Lou, Thanks. What you write makes sense. Of course whole groups
were given to the framebuilders, since the Delta brakes were part
of the brand new C-Record group in 1984. And indeed some
manufacturers equipped frames with that group and showed them
in their catalogs. The 1985 Pinarello catalog is one example:
http://www.bulgier.net/
I am interested in the answer to one question: Were there the prototypes and the catalog pictures only? Or did some Delta equipped bikes make their way to their proud new owners?
If one reads the "Delta brakes" page on Campyonly.com
(see: http://www.campyonly.com/
Was there really a "first year's production run" and its sale to the public? Lou's info and Dirk's info raise doubts about that.
If there had been NO sale to the public then a real product would have never taken place. And that would also mean that any brakeset which looks my one on eBay IS a prototype brakeset.
Dirk Feeken (who gave me that information) told me that he also knows two collectors here in Germany with more than one set of that kind in their collections. That makes at least a two-digit number of surviving prototype Delta sets.
The info on Campyonly "just three prototype sets produced" seems incorrect, if this type of brake was not sold the public.
Christian Rothe Baden-Baden, Germany
-----Ursprüngliche Nachricht----- Von: loudeeter@aol.com [mailto:loudeeter@aol.com] Gesendet: Mittwoch, 23. August 2006 19:04 An: rothe@amitra.de; Classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Betreff: Re: [CR]Very early Campagnolo Delta brakes from 1984
My understanding is that 100 sets of the prototype GROUPs, not just brakes, were issued to select framebuilders to showcase their frames at shows and in catalogs, as mentioned in the post below. I have no confirmation of the 100 number however. They were issued in 1984 and the crankarms are so dated. The Delta calipers were about 80% the size of the first generation models that were offered to the public, so the prototype models are indeed rare. I also heard that Campagnolo asked framebuilders to voluntarily return the groups after the season, but that many didn't. There was a set on the J.P. Weigle that was in Bicycling and Playboy and now owned by Ron Edmiston in Florida. So, that makes at least four! Lou Deeter, Orlando FL
-----Original Message----- From: rothe@amitra.de To: Classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Sent: Wed, 23 Aug 2006 11:09 AM Subject: [CR]Very early Campagnolo Delta brakes from 1984
At the moment there is a set of very early Campagnolo Delta brakes from
1984
on eBay:
http://ebay.com/
They exactly look like the Delta prototypes which are presented on
Campyonly.com:
http://www.campyonly.com/
I am the seller of the set on eBay. Prior to writing my item description
I did a lot of research on the Internet. As stated in that description it was my assumption that my brake belonged to the first run of serial production of the Delta brakes.
Yesterday I received a message from a collector (Dirk Feeken who is pretty well known on this discussion list): Dirk said that this generation of Deltas was given to bicycle manufacturers in 1984 in order to allow them
to take pictures of their bike for their 1985 catalogs. According to him this Delta model never was available to the public.
If you got to Campyonly.com you can read that there are only three prototype sets in existence. According to Dirk this number is an invention by an eBay-seller who incorrectly claimed that there were only three sets: The
one owned by Richard Sachs, the one owned by Campagnolo and his. As Dirk told me there were more set than just three, but they were all prototypes. That would mean that my set on eBay is a prototype set, too.
Is there anyone out there who can tell me: Was that very first generation of Delta sold to the public or not?
Christian Rothe Baden-Baden Germany
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