List: We did indeed examine this bike, and it is in very good original condition. It has had very few miles put on it. As noted by seller, it has Weinmann concave clincher rims with Schwinn-branded tires that appear to be period-correct. It has the Confente "signature" three drilled holes in the seat lug as shown in the photo. It also has small holes drilled in the cable guide braze-ons that were not a standard Masi touch. These are what led us to believe it was, as he quoted, "definately [sic] MARIO CONFENTE built" with special attention for an owner.
The Roland Sahm connection sounds legit, but other than his word, we have no evidence of it. We highly recommended he try to document it before selling as such. Oh well....
On the other hand, there are some other curious details that we pointed out to the seller, and which he neglected to mention in his listing. The filing around the top front of the seat lug is not well done. The transition is pretty square, rather than the smooth radius one would expect. The seat binder tabs are also more tapered than Mario's usually are. Some of the lug points are also shorter and somewhat less finely shaped than a typical Confente.
These details don't necessarily disqualify it from being Confente-built, but it seemed obvious to us that other hands had worked on it also.
Greg Reiche CyclArt Vista, CA USA
-----Original Message----- From: classicrendezvous-bounces@bikelist.org [mailto:classicrendezvous-bounces@bikelist.org]On Behalf Of chasds@mindspring.com Sent: Thursday, November 30, 2006 7:27 PM To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Subject: [CR]re: ebay outing: confente Masi
John J. wrote:
Don't like the hype, nor the typography in the description but looks like a real deal from here.
http://ebay.com/
Item # 230059666413
John Jorgensen Plaos Verdes Ca USA
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I forget now. Is the giveaway detail the three vent-holes in the seat-tube-to-top-tube joint as seen in the photo? What other details mark it as "confente-built?" I thought confente squared off the seat-clamp bolt tabs..they don't appear to be on this frame, although it's hard to tell, too, from the photos.
Just wondering. It certainly looks nice enough, although I have to say I'm more partial to the earlier twin-plate fork-crown frames. I would kill to have one of those Masi-milled chainrings though. Damn, those things are hard to find, and very 'spensive when they do pop up.
Charles Andrews SoCal
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