"Italian" Univega?
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"Italian" Univega?
Hi,
I own a 1980 Univega Superlight that I bought brand new.The brochure said it was Italian made and the salesman said that the top two or three Univega models were still made in the same foctory where the old Italvegas were made,while the rest of the line was now made in Japan.My bike was originally painted gold with columbus SL double butted tubing, with chrome forks and chainstay. Every component on that bike is Italian, including the custom drilled Campy ones. Finally, It came with a little decal on the bottom of the seat tube above the bottom bracket that said, in black cursive writing,"Made in Italy".
I'm writing because none of the forums I've visited mention any "Italian" Univegas. They all say the entire line switched to Japan when they dropped the Italvega name. I even got in an argument with a man over this who insisted that if My bike says Univega, then it was made in Japan.Who's right? Was all the literature and the salespitch at the shop a lie, and they actually shipped Columbus tubing and Campagnolo dropouts to Japan for frame building? Or am I right, and they actually did make Italian Univegas for a short while?
I own a 1980 Univega Superlight that I bought brand new.The brochure said it was Italian made and the salesman said that the top two or three Univega models were still made in the same foctory where the old Italvegas were made,while the rest of the line was now made in Japan.My bike was originally painted gold with columbus SL double butted tubing, with chrome forks and chainstay. Every component on that bike is Italian, including the custom drilled Campy ones. Finally, It came with a little decal on the bottom of the seat tube above the bottom bracket that said, in black cursive writing,"Made in Italy".
I'm writing because none of the forums I've visited mention any "Italian" Univegas. They all say the entire line switched to Japan when they dropped the Italvega name. I even got in an argument with a man over this who insisted that if My bike says Univega, then it was made in Japan.Who's right? Was all the literature and the salespitch at the shop a lie, and they actually shipped Columbus tubing and Campagnolo dropouts to Japan for frame building? Or am I right, and they actually did make Italian Univegas for a short while?
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you might have the "missing link" and so...post some PICS, please!
I'm inclined to think that the transition from Italvega (probably Torpado-made) and Univega was not so cut-and-dried...probably was some slop-over.
I'm inclined to think that the transition from Italvega (probably Torpado-made) and Univega was not so cut-and-dried...probably was some slop-over.
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Check inside the fork steer tube for rifiling, I think that only SL and SP from this era had the fork steer tube rifeling. You can also discern general quality by thumping middle of the tube, listen to the sound of the struck tube. Thinner tubes sound noticeably different. Weight of the stripped frame could also give an indication of tubing quality.
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27.2 is a pretty good indicator it likley is good tubing (0.9mm butted thickness) but it is also possible the builder reamed out a 1.0mm thickness tube to make it a 27.2 post.
Check inside the fork steer tube for rifiling, I think that only SL and SP from this era had the fork steer tube rifeling. You can also discern general quality by thumping middle of the tube, listen to the sound of the struck tube. Thinner tubes sound noticeably different. Weight of the stripped frame could also give an indication of tubing quality.
Check inside the fork steer tube for rifiling, I think that only SL and SP from this era had the fork steer tube rifeling. You can also discern general quality by thumping middle of the tube, listen to the sound of the struck tube. Thinner tubes sound noticeably different. Weight of the stripped frame could also give an indication of tubing quality.
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Wow! that is beautiful, and probably pretty uncommon if not rare!
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Except that is not the OP's bike. +1 that is a beautiful Italvega. Nice!!
As far as who to trust, if you have the original brochure, bought the bike new, etc., who would you trust? Yourself, or some gasbag. Love the"if it is Univega, it must be made in Japan" comment, as I have a 1989 Univega that was made in Taiwan.... Univega, like many brands, did not build bikes. Instead, they sourced them from a variety of manufacturers. The same can be said about countless respected brands: Lotus, Centurion, etc.
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Nice Italvega! Lawee certainly had an eye for design.
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Even if it's "SP" and would generally take a 27.0 post, it's still "good tubing." It's uncommon for an SP frame to take a 27.2 post, less because of reaming (which usually still yields a 27.0 post), but because of tubing gauge tolerances and commonly occurring distortion to the seat post opening that renders it very slightly out of round.
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Even if it's "SP" and would generally take a 27.0 post, it's still "good tubing." It's uncommon for an SP frame to take a 27.2 post, less because of reaming (which usually still yields a 27.0 post), but because of tubing gauge tolerances and commonly occurring distortion to the seat post opening that renders it very slightly out of round.
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Nice frames. Those are SL, and made by Torpado.
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Believe me it was a really ugly gold, like the kind you see on a Japanese sedan. It was a cheap paint job that scratched real easy,and the decals rubbed off as soon as you put your hand on them. It looked pretty bad by the time I painted it the first time, 15 years ago, and I knew it would never be a collectable, like a Colnago Mexico, or a Gios Torino, with that beautiful factory blue, so I didn't worry about it. Italian or not, Univegas just don't have the name like the others I mentioned.
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True, they don't...yet I sold an Italvega SuperLight frame once and one hopeful (but disappointed) buyer was just slapping himself over the fact it was too big and the wrong color. For somebody, it's a holy grail bike.
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it's been too long for my memory, but it was an Italvega, so Italian and it was blue...used the same foil Columbus decal so was SL or an SL/SP mix (probably) since it was a large frame (60cm, IIRC). Frame-only, no components except maybe the BB/HS...thing I remember most is the 2 scary-big holes cut in the BB shell: more air than steel!
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My memory is a bit hazy on this, but a friend has a Univega Superlight and I believe it is kitted out with full Dura Ace EX and had Tange Champion #1 or #2 tubing, so most likely the Japanese version, though the Superlight decal on the top tube of his Univega is the exact same one as featured on the top tube of my (former) Torpado Superlight.