[CR]Ideor Asso

Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2001 15:22:59 -0600
From: "Ron Cooley" <cooleyr@duke.usask.ca>
To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Organization: University of Saskatchewan
References: <CATFOODpjr2V94GBQTm00004021@catfood.nt.phred.org>
Subject: [CR]Ideor Asso

OK gang, time to play is this a fraud, and if so, what might it really be?

I recently acquired a 70s vintage frame that has been repainted, and had "Asso" decals applied. The logo has a yellow spade and the word Asso is flanked by little multi-coloured wings on the down tube. You can see the same decals on a very different frame recently sold by the same seller at http://ebay.com/<blah> BASSO decals, but please correct me if I'm wrong. I know that Ideor made a model called the Asso, and I see that Chuck has a 50s catalogue available through Velo Retro. My first question is whether anybody has actually seen one of the bikes? I'm told (in reply to an earlier query) they were imported into Canada for a couple years in the 60s or 70s. Maybe they never had a U.S. importer, but since the catalogue is there, I'm betting they were. Anyway it's possible that either the seller or a previous owner slapped the Asso decals on a frame of another manufacturer when he repainted. Since the frame also has nice chromed long-point prugnat lugs, which were painted over when I got the frame(ouch!), I don't like to think about why this might have been done. It also seems just barely possible to me that this ASSO is genuine, but nothing to do with the IDEOR ASSO. Maybe a small factory private label frame (like Tomaso)? Supporting this theory is the absence of any IDEOR name anywhere on the bike.

Eventually I'd like to begin to work out what it really is (if it's not an IDEOR ASSO). I realize pictures are crucial, and I'll try to arrange some soon. But for now, in addition to the above-described lugs (with angular heart-shaped window cutouts on top, and a side profile very similar to the prugnat lugs on the CR website), the clues include 27.0 seatpost size, long concave seatstay caps, rear brake-bridge reinforcements with cutouts matching the lugs, long chainstays (over 43 cm), campy long dropouts, a slotted italian bottom bracket shell with cable guides on top, brazed-on shifter posts but no top tube cable guides. Of course things like the cable guides could have been altered and covered up by the repaint. Also (cringe) no serial number, though no obvious signs that one has been removed either.

Opinions and speculations welcome. More info forthcoming.

Ron Cooley
Saskatoon, Canada.