I thought I might post the restoration of my 1972 Legnano Olimpiade Record Specialissima and show the steps it took from purchase to having it receive Best Italian at the 2022 Eroica California Concours.
I've wanted a Legnano in its signature Transparent Green (Lizard Green to aficionados) but catalogs of the time show the smallest frame size made was 55cm. And, since I ride a 52cm frame, I held little hope that I would find one. I found this Legnano at the end of 2020 in Seattle through a post on one of the vintage bike FB pages that I'm on. The photos were grainy, but I could tell from the head tube length that it was closer to my size than any I'd seen. I posted the photos
here on the Appraisals forum to get a sense of its value. I thought it was worth a closer look.
I contacted the seller for more photos and info and found it was indeed a 52cm frame. The photos I received showed a bike in pretty good condition, though with a mix of parts as far as I could tell. The most interesting feature is that the frame did not display the typical red lining or decal set seen on almost all other Legnanos that I'd seen. In fact, this one has gold lining and fewer decals. Could this have been an incorrect repaint? More research was needed. I found the Condorino website, which is a treasure trove of all things Legnano. In their list of frame numbers I found frame
1502R, just 39 numbers after mine, displaying the same gold lining and decal set. I'm not sure what the significance is of this difference, but it verified that it is original paint. I decided to buy the bike.
