rim has a stamping on the sides (see pic below). In the pics you can see some of the rust/corrosion it has, and Im not sure what to do about it as I love the colour and dont think it would be economically viable (if at all possible) to get it blasted and chromed/painted/stickered as original.

Does anybody know what the Stern sticker is?, I presume it was the dealer**********

Anyway, here are some proper pics after her wipe down......as you can see she has been well used

It looks like the group set is based on Campagnolo Chorus although I think the hubs might be an upgrade to Record.

It is possible to repaint, re-chrome and re-decal the frame but it would be expensive and maybe not worth it. Perhaps a cut and polish would do the trick. The components may respond to a polish with metal polish too. I tend to attempt a colour match using small paint jars that model makers use. I've been quite successful at filling paint chips with model makers paint in the past - it's not that hard to do.

I think it's a great bike and I personally think the Colnago geometry is quite neutral being responsive in corners, stable down hill yet fine and comfortable for longer rides.

Best of luck,

Gary.

The hubs are Chorus although if you swapped the rear quick release for a Record part you wouldn't be wrong in saying the back hub was Record since the skewer was the only difference between the two.

The brakes have the group name printed on them which puts a 1995 lower bound on age. First generation ergo levers put an upper limit of 1997, although that was the transition year where both 8 and 9 speed were available and some one buying new would have probably bought the 9 speed version (with corresponding derailleur ink) making 1996 more likely.

Record skewers of the vintage would have D-rings on them which are absent.

Grease ports were also used on Chorus hubs of that era and therefore don't imply Record.

Chorus front hubs like those had different bearings (Record got 7/32") and flat dust covers as in the corresponding picture.

I have two sets of 1996 Chorus hubs (32 and 36 hole) which I bought brand new and upgraded with 1997-1998 Record Titanium 9 speed freehubs after Campagnolo discontinued my favorite 8 speed cassette. Just sold my 1996 Chorus ergo levers (with a broken right ratchet spring).

oh sorry, forgot to mention it is 8 speed

great ride to work this morning , this is turning out to be the best value bike I have ever purchased

The gruppo is 1995 except for the derailleur which may be 1994 or before

Components have group names : 1995 or newer
Skewer nuts: 1995 or older (1996 aren't completely round)
Skewer levers : 1996 or older (the 1997-2006 levers are smooth with a recess that's cut-out on Record)
First generation ergo levers : 1997 or older
Not 9 speed : probably 1996 or older (you could also get 8 speed in 1997, but who would?)
C-Record aero seatpost : 1997 or older - after that we got longer round posts with steel shafts which were followed by titanium and carbon fiber

Note that your seatpost is extended past the minimum insertion mark.

They're only 220mm long which is fine for the "fistful showing" frame sizing method which used to be popular, although with that much more you might want a different post.

The 98+ steel shaft and later titanium shaft seats posts are close to period correct and 250mm long, although the angle adjustment relies on 1 degree serrations which some riders find too coarse.

hey mango what tape do you have on those bars?? fizik??

Yep.

Pretty much all I use nowadays.

I'm going to try Lizardskin on my Merckx Alu Cross though.

Just for grins!