gmcjetpilot

What is the difference between two Bianchi's made 40 yrs apart? Let's see shall we.

I have a thread called "Bianchi Randonneur - Restoration Advice - Parts and Sanity Check" . The story is there and the latest news is I am a go on restoring it which is underway, The short of the long story is my 40 yo Bianchi I had in college, road a lot fo years had a fork recall +20 yrs ago. I only found about it when i started thinking about restoring it a year ago, after storing it for +20 years. I contacted Bianchi. They wanted the fork off the street and offered a nominal discount in exchange. Note NOT all Randonneur's had fork recalls, only early ones. If you have "B" on top of crown it is NOT a recall fork. Amazing support from Bianchi the Worlds oldest bike maker still in existence, albeit no longer mostly made in Italy they are a cool company. No don't work for Bianchi just appreciated how they handled this.

So the my beloved Randonneur's fork was sent to the shredder and got a discount on a 2022 Via Nirone 7 Sora. With fork was gone, finding a "B" fork in the wild, long out of production, would be difficult to near impossible.to find one. There are a few things that make the Randonneur forks different, material, geometry, extra lower attach for rack and cantilever brakes, 1" steerer. More about that in other thread mentioned above.

Back to topic. Just yesterday as my Bianchi Randonneur Resto was coming along I realized how similar the two Bianchi's were and how different.

• Weight: Both about 24 lbs (Note Randonneur Pedals and Std Blackburn Alloy Racks removed and would add a pound or two).
• Speeds: Both 18 speeds, Randonneur 3 x 6, Nirone 2 x 9.
• Shift: Randonneur: Down tube manual, no index; Nirone: Brake / Paddle shifters
• Derailleurs/Crankset: Randonneur: Suntour ATX / Apex; Nirone: Shimano Sora / Shimano
• Frame: Randonneur: Mangalloy (Steel/Magnesium Alloy); Nirone: Aluminum Frame, Carbon Forks
• Rims:: Randonneur Araya Alloy Dobl Wall, Std. spoke lace; Nirone: Velomann Alloy Double Wall Blk anodized reduced "pair spokes"
• Rim/TIres: Randonneur 27" x 1.25 presta stem; Nirone: 700x 25c presta stem
• Cables: Randonneur: Visible; Nirone: Semi hidden
• Ride: Randonneur: Not road in decades but recall comfortable; Nirone: Stiff ride, feel bumps/crack. Running 90psi. Min is 72psi, think I will dry 75-80psi in future,****
• Frame Size: NOTE: Randonneur frame Tad to Big, but fits w/ Seat at bottom of travel, worked, loved it; Nirone: Frame tad on small but works, picked because discount offered on this specific bike.

**** Only Bike I rode Last 25 years were Mountain and trail bikes, with big tires, some no suspension, some front, so when I finish the Randonneur I can compare better. However the Randonneur was made to be a touring bike, and when I bought it I recall they made a big deal about the ride, frame material, etc. However have ot been on Randonneur for decades. Also the Nirone is running high tire pressure and will back off that.

2022 Bianchi Via Nirone 7 Sora (note homemade labels on handle bars to remind me how to shift this 4 lever up down/down up contraption)

1982/83 Bianchi Randonneur ( 1-Original Owner, stored/neglected +20 yrs, being restored. Not shown full cage pedals & front/rear Black Burn Racks. Steering Stem needs t/b cut & cantilever pivots welded on).

icemilkcoffee 

Mmmm. That doesn't sound like a trade I would take. Did they say how these forks failed? Was there really no way to reinforce the existing fork?

gmcjetpilot

Appreciate the post. I am not so mad. I am not going to disclose the whole thing BUT it was fair and voluntary. If I had it to do over I might ignore the recall. I got to keep the Randonneur minus fork, and after some effort and luck I found a fork that works, with some doable modifications. So I still have the Randonneur. New bike, a deal I could not refuse. It's a long story but worked out. Leave it at that.

Was the old fork un-safe? I think it was but the recall said it could fail. Could I have reinforced it, inspected it? Too late now. I was regretting it, but the replacement seems to fit perfectly, and function with cantilever mod. I'll post pics in the other thread mentioned in #1 post.

The Recall
https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/1990/bi...nneur-bicycles
"The fork could crack and break at the junction of the crown and blade resulting in a fall to the riders." Apparently 3 failures occurred (I assume from 1983 to 1990). This affected block made from 1983/1984 included 1,600 bikes, mine one of them. Bianchi wants them off the road and we struck a deal. If you have a Randonneur with a B on the crown it is not affected.

In 1990 they had a OEM New or New Old Stock (NOS) "good" fork in stock to send out under warranty and support the recall. However I was +30 yrs late to the party. So there are no more forks, long out of production.

BTinNYC 

The Nirone looks great.
I appreciate the shifter labels, I still talk to myself when shifting my brifters.