"...someone finally has to do it..."
Manufacturer's marks are placed on the bottom of the BB cover.
- left side: code of EM Cycles employee responsible for preparing the frame before chroming / painting - always one capital letter:
A - prototypes --- ~ B3000
B - 1 ser ~900 --- ~ E6500 + ~ B2500 --- ?
D - ~ A4000 --- ~ F6000
F - ~ E0200 --- ~ E7500 + ~ A9000 --- ~ B5000
G - prototypes --- ~ E6100
H - ~ B1300 --- ~ G5500
J - ~ A7500 --- ~ A9000
K - ~ F 1300
L - ~ Z 5000 --- ~ D 9999
M - ~ E4700 --- ~ A1100
N - ~ C3300 --- ~ C8100
P - ~ E7700 --- ~ A0600 + ~ D5800 --- ~ G5200
S - ~ A8000 --- ~ H
T - ~ A0600 --- ~ A6700
Y - ~ A1500 --- ~ A6700
(there is a designation . (dot) - may belong to this group: prototypes --- ~ E1800)
- left side: code of tube/frame model - one or two capital letter(s):
C - Corsa: ~ Z4600 --- ~ D9000
CX - Criterium: ~ Z7900 --- ~ A9999
M - Strada: ~ A1500 --- ~ B 9999
R - Reynolds 531
TT - Columbus TSX
WW - Strada: ~ D --- ?
X - Columbus SLX
( Columbus SL, Max, EM MX-L, EM Arcobaleno, Reynolds 501, 753, 653 - no markings )
( sometimes after the marks TT and X a letter B appears - meaning unknown --- british thread?)
- left side: height of the seat tube in cm - the last digit i.e:
2 = 52cm or 62cm
5 = 55cm
8 = 48cm or 58cm
- right side:the series marked with a capital letter - in order: E,Z,A,B,C,D,F,G,H,? ( 9999 frames in each - certainly not all frames of the F, G and H series have been painted and sold)
(the first series did not have a letter designation, it probably produced 999 frames - it is not clear whether frames without serial numbers - prototypes - were included in this series)
(there are team markings: KE - Kelme, CS - Capri Sonne, ED - Europ Decor, W - Winning --- used in seasons 1982-1983 without serial numbers ( every team had a separate frame numbering );
from 1984, team designations appeared next to serial numbers i.e. Kelme ( KE ) and Panasonic ( P )- at least until the 1986 season).
The above description is not precise or flawless, but is now - probably - the closest to the truth. Applies only to steel markings of frames manufactured by Eddy Merckx Cycles - the best company in the world
Any information, correction and question will be accepted carefully, any necessary changes will be implemented immediately. Thank you, best regards - Jacek