Legnano Grand Premio ?
 

I’m eying one of these bikes locally for what seems a bargain price but can’t find a great deal about them. I’ve not seen it in person and the pics are very limited but if I understand correctly this was Legnanos second tier bike with at least partial Campy?
Value range ?

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http://www.condorino.com/


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BTW - in case you plan to go a-searchin' the model name is Gran Premio

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if you get down to any specific detail questions may be able to help. have had five (:eek:) '60's era examples pass through me workshop.


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The Grand Premio was the second from top of the line, for many years. They are really nice bikes, sporting great livery, good ride quality and highly collectable. I particularly like the wonderful headbadge...
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...d171c08751.jpg


I have had my 1968 model for a long time and it is the only keeper in my wee stable. Bought as a frame/fork set only, I put it on the road as soon as I could, ensuring that it was road worthy and safe to ride. Then, over the years, as this and that showed up at a price I could afford, I have finally managed to get everything needed except a set of Galso Legnano handlebar end caps (set on Ebay right now but PayPal is empty).

Anyway, my Legnano Grand Premio that might get a coat of paint someday...
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...bd89cf5bca.jpg

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...the one that popped up on the Sacramento CL looks like a good bet. The photos are, indeed, awful. I posted in link in the "are you looking for one" thread. Legnano didn't make any crummy bikes. "First tier" and "second tier" are meaningless with Legnano's. I think it's just some guy who decided he didn't want to do all the work involved in the project overhaul. If you don't go and look at it soon, someone will buy it, and sell the parts and frame separately on ebay.

You can't tell from the photos, but it looks like it might be relatively intact, in terms of the parts that are on it now. Too bad about the photos, but the flip side is nobody else can tell what it is either. :)

Hate to disagree with you but Legnano was kind of the Raleigh of Italy, and made bikes in a wide range of qualities and styles.

The main difference between their top line Tipo Roma and the second from top Gran Primo was usually butted tubing, although Legnano was rarely specific about what kind tubing they used. Some Roma's are marked as Reynolds 531 D/B (and many are not), and Primo's are rumored to be Falk seamless. Both models are similarly equipped, use seamless high alloy steel tubing, and most importantly from a identification perspective, both have forged Campag dropouts. The Roma is noticeably lighter though.

Legnano did however make much lower cost/quality replicas of their top line bikes, like this entry-level racer - stamped dropouts, steel-plate brake bridge, Valentino derailleurs, no chromed lugs and tips, foil head badge (and an insane asking price), so they did make crummy bikes as well, some of which closely resemble their best models

https://vancouver.craigslist.org/van...247411001.html

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...thanks for that link. Given its vintage (going by the front derailleur), why do you suppose it's "crummy" ? Certainly I've never had the experience of seeing what Legnano made and sold in Italy. So my knowledge base is limited to what I've seen and worked on here in NorCal. If you care, my understanding is that Reynolds was an upgrade, offered in later years, that could be specified on order. Certainly there was not the same fascination with what sort of frame tubing was used in the era when that CL bike you show was made and sold. More importantly, I suspect, a stamped dropout without an integral hanger was not unusual even in some better quality frames when that bike was new.

Stella used them for years after that on some frames made with decent frame tubing.

Valentino was lower tier, certainly, and the best bicycles contemporary would have been equipped with Gran Sport. But I'm not seeing a crummy bicycle there, given its apparent age. I agree that a thousand bucks is pertty crazy. Heck, you can get a good one for less than that. :)


EDIT: That fork crown does look a little iffy. thanks for this illustrative example. Like I said, everything I've seen thus far imported into NorCal has been one of their top end products. But that's only maybe five or six bikes, two of which I own, and one I facilitated for someone. I've honestly never seen an example of that particular Camapagnolo front shifter.
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The bike in d_dutchinson's post is a mish-mash of parts. The downtube decal marks it as a 1970s model, but the hubs are 1960s, and the front derailleur is a Campagnolo 1011 Sport from the 1950s.

I can see your point, Raleigh never made a crummy bike either, but both of them did make a lot of utility grade bikes, and low end economy copies of their top end bikes.

With the above example, it's mostly it's the flat-plate brake bridge and stamped dropouts on a late model bike (70's?) that gives it away. Legnano's from the 50's, when stamped dropouts were more common, didn't use foil decals for the head badge. One tricky part about dating Legnano's is that their drop-bar models all tended to look alike - with the Gino Bartali replicas being the most popular style, regardless of the quality of the bike itself. They were a big company that catered to all types and budgets, and buyers should be aware that not all with a Pistachio green paint job is gold.

I'd take this over a Raleigh 20 any day, but still
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...76829a5b14.jpg

I have the formula to repaint in legnano
 

And Freud lizard green found it on a moto guzzi site as they had that color one year