2007 Bianchi Pista in almost brand new condition?
#1
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2007 Bianchi Pista in almost brand new condition?
Found this 2007 Bianchi Pista in almost brand new condition.
About to put it into service, but I'm wondering if its too nice to ride? Is it a collectible , valuable bike, or can I just go ahead and ride it as a general use bike. that gets parked at the Bike Rack in the City?
The previous owner didn't ride it, stored it in garage and sold it to me for $200. Here it is with tires and chain off.
If I put 3 M Bike Protection tape on it, will it remove Bianchi stickers when I go to remove the tape?
About to put it into service, but I'm wondering if its too nice to ride? Is it a collectible , valuable bike, or can I just go ahead and ride it as a general use bike. that gets parked at the Bike Rack in the City?
The previous owner didn't ride it, stored it in garage and sold it to me for $200. Here it is with tires and chain off.
If I put 3 M Bike Protection tape on it, will it remove Bianchi stickers when I go to remove the tape?
Last edited by 5 mph; 10-15-20 at 08:23 AM.
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Looks like it was setup as a "fixie" with those flat bars and small front chainring
I got about $300 for my 2005 model -- it was one of the chrome edition bikes and was still setup with track bars and gearing -- so you did good on that bike for $200
ITs still too nice a bike to park at the bike rack IMO though but i wouldnt classify it as a true collectible but wait another 20 years and anythings possible
These are true track bikes however and not a road bike with fixed gears - you can see by the rear seatstay bridge that it is not drilled for a back brake at all , and they have the requisite high bottom brackets and tight angles that are needed for general track use - so there will always be interest in real track bikes
I got about $300 for my 2005 model -- it was one of the chrome edition bikes and was still setup with track bars and gearing -- so you did good on that bike for $200
ITs still too nice a bike to park at the bike rack IMO though but i wouldnt classify it as a true collectible but wait another 20 years and anythings possible
These are true track bikes however and not a road bike with fixed gears - you can see by the rear seatstay bridge that it is not drilled for a back brake at all , and they have the requisite high bottom brackets and tight angles that are needed for general track use - so there will always be interest in real track bikes
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...these were made in Asia somewhere, and Bianchi sold a great many of them in the Great Fixie Boom of the Turn of the Century. They are light, and quick, but not really track bikes because drilled for a front brake to be street legal. They did manage to produce them in large numbers, and without bottle cage braze-ons, which has always struck me as short sighted. I don't think they'll ever be classic and valuable, but there is the Bike Snob NY's famous "Pistadex as a measure of the economy" column. So maybe I'm wrong.
I have one here in chrome, with bombproof tyres on it, that I ride on the days when the recycling truck drops a lot of broken glass.
I have one here in chrome, with bombproof tyres on it, that I ride on the days when the recycling truck drops a lot of broken glass.
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Theyve been used in the rental fleets at a couple of different velodromes. They are a real track bike . - but Bianchi did market a poser version later that came with brakes and bottle braze ons
#5
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So its just a nice bike but I'm not damaging something that I should collect.
I just like to see things treated properly. If it was something special, I would hang it on the wall.
But this is just an unused mass produced bike, right ? I can use it without guilt?
In other words Bianchi did kind of like what Maytag and Jaguar and Northface did ?
I just like to see things treated properly. If it was something special, I would hang it on the wall.
But this is just an unused mass produced bike, right ? I can use it without guilt?
In other words Bianchi did kind of like what Maytag and Jaguar and Northface did ?
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If there is a poseur version, I suspect we both have one, because I recognize the crank as well. Not something I would ride on a track bike...it comes off as a little iffy in terms of the design and solidity of it.
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...the one in the photo looks identical to the chrome one I have here, right down to the Chick design sticker. Mine is drilled for a brake, but only a front brake. If your definition of a "real" track bike is something you can rent to ride around a track, I'm fine with it being your definition. I think I was merely referencing the relatively obvious differences between this and some of the more expensive ( often not run up on Asian factory welding lines) "custom" track bikes you see for sale.
If there is a poseur version, I suspect we both have one, because I recognize the crank as well. Not something I would ride on a track bike...it comes off as a little iffy in terms of the design and solidity of it.
If there is a poseur version, I suspect we both have one, because I recognize the crank as well. Not something I would ride on a track bike...it comes off as a little iffy in terms of the design and solidity of it.
The crankset on these is not something a trackie would spec normally if they were building a bike from scratch because the bcd is 130 instead of 144 and uses a 3/32 chain instead of 1/8 -- its a budget move for sure - but these bikes were maybe $600 new. Great machines for a newcomer to get their feet wet with and decide if they actually like riding track or not before dropping 2k+ for a higher end machine.
But my point was - unlike a lot of the fixies that were marketed in this era, the Bianchi is a real track bike due to having proper track geometry and bottom bracket height, as well as 165 crankarms, vs a lot of them out there that were road frames with fixed/SS dropouts
But regarding drilling the fork for a front brake --- i even had it done on my custom . IT hasnt worn a front brake yet, but the opportunity is there if i ever want to use the bike for a road time trial (USAC rules let you use track bikes for TT's as long as they can be fitted with a front brake
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So its just a nice bike but I'm not damaging something that I should collect.
I just like to see things treated properly. If it was something special, I would hang it on the wall.
But this is just an unused mass produced bike, right ? I can use it without guilt?
In other words Bianchi did kind of like what Maytag and Jaguar and Northface did ?
I just like to see things treated properly. If it was something special, I would hang it on the wall.
But this is just an unused mass produced bike, right ? I can use it without guilt?
In other words Bianchi did kind of like what Maytag and Jaguar and Northface did ?
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Ride it and enjoy it...not to worry about putting a film on to protect the paint.
Enjoy, Ben
Enjoy, Ben
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The crankset on these is not something a trackie would spec normally if they were building a bike from scratch because the bcd is 130 instead of 144 and uses a 3/32 chain instead of 1/8 -- its a budget move for sure - but these bikes were maybe $600 new. Great machines for a newcomer to get their feet wet with and decide if they actually like riding track or not before dropping 2k+ for a higher end machine.
But my point was - unlike a lot of the fixies that were marketed in this era, the Bianchi is a real track bike due to having proper track geometry and bottom bracket height, as well as 165 crankarms, vs a lot of them out there that were road frames with fixed/SS dropouts.
But regarding drilling the fork for a front brake --- i even had it done on my custom . IT hasnt worn a front brake yet, but the opportunity is there if i ever want to use the bike for a road time trial (USAC rules let you use track bikes for TT's as long as they can be fitted with a front brake.
But my point was - unlike a lot of the fixies that were marketed in this era, the Bianchi is a real track bike due to having proper track geometry and bottom bracket height, as well as 165 crankarms, vs a lot of them out there that were road frames with fixed/SS dropouts.
But regarding drilling the fork for a front brake --- i even had it done on my custom . IT hasnt worn a front brake yet, but the opportunity is there if i ever want to use the bike for a road time trial (USAC rules let you use track bikes for TT's as long as they can be fitted with a front brake.
When I started racing, in the mid-60s, the ABLA regulations allowed use of a track bike with a working front brake for all forms of road racing.
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I have a Felt TK2 with a front brake installed (I bought the bike because it one of the few tight-geometry high-end track bikes with a fork drilled for a brake on the market), but I rarely use it for road riding, because, while its ultra-stable tracking is great, I no longer enjoy its hair-trigger steering quite as much as I once did.
When I started racing, in the mid-60s, the ABLA regulations allowed use of a track bike with a working front brake for all forms of road racing.
When I started racing, in the mid-60s, the ABLA regulations allowed use of a track bike with a working front brake for all forms of road racing.
I recall Adam Sbeih winning the 2000 time trial national championship on a track bike with a front brake as well, but thats the last i heard of one being used at that high a level
#12
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I'm kind of relieved it's not Top End. I have a Langster on its last legs and the rear tire shifts and throws the chain whenever I really am wrestling with the bike to get up a hill. I hope to have this done by next week when the 44 16 and freewheel parts come. Tempted to just ride it fixed.
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I'm kind of relieved it's not Top End. I have a Langster on its last legs and the rear tire shifts and throws the chain whenever I really am wrestling with the bike to get up a hill. I hope to have this done by next week when the 44 16 and freewheel parts come. Tempted to just ride it fixed.
The rarity in my estimation comes from its condition, it is getting harder and harder to find bicycles that are super clean. If I find one, whether "high or low end", if I like it, can afford it and have space, I will pick it up.
If it will be your only ride, enjoy it and when it is passed along to another owner, they will see it was appreciated along with all of its battle scars. Most bikes are utilitarian, very few are investments.
All that being said enjoy it.
Best, Ben
Last edited by xiaoman1; 10-18-20 at 10:30 AM.
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#14
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Perhaps a bit of a misconception, low-end high-end, who determines this and more importantly why should we care? There's nothing at all wrong with the bike.....if you want it to remain in pristine condition, don't ride it because it will get road rash and no amount of film will protect it from this occurring.
The rarity in my estimation comes from its condition, it is getting harder and harder to find bicycles that are super clean. If I find one, whether "high or low end", if I like it, can afford it and have space, I will pick it up.
If it will be your only ride, enjoy it and when it is passed along to another owner, they will see it was appreciated along with all of its battle scars. Most bikes are utilitarian, very few are investments.
All that being said enjoy it.
Best, Ben
The rarity in my estimation comes from its condition, it is getting harder and harder to find bicycles that are super clean. If I find one, whether "high or low end", if I like it, can afford it and have space, I will pick it up.
If it will be your only ride, enjoy it and when it is passed along to another owner, they will see it was appreciated along with all of its battle scars. Most bikes are utilitarian, very few are investments.
All that being said enjoy it.
Best, Ben
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