I think snake-oil-vendor is a bit harsh for Ernesto Colnago. Certainly the quality of Colnago does not compare to a Baylis, a Sachs, or a Confente, but they are not his competition, His competition are the other firms supplying the pro peleton - Bianchi, Peugeot, Gitane, Pinarello, etc. The first three I believe are all owned by the same conglomerate and produce pretty much the same TIG'ed aluminum frames painted in different colors. I'm not sure if Pinarello even produces a lugged steel frame any more, and if so they rarely advertise it, while the Colnago ads still feature lugged steel along with carbon and aluminum models. Granted they are steel frames with overdone paint schemes that feature straight forks which I always suspected, and Brian confirms, are designed to simplify production, not improve performance. But compared to most of the competition, the Colnago Master X Light is pretty darned classic. Certainly Ernesto Colnago is a showman and a shrewd businessman, but how else could he compete in the high-end high volume bike market? I thnk he has more regard for traditional construction than any other high-volume shop except maybe Eddy Merckx, but he is also clever enough to ride current trends with other models, which is why he is still a major player in the road bike market. And while some of his past innovations were of questionable usefulness, he did after all produce Eddy Merckx's Hour Record bike, even though it had Windsor decals slapped on it at the last minute. Give Ernesto a break, he's no Brian Baylis or Richard Sachs, but his name isn't on the Chinese-built TIG'ed aluminum mountain bikes at K-Mart either.
Regards,
Jerry Moos
Houston, TX
> In response to Brian Baylis' wonderful Confente treatise, I would like to
> say that it pleases me to no end to witness the dressing down of the
> modern-day snake-oil vendor of the bicycle trade, namely Ernesto Colnago.
> Although my frame building expertise is limited to a few frames, I believe
I
> have reasonable understanding about such things. I have always been amazed
> as to how Colnago has been able to weave his schuckster magic for so long
> without any drop in his 'mojo' factor. The same also holds true for
another
> Italian from the Veneto, who will remain nameless, as I claim him as a
> personal friend.
>
> Further to the Colnago part, and as an owner of a Bob Jackson short
> wheelbase racing tandem, I can attest that Bob Jacksons too are not the
> greatest works of the frame building art. Non-existent mitering, cooked
> tubes, sloppy braze-on alignment, incompleteness of brazing are all
visible
> on my bike. It is however perhaps slightly better than average for a
> Jackson, but nonetheless a far cry from what can be found elsewhere. I do
> however willingly accept this 'crudeness' because it is the sweetest
riding
> tandem that I have ever had the pleasure to ride.
>
> Steven Maasland
> Moorestown, NJ
>
> ----- Original Message -----
>
> From: Brian Baylis <rocklube@adnc.com>
> To: <GPVB1@cs.com>
> Cc: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
> Sent: Thursday, June 27, 2002 9:21 PM
> Subject: Re: [CR] eBay Confente
>
> Among many sage comments, Brian mentioned:
>
> > Well the best example I can
> > think of is the Bob Jackson. The article in Playboy many years ago
> > featured a Jackson as I recall and suddenly these frames were highly
> > respected and sought after. Still some of this remains. The bike looked
> > nice in the photos and gushing text was no doubt included; but the fact
> > is as a framebuilder of about 30 years now I can say that few bikes
> > rated that high in Mojo are as poorly built. No doubt the people who
> > have Jacksons they love will take exception. I'm seperating the emotion
> > from the facts. Fact is they are crude in so many ways but they work
> > fine, so there.
> >
> > Brian Baylis
> > La Mesa, CA
>
>
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