1980’s KNELLER Sport Custom Build w Campy Drivetrain (Classic!)
08-02-22, 02:39 PM
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1980’s KNELLER Sport Custom Build w Campy Drivetrain (Classic!)
1980’s KNELLER Sport Custom Build w Campy Drivetrain (Classic!)
$650 - Boston area local pick-up preferred; will help arrange shipping at your cost
I really hate to be selling this wonderful 40-year-old bike. This is one of two classic, vintage, hand-built, custom bikes from the late 70's and early 80's that I will be listing here. Sadly, neither has been ridden for the past couple of years. Knee and back issues have taken their toll -- I need a wider gear range and I am no longer comfortable riding with drops. This KNELLER was my "go-fast" hill-climbing bike. The other (Ron Cooper custom frame) was my road touring bike. Both are treasures that I hate to part with.
I have included a lot more pictures of this bike below the description.
Hand-built in the early 1980’s, this is a KNELLER custom sport/race frame, designed and built by Mitch Kneller of Advanced Bicycle Engineering of Cambridge, MA. The workmanship on this frame is beautiful, with gorgeous tapered lugs and a bright red DuPont Imron enamel finish. I got this frame through my brother who was living near Cambridge at the time. He met Chris when they were first launching his new frame line. This one was apparently a show frame that was not originally intended for resale, so it does not have the usual decals. Apparently, part of the KNELLOR philosophy was to mix and match tubes of varying wall thicknesses to optimize the characteristics of each frame design. This frame may be all Reynolds tubing or possibly a mix of Reynolds and Columbus. It came to me with the Shimano Dura Ace brakes and headset; I outfitted the rest of the bike.
I have tried to describe this bike to the best of my ability here, but please check out the images carefully, as they are a key part of the description. Feel free also to send me questions.
FRAME
Overall, the bike frame and components are really clean and in great shape. There are a few dings and rust spots on the frame. However, for the most part, the paint job has held up really well for a 40-year-old bicycle. The lug work is super clean, transitioning from lug to frame with nice tapered points. The lugs and on the rear stays at the brake cross has little triangular cutouts that are painted black to contrast. There is added reinforcement to stiffen the fork blades and chain stays. With a relatively short wheelbase and a fairly rigid rear triangle, this ends up being a very tight, stiff frame that is great for climbing.
I did go down hard a few times on this bike, but never was in a really bad crash. The frame seems to measure square and true. With a little adjustment, I was told it could probably accommodate a 6 or 7-speed freewheel with a narrow chain; I have not done that experiment yet.
I don't know what all the angles are on this frame and don’t have a good way of measuring them. However, here are the approximate frame dimensions, based on my measurements:
COMPONENTS
The drivetrain is all Campy Nuovo Record, the brakes and headset are Shimano Dura Ace, and the stem and handlebars are 3TTT.
Everything is pretty clean, with a minimum amount of pitting, rust or dings.
DRIVETRAIN
As noted in the component list above, I am including 2 stems and 2 saddles with this sale. The currently installed saddle and stem are for my comfort and sizing. The original Cinelli Unicantor leather racing saddle and longer 3TTT quill stem are both from the original build.
Also included are…
$650 - Boston area local pick-up preferred; will help arrange shipping at your cost
I really hate to be selling this wonderful 40-year-old bike. This is one of two classic, vintage, hand-built, custom bikes from the late 70's and early 80's that I will be listing here. Sadly, neither has been ridden for the past couple of years. Knee and back issues have taken their toll -- I need a wider gear range and I am no longer comfortable riding with drops. This KNELLER was my "go-fast" hill-climbing bike. The other (Ron Cooper custom frame) was my road touring bike. Both are treasures that I hate to part with.
I have included a lot more pictures of this bike below the description.
Hand-built in the early 1980’s, this is a KNELLER custom sport/race frame, designed and built by Mitch Kneller of Advanced Bicycle Engineering of Cambridge, MA. The workmanship on this frame is beautiful, with gorgeous tapered lugs and a bright red DuPont Imron enamel finish. I got this frame through my brother who was living near Cambridge at the time. He met Chris when they were first launching his new frame line. This one was apparently a show frame that was not originally intended for resale, so it does not have the usual decals. Apparently, part of the KNELLOR philosophy was to mix and match tubes of varying wall thicknesses to optimize the characteristics of each frame design. This frame may be all Reynolds tubing or possibly a mix of Reynolds and Columbus. It came to me with the Shimano Dura Ace brakes and headset; I outfitted the rest of the bike.
I have tried to describe this bike to the best of my ability here, but please check out the images carefully, as they are a key part of the description. Feel free also to send me questions.
FRAME
Overall, the bike frame and components are really clean and in great shape. There are a few dings and rust spots on the frame. However, for the most part, the paint job has held up really well for a 40-year-old bicycle. The lug work is super clean, transitioning from lug to frame with nice tapered points. The lugs and on the rear stays at the brake cross has little triangular cutouts that are painted black to contrast. There is added reinforcement to stiffen the fork blades and chain stays. With a relatively short wheelbase and a fairly rigid rear triangle, this ends up being a very tight, stiff frame that is great for climbing.
I did go down hard a few times on this bike, but never was in a really bad crash. The frame seems to measure square and true. With a little adjustment, I was told it could probably accommodate a 6 or 7-speed freewheel with a narrow chain; I have not done that experiment yet.
I don't know what all the angles are on this frame and don’t have a good way of measuring them. However, here are the approximate frame dimensions, based on my measurements:
- Frame Size: 21.75” (55cm)
- Wheelbase: 38.5” (98cm)
- Standover Height: 31.5” (80cm)
- Top Tube: 21” ((53cm)
- Chainstays: 16.5” (42cm)
- Bottom Bracket Height: 9.75” (25cm)
COMPONENTS
The drivetrain is all Campy Nuovo Record, the brakes and headset are Shimano Dura Ace, and the stem and handlebars are 3TTT.
Everything is pretty clean, with a minimum amount of pitting, rust or dings.
DRIVETRAIN
- Shift Levers: Campagnolo Nuovo Record down tube shifters
- Derailleurs: Campagnolo Nuovo Record front and rear derailleurs
- Bottom Bracket: Campagnolo Nuovo Record
- Crankset: Campagnolo Nuovo Record with 170mm arms and 42/52-tooth chainrings
- Pedals: Campagnolo Nuovo Record pedals
- Toe Clips: Specialized spring steel
- Straps: Alfredo Binda laminated leather toe straps with strap buttons
- Freewheel: Suntour Pro-Compe 5-speed freewheel with 14, 16, 18, 21, 24 gearing
- Hubs: Campagnolo Nuovo Record high-flange front & rear hubs
- Rims: FIAMME Red Label 700c x 21mm aluminum rims
- Wheel Build: 36-hole rims laced with butted stainless-steel spokes in a 4-cross pattern
- Tires: Vittoria competition Rally 21-28 tubular sew-up tires
- Headset: Shimano Dura Ace
- Brakes: Shimano Dura Ace side pull brakes (front & rear) with a set of original Dura Ace pads
- Brake Levers: Shimano Dura Ace drilled levers with new gum rubber hoods
- Brake Pads: Madison extra-long pads
- Stems: SR Custom alloy 85mm quill stem (installed); 3TTT Record 105mm quill stem (not mounted)
- Handlebars: 3TTT drop handlebars covered with black padded Cinelli cork tape
- Seat Post: Simplex seat post
- Saddles: Forté Contour men's saddle (installed); original Cinelli Unicantor saddle (not mounted)
- Silca frame-fit pump with Campagnolo Presta valve
- Scott aero bars with padded forearm rests
- Cateye Astrale cyclometer (speed, cadence, distance); includes instructions
- Lightweight aluminum water bottle holder [Note: The screw hole spacing on this one is not standard, so I have this attached it with a lightweight hose clamp; my other standard Blackburn water bottle holders fit fine using the built-in screw mounts]
As noted in the component list above, I am including 2 stems and 2 saddles with this sale. The currently installed saddle and stem are for my comfort and sizing. The original Cinelli Unicantor leather racing saddle and longer 3TTT quill stem are both from the original build.
Also included are…
- Campagnolo Nuovo Record 54-tooth chainring
- New set of Campagnolo shift cables
- New Pair of Dia-Compe Brown Rubber Brake Hoods
- Extra 17-cog gear for the installed Suntour Pro-Compe freewheel
- Suntour New Winner 6-speed freewheel with 13, 15, 17, 20, 23, 26 gearing
- New narrower chain for the 6-speed freewheel
- Freewheel remover tool that fits both Suntour freewheels
- Original set of nearly new 4 Shimano Dura Ace brake pads (the ones on the bike are Madison extra-long pads with terrific grabbing power and excellent heat resistance)
- Pair of Specialized synthetic no-stretch toe clip straps
- Brand-new set of shoe cleats to go with the Campy Nuovo Record pedals
- 1 full tube of rim cement for the tubular tires, plus another 1/4 tube
