Re: [CR]Ebay 50's Cinelli track bike # 190270638202

Hi CR folks,

The 1956 date looks right on the money to me (or within a year or so), as best as I can tell from the photos.

A good reference for a Cinelli track bike of this rough time period is the one on the Velostuff website which I believe John dates to around 1956 through 1958. I happen to have a nearly identical one, in original paint, only larger, here as well (these are the ones in a darkish metalic looking bronze-brownish color). The link is below.

http://www.velostuf.com/velostufgallerybikes+frames.htm

My sense is that Cinelli stopped using the crest decal on the forkblades by 1957, and certainly by 1958, so the bike is probably at the earlier end of the time frame.

Another good reference is the (now defunct in an ugly way) Asphalt magazine Spring 2003 issue that shows Dave Staub's trip to Italy. The trip took place in 1957, and the photos from the trip show him on the track during summer 1957 with a bike much like John's and also the one on ebay. So 1956 or 1957 really looks dead-on with the documentation.

These bikes certainly did use the classic Cinelli seatcluster. The bottom bracket shell details look right on the money as well on the ebay bike. John's bike uses a twin plate forkcrown (as does mine) that looks earlier and more complex, but the wheels that came on mine have a 1955 date code so its possible that my bike and John's might be on the slightly earlier side - but that is getting tricky to ascertain.

Actually, the Cinelli Steven had seemed more like an outlier to me, and the bike on ebay more the norm.

Hope this helps!

Mike Kone in Boulder CO USA