G.Varela

Hi guys, I picked up this interesting frameset but I can't seem to find any info on it other than it's a Diamondback DBR, the model Strada II seems absent from any web reference page. The fork doesn't seem to be original as it has a different bike company brand name on it, but who knows. Here's some pics.

non-fixie 

Interesting. The decals suggest that Andrea Pesenti, a.k.a. the Laser man, as he was the man behind the Cinelli Laser, had something to do with it.

Subscribing!

G.Varela

This thing is an enigma to say the least. Nivacrom frame and all.

unworthy1

CF (carbon fiber) fork is a DEAN. Yep this frame is a mystery alright, never heard of this particular flavor of Columbus/Pesenti "Delta" tubing, will watch for some updates!

obrentharris 

Carbon fork appears to be made by Alpha Q. Perhaps Alpha Q supplied it to Dean, a maker of titanium bicycles.
Brent

G.Varela

I was able to get the original wheels from the person that sold me the frame. I love the anodized blue color. I serviced the wheels last night, but couldn't take the freehub off,
apparently a special tool is needed to remove it.





Now I feel like I have a good foundation to rebuild this thing.


Some nice touches on that frame.

G.Varela

She's taking shape. I'm debating between 8 speed downtube shifters, and aero levers; or I have a set of 5600 10 speed shifters. What do you guys think? I'm leaning towards downtubes. Also, finding stickers for this bike is virtually impossible.

G.Varela

There she is, a Pesenti in disguise. Those Shimano aero levers rattle like crazy though.

obrentharris 

Nice job!
Brent

non-fixie 

Looks good!

Greasy Paws

The plot thickens! I have stumbled upon this old thread doing some research about potential purchase: a similar DBR Strada frame built with Columbus Genius tubbing in NOS condition. The seller couldn't provide much information apart from dating frame as mid-90s.

The latest 90s DBR catalogue I could find online is from 1995 and doesn't include this model: check out Retrobike DMR catalogue resources. ( I am a newbie here and can't post links yet)

The only models that apper are the Prevail TT (titanium) and the Master, Expert and Interval (all built with OX true temper)

The fact that the Strada model is built with Columbus Genius seems to indicate that the production was outsourced to an Italian factoy. In this case the frame is painted gun metal grey with graphics similar to the Prevail TT. If I finally pull the trigger on this one, I will update this thread accordingly.

In the meantime any info about this particular DBR model or resources to search for information (scans of DBR catalogues for the 1996-2000) wooul be much appreciated.

G.Varela

This is the only DBR Strada model that I've seen online, and the bike is located out of the country. Built with Columbus Genius as mentioned. Mine is a Strada II model.

Greasy Paws

That's from FB marketplace. It's the same seller, probably a now-retired owner of a bike shop in Southern Spain. Alas, the frame I wanted to purchase is now gone!!

So far that's the information I have managed to gather online: Andrea Pesenti was a well-respected Italian frame builder who collaborated in the late 80s and 90s with Columbus developing the famous Cinelli Laser. He had a small workshop and produced some frames (probably full-custom) under his own name Pesenti. However, his workshop appears to have been more focused in doing small production runs for other brands like, in the case of this particular frame, Diamond Back. That's something the few remaining Italian frame-builiding workshops continue to do nowadays. That the frame has PESENTI sticker, however, doesn´t mean he built it himself; rather than it was built on his premises. The fact that he had an input on frame design and the quality of tubbing and welding speak, nonetheless, of a high-end road bike for the time.

When the tubbing stickers says 'selected by Pesenti' probaby refers to a particular selection of the tubes made by Andrea Pesenti himself to use on his road frames or perhaps a combination of tubes made to his own specifications. The Delta was not a tubbing of Columbus catalogue but Nivacrome Steel refers to the series of new tubing Genius released by Columbus in the early 1990s. So probaby your frame is just identical / very similar to the Columbus Genius series; especifcally developed for tig welding and with a extremely thin sections for an steel tube ranging from 0.7mm at the butts and 0.4mm at the center section. Extremely nice, high end tubbing for a very lively ride. Something similar would be the Rossin Performance frames of the time.

More info just search for Andrea Pesenti. The good thing about this frame is that it was in NOS condition altough missing original fork, as in the picture above. (not allowed to upload pics yet)

T-Mar

DBR (Diamond Back Racing) was an upscale line from Western States Imports. The earliest confirmed examples that I've seen are from 1994, though it may possibly have existed in 1993. It was originally conceived to promote the team issue models ridden by their ATB team members

In the mid-1990s, WSI offered very few road models in the USA, due to the dominance of the ATB in their domestic market. I have never seen a Strada, prior to these posts. It may be a European market offering, where road bicycles were more popular at the time. While the frames do look Italian, the presence of Columbus tubing does not necessarily indicate Italian or even European origin. Several Asian manufacturers have built with Columbus as early as the early 1980s, including but limited to, KHS, Tsunoda and Pacific.

I realize that this is a zombie thread and that the 2nd DBR is gone but the easiest way to increase confidence level in the suspected Italian origin of the bicycle would be to check for the presence of Italian threading in the bottom bracket shells. The serial numbers may also provide clues to the origin and year.

Greasy Paws

^^ Thanks for you contribution. I live in Spain and this frame caught my attention as it was on sale on a classifieds app for aprox. $250 in NOS condition. With the frame now gone I am afraid I cannot shed further light on this issue. Probably you are right that this was only a European offering. I have managed to find a 10 year classified ad for a complete bike with DBR Strada frameset in a UK forum (Still cannot post links so if interested search for: LFGSS 61cm road bike (Columbus Genius tubing)). Like in the picture above, apart from the Columbus Genius stickers, there is another sticker indicating 'Design Pesenti'.

The presence of an Italian BB shell may indicate Italian origin of the frame but not necesarily as client (DBR in this case) could have ordered BSA threading for fitting a Shimano groupset. By mid-90s italian standards were already starting to fall out of favour with the excection of few high-end Italian frame manufacturers.

In any case, I think the 'mystery' about this frameset (I doubt it was ever offered as complete bike as it doesn't show up on any searches) cannot be resolved without access to DBR catalogues from second half of the 90s which, I believe, are the most likely years for the production of this frame.

LucasHartong

Hello, G. Varela, check out the thread on my Cascarsi. It was built by Pesenti in Italy too.
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...-cascarsi.html
He built high-end frames for several smaller companies, like in The Netherlands. My Cascarsi is a dream bike, rides so well! Best, Lucas.

RG604

I know this is a late reply, but jeezus - it says Diamond Back on it, for God's sake. It's even pantographs DBR (Diamond Back Racing). How are you not immediately aware that it is a Diamondback?