After being encouraged to share I've decided to "out" the California GC Masi I recently acquired off Squee-bay. This is the one that a lot of us decided to malign after reading the description in the auction listing, SOMEone even went so far as to complain to e-bay about the seller "misrepresentin'" (like they were wearing the wrong color bandana or something!) and e-bay PULLED the listing....as well as about 200 other listings that this large, warehouse-based service provider had. Took them 3 days to get their biz back up and running...
Here's the story, the seller consigned this bike to them, and they described it based upon his 70-year old memory, so the attribution to a fabled early artisan was dated "early 80's"....it DID sound hinkey but you know we are WAY too ready to assume "misrepresentin'" than honest error. Not that none of us ever low-balled a bike at a garage sale when asked by the grandma "what is it worth?" :-)
Anyways it arrived here Friday night. The "campagnolo wheels"? 36 hole Martanos, with perfectly aged and wonderfully use-able SILK clements! Del Mondo on the back, Criterium on the front! Cute lil Pellisier alloy tire scrapers too! Brake shoes are hard as rocks, but still have 2/3 of the mold line left on the brake surface!
Dare I mention the world-logo gum hoods? Choice but dry, I may replace them with some from my stash (c/o my "secret source") but I doubt it.
Everything is original, and appears the bike was ridden three times around the block, and then parked, 30 years ago! Very glossy orange finish, a scootch brighter than my 76 e-richie bike, and yes, the yellow head tube IS original paint. Cutouts in the headlugs, seat lug, and bottom bracket seat and downtube tangs also filled with yellow. Cromed fork is painted save the crown and the tips.Inner fork tangs? Three dots, filled yellow. Brake bridge tabs (I don't know what else to call the reinforcements at the seat stays) have cutouts, filled with yellow Braze-ons: downtube shifters, bottle bosses, bottom bracket cable routings, cable stop on the rear derailleur.
Both the main tube tangs on the bottom bracket have been opened out triangularily (sp), the seat lug has been drilled ....I'm told to relieve gas pressure during brazing (?!?) Rear dropouts have milled slots, three on the top edge, two on the bottom. Yeah, they've been painted yellow inside too. Columbus tubing decal. Strong-looking fork, strong-looking seat stays, wonderfully tapered to the fine finish at the dropouts.
73 date on the rear derailleur, circlip front derailleur, no-date 170mm crank arms, haven't checked the lockring dates on the hubs yet. Record pedals have the toeclip strap loop, and the yellow binda straps are riveted at the ends....medium-size Christophe old logo clips. Black reg bottle cage mounted on the two low-on-the-downtube brazeons. Cinelli bars and stem. Yellow Benotto tape!
This bike is da bomb! I am no expert in Masi-ophilia, but I DO know that it is my size and those of you who know me know I have been wanting one for a long long time. After passing on the first of John B's in-the-crate finds ("too nice, I'd be afraid to ride it") I had been kicking myself for a year. THIS makes up for it, and is as near original unrestored fresh as I could have ever hoped for.
And as to who is supposed to have put all the gorgeous extra work into the cutouts and the thinning and the ultra-clean work? Well, I wasdn't there when it was made, when it was pulled down to be painted and shipped, but for some reason the only serialization is MC 61 for the size, and 01 on the tang, right where its never supposed to be....except on some "special ones" I started hearing about as soon as the (second) auction closed.
Here's a site I put up when I was waiting for it, when I can get out into sunlight and take some decent fotos, I'll post them and send them along to t'other Dale as well.
http://home.netcom.com/
I hope this is more interesting than brake hood discussion - will give a ride report after its properly cleaned up and the tires are re-glued.....yes, I am gonna ride 'em and hopefully SOON, need to explore the hilly places near our new pad near Boulder Colorado (yes thats official too) ....will they live up to my memory of the sound of silks singing on Metcalf or Hiway 9 or Mt Hamilton Road?
Dale Phelps, Somewhere (south) of Laramie