Not sure that you are correct about Assos. Andy Newland's Strawberry Bicycles brought Assos in, not sure about the year. But really early.
Jim Merz Big Sur CA
On Sat, Jan 8, 2011 at 12:15 PM, <oroboyz@aol.com> wrote:
> I sold a few Palettis in-the-day which were obtained from Dohnnie Einhorn
> in Florida who also was the first importer of Assos (when they had cranks,
> rims, pedals, The era of the semi naked girl ads...) and Somec frames.
>
>
> I understood that Luciano Paletti changed to PMZ in deference to two added
> partners, Mssrs. Maza and Zanotti (?)
> Then, not long after that,(4 years?) that group broke up and the two
> partners became the MAZA brand, as imported & promoted by Branford in the
> northeastern USA.
>
>
> Dale Brown
> cycles de ORO, Inc.
> 1410 Mill Street #100
> Greensboro, North Carolina 27408 USA
> 336-274-5959
> http://www.cyclesdeoro.com
> http://www.classicrendezvous.com
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Wayne Bingham <veloclassique@gmail.com>
> To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
> Sent: Sat, Jan 8, 2011 1:36 pm
> Subject: [CR] Paletti and Maza Variants
>
>
> This is something that I have not been able to completely figure out. The
> head badge designs shown on the CR/Paletti web site, which I believe are
> early designs, show the letters PMZ, rather than the more common and
> familiar design with the letters LP. I have to assume that LP stands for
> Luciano Paletti. I'm not sure what PMZ stands for, but I'm pretty sure it
> isn't Paletti Profile System because it certainly doesn't translate that
> way. Then there's the Maza branded frames, which were also built by
> Paletti, but possibly in collaboration with others. Most of those have MZ
> on the fork crowns and in the head badge design. I've heard varying
> versions of the Maza/Paletti story, but never any real definitive
> information. Does anyone know for sure? Mr. Maasland maybe?
>
> I have two Palettis at the moment, an '81 Super Prestige and an '86 Meteor,
> as well as an '89 Maza Competition built with Columbus Max tubing.
> Palettis
> and Mazas from the 80's are most often seen in the sort of "over the top"
> Italian style of the period, with lots of pantographing/engraving/casting
> of
> names and logos, on both frames and components, and flashy paint schemes.
> The Meteor has seemingly every "look at me" trick in the book, typical of
> many Italian bikes at the time and befitting the first generation
> C-Record/Delta components it's outfitted with. "Tricks" include severely
> crimped main tubes, lots of engraved logos, and even the full name Meteor
> and LP logo engrave in the side of the seat stays just above the brake
> bridge. The flutes of the crimped tubes are filled with blue on an
> otherwise
> pearl white frame with chrome lower fork legs and stays. The Maza has a
> similar treatment on the seat stays with the Maza name, and is painted in a
> garish purple/pink/yellow/white fade. Don't get me wrong, I'm a Paletti
> fan, but if you want a more sedate Paletti or Maza, best to look for the
> earlier versions.
>
> I obviously haven't answered Kevin's questions, and probably have only
> generated more. Just thought I'd add what I know to the archives.
>
> Wayne
>
> --
> Wayne Bingham
> Velo Classique
> PO Box 2069
> Purcellville, VA 20134 USA
> 540-338-8376
> http://www.veloclassique.com
>
> From: kevin lindsey <lindsey.kevin@gmail.com>
> Date: Sat, Jan 8, 2011 at 11:23 AM
> Subject: [CR] Paletti variant?
> To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
>
>
> Greetings.
> I'm looking at an early '80s Paletti frameset. The difference between this
> one and every other Paletti I've seen pictured (which is not very many), is
> that this frame has "PMZ" on the fork and stays instead of "LP." I believe
> PMZ means "Paletti Profile System" in Italian, but I have no idea whether
> that's correct or, if so, what that implies.
> Any thoughts?
> Thanks,
> Kevin Lindsey