Can Anyone Identify This Vintage Bianchi MTB?
05-23-23, 10:20 AM
#1
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Can Anyone Identify This Vintage Bianchi MTB?
Someone's selling a vintage Bianchi mountain bike near me and I'm trying to figure out what model/year it is before making an offer (it's up for $280). See attached image (there's only one pic posted). I can't seem to be able to find any image or description of a similar bike online. Can any of the vintage/Bianchi wizards here point me to a catalog description, model name, details, year, etc?
05-23-23, 11:02 AM
#2
Senior Member
Hmmmm. Those decals don't look right, and I've never seen a full chrome Bianchi MTB before. Is that an adjustable stem?
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05-23-23, 02:44 PM
#3
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Very interesting... I asked the guy to send me some more pics, and he sent me one of the BB shell with the serial # 5FE1889 (all the characters are very clear). Does that give you any sense of who might have made it??
05-23-23, 05:11 PM
#4
Senior Member
Leading number 5 probably indicates 1985 manufacture. FE could stand for Forte, one of the MTB models back then, but info on early Bianchi MTBs is notably scarce, so I have no way to verify this.
So let's look at what's left. Fork would have been rigid for mid-80's, so the RockShox is a replacement.
1" threaded steerer would be appropriate for this era.
Early 80's MTBs might have had bullmoose bars and a biplane fork. Your bike has neither, so no help in dating.
Decals do not look like mid-80's decals, which have a panel decoration before "Bianchi" and are larger than what appears on your bike.
I've never seen full chrome on 80's Bianchi MTB's. They were all rather utilitarian in apperance, tho some models were in celeste.
V-brakes are not original to the frame - they didn't appear until '96. Cantis were original.
In short, you have a chrome MTB from the mid-80's that may be a Bianchi. I think the value of the bike is, what would you pay without the Bianchi name?
It's unclear whether someone "restored" the frame with a chrome job and new decals, or wanted to deceive potential buyers into thinking it's a Bianchi when it isn't.
So let's look at what's left. Fork would have been rigid for mid-80's, so the RockShox is a replacement.
1" threaded steerer would be appropriate for this era.
Early 80's MTBs might have had bullmoose bars and a biplane fork. Your bike has neither, so no help in dating.
Decals do not look like mid-80's decals, which have a panel decoration before "Bianchi" and are larger than what appears on your bike.
I've never seen full chrome on 80's Bianchi MTB's. They were all rather utilitarian in apperance, tho some models were in celeste.
V-brakes are not original to the frame - they didn't appear until '96. Cantis were original.
In short, you have a chrome MTB from the mid-80's that may be a Bianchi. I think the value of the bike is, what would you pay without the Bianchi name?
It's unclear whether someone "restored" the frame with a chrome job and new decals, or wanted to deceive potential buyers into thinking it's a Bianchi when it isn't.
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05-23-23, 06:10 PM
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I'm fairly certain the frame is from a 1986 Diamondback Ascent. Caps at the top of the seat stays match, top tube cable guides match, eyelets on the rear dropouts match, long chainstays match, dual water bottle bosses match, cable stops on the down tube match.
Nothing is original. None of the decals are right. Thus it is worth less than $100.
Nothing is original. None of the decals are right. Thus it is worth less than $100.
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05-25-23, 09:07 AM
#6
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I'm fairly certain the frame is from a 1986 Diamondback Ascent. Caps at the top of the seat stays match, top tube cable guides match, eyelets on the rear dropouts match, long chainstays match, dual water bottle bosses match, cable stops on the down tube match.
Nothing is original. None of the decals are right. Thus it is worth less than $100.
Nothing is original. None of the decals are right. Thus it is worth less than $100.
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05-27-23, 09:56 PM
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I freshened up an old Bridgestone with some mint green paint that looked very much like Celeste. It looked odd with no frame decals and the only ones I had laying around were Marin’s
I rode my Celeste Marin for quite a while just like that even though technically that might’ve been considered a downgrade from a Bridgestone
Maybe this is an operation kind of like that where somebody sometime in the past just thought the bike looked too naked without any frame decals
I never sold the Bridgestone though. If it ever gets freshened up again I’m going to treat it to a real paint job
I rode my Celeste Marin for quite a while just like that even though technically that might’ve been considered a downgrade from a Bridgestone
Maybe this is an operation kind of like that where somebody sometime in the past just thought the bike looked too naked without any frame decals
I never sold the Bridgestone though. If it ever gets freshened up again I’m going to treat it to a real paint job
