I'd have to disagree with you on this one Craig. I've got two Colnagos from the very early 1980s and this one looks exactly like them. Mine have see lots of action and the paint on them is just as thick and shiny. There is no chrome on the right chainstay of these early '80s Colnagos, it's a mylar sticker. Both mine have the same all chrome fork with the club and COLNAGO cast in the top of the crown and none of the decals on my two have "TM" anywhere to be seen.
Not sure what you mean by "The components don't mean a thing." It does appear to be missing the pantographed chainring. Yes, the Selle Royal Contour saddle is well ridden but it is not the stock saddle that came with the bike (that would be a 3ttt suede saddle marked COLNAGO).
Where this bike differs from my two is the drop outs. They look to be Campagnolo Nuovo Record dropouts drilled and tapped for chain holder (Portacatena). Both mine have the Colnago marked drop outs with no holes for the chain holder. Judging by the drop outs it looks to me like it could be a 1979 Colnago Super with most of its proper parts (I believe the COLNAGO marked headset is from later than the early 1980s). I'd buy it if my mid-1970s Super wasn't currently at Joe Bell's being painted electric blue.
Chuck Schmidt South Pasadena, Southern California United States of America http://www.velo-retro.com (reprints, t-shirts & timelines)
On Sep 21, 2006, at 6:04 PM, Craig Ryan wrote:
> Jay, I'm not an expert, but I follow Colnago's pretty close.
> I think it is a 1980 or later Colnago. I don't think it is original
> paint
> and decal work. The paint looks good, but at the same time it
> appears just a
> bit too shiny for the age, no matter how it has been stored. The
> chrome on
> the right chainstay bothers me, it must be a stick on of some sort.
> The
> chrome fork also bothers me. It is more often seen on bikes from
> about '82
> or '83, not '79. The text on the seat stay caps also came after
> 1979 in most
> cases. The decals are a nice job, and good copies of the originals,
> but I
> don't see a "trademark" symbol on the head tube decal where it
> should be.
> Most people who make high quality after market decals leave the
> trademark
> symbol off. The components don't mean a thing. There is a huge
> variation in
> the perceived aging of the seat vs. the pedals and headset etc. I
> think the
> bike was assembled from a repaint job with odd parts to make it
> sparkle.
> What dropouts does it have?
>
> Still, I think it would be a great bike to have, and I don't doubt
> it is a
> Colnago.
> Good luck!
>
> Craig Ryan
> Noblesville, IN USA
>
>
> On 9/21/06 8:57 AM, "Jay Sexton" <jvs@sonic.net> wrote:
>
>> Would you Colnago experts take a look at this e-bay auction and
>> offer up
>> some opinions?
>>
>> http://ebay.com/
>> ViewItem&item=160033259921&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:US:1>
>>
>> or item # 16033259921
>>
>> Thank you.
>>
>> Jay Sexton
>> Sebastopol, CA