eldupes

Just picked up this beautifully kept Bianchi, but having the hardest time trying to identify it's era...
I'm assuming 80's, but I've gotten a lot of conflicting information.






Hoping this forum and it's wealth of knowledge can steer me in the right direction!

(Sorry if those photo files are massive- first time posting photos and don't know how to resize)

Bianchigirll 

Around ‘83. I think it might be a Special

T-Mar

The subject frame was manufactured in January 1982 by Bianchi's Japanese contractor. There's no doubt about that. While it's similar to the 1982 USA version of the Special, it's not an exact match, as it it has painted stays and BL derailleurs. The derailleurs could be an owner upgrade, as it does not have BL shift levers. The stay finish could be post catalogue change or represent a foreign market model.

eldupes

Could the difference in stays and derailleurs have anything to do with it being a Canadian sold bicycle, perhaps?

And what sort of value would you expect it to have?

T-Mar

The Canadian and USA market bicycles were different during this period, sometimes even extending to model names. The different level of finish is almost certainly due to it being a non-USA market model. However, I'm not as convinced about the derailleurs, as the shift levers do not match.

Regarding value, it will be highly dependent on the tubeset and your location. Given the components, the frame could be hi-tensile steel or a carbon-manganese alloy. Usually, there is a tubing decal if it is better than hi-tensile steel. I'm not seeing one, so we'd need the diamter of the seat post to get an appreciation of the tubing grade. Location is also a big factor. Metropolitan areas like Toronto fetch far higher prices than backwaters like Dog River.

eldupes

Hi again!

I finally got a chance to measure the seat post, and it is somewhere between 26-26.5mm
Does that help to distinguish it at all?
The lack of decal is really getting in the way of identifying this beauty!