Great info on the 1941 Bianchi, Steven! By any chance can you tell me what model my 1939 Bianchi would be from your Bianchi catalogs?
http://www.velo-retro.com/
It has the brazed-on ear on the right chain stay to mount a Vittoria Margherita derailleur. The original owner, a postman in Brooklyn, bought the bike in NYC in 1940 and it was equipped with a Sturmey- Archer 3 speed when new I believe.
Has steel bars and stem, steel brake levers and calipers, double threaded steel hub, steel three arm crank with "Bianchi" script and steel caged pedals with "B" cut through both sides of the pedal cage. Unique fender stay mounts in the sides of the fork and seat stay with small, beautifully formed wing nuts. Also has the football shaped Bianchi decals that date back to the teens of the last century on head tube and top of down tube.
Chuck Schmidt
South Pasadena, CA USA
http://www.velo-retro.com (reprints, t-shirts & timelines)