Hi Gary I have a '72 Cinelli SC and a '72 Colnago Super, both in really nice shape, almost too nice to ride(but I do). The first time I rode the Cinelli I knew within 200 yards that it was something special. It's one of those bikes that you can steer with the subtlest of input from your hips and it goes exactly where you want it to. It's as if the bike disappears from under you. Soon after, I got the Colnago, and guess what? It's the same thing. A perfectly balanced bike. I also have a '75 Jack Taylor Tour of Britain (their racing model) and it is a different kettle of fish altogether. It's smooth and comfortable, but just doesn't handle like the other two. The last time I rode it on my usual route, I took a high speed downhill turn and had the living daylights scared out of me because of the significant understeer. Coming out of the turn I nearly went head on into the grill of a car coming up the road in the opposite lane (remember that Charles?) The other two bikes take that same turn as if on rails. Don Gillies suggests there is no difference at 20mph. I beg to differ. Jay Van De Velde Seal Beach,CA
Gary Chottiner <gsc2@po.cwru.edu> wrote: Im the person who wants a Cinelli. I actually did know about the$2300 Super Corsa on eBay before I posted my message and had contacted the seller about it but wasnt interested in that bike at that price.
Perhaps I should ask the people on the list whether I really should pursue a Super Corsa. I see that Don Gillies is trying to compare them to Paramounts. I own two Paramounts (1958 black beauty and 1972 chrome) but havent actually ridden either because they are basically NOS or near-NOS; I hate it when that happens. My significant other has an 80s Waterford Paramount with 70s Campagnolo components and she has a gorgeous early 80s Colnago with pantographed Super Record parts. She's told me for a couple of years that the Colnago is a dream to ride compared to the Paramount (I think it's the paint job) and so Ive wanted to get an Italian bike myself to try out. The Colnagos seem a bit too common (please dont take offense anyone, it's just that there are a lot of them out there) and the look of the Cinellis appeals to me, so I thought Id try to pick one up to see if it really is any better than the other steel bikes that I commonly ride (Proteus, 753 TI Team Raleigh).
So, does anyone out there have an opinion (HA, HA!) on whether Italian bikes are special (to ride, not to look at) and, if so, which is the best of the bunch from the 60's/70's era? If a Colnago is just as good, I could save myself a lot of time and money. And if none of them really feels that much different from American/English bikes, I can save that much more.
Gary Chottiner, Northeast Ohio
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I am always surprised at the pricing of cinelli super corsas in the early 1970's, vs. the american equivalent, a schwinn paramount p-10 or maybe p-12. Let me preface this by saying that I think that the cinellis are beautiful bikes, _however_, to state this in the most provocative way possible :
is one chromed lug and one fancy-painted headbadge really worth $1000 extra?
what do people think ?? Was the paramount a "ripoff" of the cinelli artistic design? Who adopted this understated look first, cinelli or schwinn ?? Because from 10' away, or at 20 mph, it's hard to tell the difference between the bikes.
- Don Gillies San Diego, CA
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