rideandgoseek 

Came about this 70's era Gios on craigslist yesterday and picked it up for a song.

Tons of surface rust, especially on the rear stays and the decals are all but gone but I'm gonna keep it as is with the exception of some period correct brake levers and new consumables. Gonna be a great rainy day bike.

I'm especially curious to see if 28s would fit. I've got about a 50/50 shot on making it to Eroica this year and think this would be a fine steed if I can fit them. Might need to gear down a bit as well. Any suggestions on how low I could go without changing the rear derailleur?

Check out the photos below...

https://www.pedalroom.com/bike/gios-record-38630

I've done the usual google searches and am learning a lot but any additional information about this bike is welcomed. Specifically, is this a Gios Super Record or just Gios Record? Is there a difference? I only see small scraps of the word "Record' on the top tube. No sight of 'Super'

Thanks in advance!

canyoneagle

Awesome find!!!!!!

Looks like a 1st gen Super Record Rear Derailleur and SR crank.
Brake levers are definitely not original, same with the wheels.
I think it will clean up beautifully.

That RD is a rare gem. You can look at it to see the year - like "Pat.75" for 1975

I'd tear it down to bare frame and take care of the rust & chips, then prime & paint the affected spots with touch-up Enamel. I just did the same with my Zullo, and it took several hours to get the frame cleaned up, then 24 hours for each coat of enamel to dry (I did primer + 2 coats). Take a look at the earlier photos on my build thread to get a sense of how the rust can be cleaned up. First couple of posts show the rust on the fork crown and after treatment/enamel. Also note the wire brush/drill setup that I configured for cleaning the seat tube and head tube. I hand brushed the BB shell.

https://www.bikeforums.net/fifty-plu...w-classic.html

jeirvine 

Fab find! What are the date codes on RD, crank, hub nuts? RDV won Paris Roubaix on a '77 Gios, that looks pretty much identical to yours. Quite an iconic bike.
Roger de Vlaeminck's Gios Torino 1977 - Cycling Passion

rideandgoseek 

Thanks CE,

RD has a '76 patent date on it so I'm making the assumption that it's original equipment and that the frame is probably of a similar year

Not sure if you saw all the rust on the rear stays. Anyone have a suggestion on how to treat that so it doesn't continue to get worse? Least invasive procedure preferred.

Thanks much!

canyoneagle

First step is to get it to the bare frameset - remove all of the components, Bottom Bracket, headset races, etc.

I'd start with #0000 steel wool and vinegar. Should get most of the surface stuff. More extensive stuff can be hit with a vinegar wet sand with 150 grit sandpaper and carefully limiting the sanding to the non-painted areas. This can also smooth the transition to the paint.
Naval jelly treatments (commonly available at Wal-Mart) can help as well - careful not to get too much on the paint.

Frame internals can be done with wire brushes, vinegar and an alcohol rinse.

you can find 12" long wire brushes with a 1" diameter, which fits the seat and head tube perfectly. I gorilla taped two of these together, overlapping the handles by a couple of inches, and inserted one end into my drill. This allowed me to get my entire seat tube (62.5cm frame) all the way to the BB shell. I have a photo of this contraption on my build thread linked below.
I also wrapped the brush with a shop paper towel (heavy duty) and soaked with alcohol for final cleaning of the seat tube and head tube.
Other tubes are harder to really clean, but I've heard of people injecting vinegar into the vent holes (or down the frame tubes) and swishing it around a while before giving a rinse with alcohol.

Weigle Frame Saver is a good product to use after all that is done to protect the internals.

Others may have ideas on getting the rust addressed.

Enamel paint is a good choice for the touch up. I used the RustOleum primer and paint that comes in the little cans (not spray) and some paintbrushes. Another route is nail polish.



Here's my hack:

jj1091

That's a beauty. For the rust issue, I've had good results with using paper towels soaked in vinegar, wrapped around the tubes, then wrapped with clear plastic-wrap. Leave it overnight and most of the rust should just wipe off. Clean the spots up with some alcohol, then use touchup enamel paint.

Cyclomondo sells decal sets for your model for $45. Looks like an exact match for the lettering and stripes, etc.
​​​​​​

Big Block

I prefer to chemically treat rust rather than scratching.
Evaporust works very well and will not damage the surface.

Have a look through the bikes on the Gios Torino Register, maintained by Gios Torino.

For touch-up paint this advice should be a good starting point.

Cyclomondo's decals are highly regarded, and the sales help Greg collect bikes like this Gios Torino of his.

juvela

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The Gios agent for the U.S. market at this time was a bit of an oddity - an espresso machine distributing company.

FAEMA (later FAMA) Sales Co. of New York City.

Perhaps the owner, Mr. Ugo Quazzo, was acquainted with someone at Gios - might make for an interesting story.

Do not know the exact years for their agency; it lasted at least into the mid-'80's.

FAMA Sales Co. is still going, doing the sale and repair of espresso machines.

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Soylent 

Wow! Good for you. As mentioned, I would use Evaporust or Naval Jelly. That seat post is quite hard to find.

juvela

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regarding the mix of NR & SR components worn by the cycle -

Campag offered a road ensemble at this time termed the "Super Pro" which consisted of a mix of NR & SR fittings. it may have been available only at OEM as I cannot recall seeing it offered to the public. in general, where there was a small difference in cost between the NR and the SR component the SR was included in the group. where the price difference was great the NR version was used. possible the cycle's BB may be NR despite the SR chainset.

as recalled, the front mech & shifters would have been SR in the Super Pro group so I suspect we are looking at owner changed components in the presented mix.

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Drillium Dude 

I have to say I think this is one of his best decal sets, hands down. He really got the fonts/sizes sussed out here.

Great score - especially with the rare '76 SR RD and panto seatpost. It looks like everything is original but the brake levers. Custom milling on the crankarm spider is cool, too. This is just screaming for a restoration. Rain bike? With that huge hole in the BB shell? There are lots and lots of frames more deserving of being built into a rain bike.

The rust doesn't look bad to me - in fact, all I really see is the flat rust-red primer coming through the been-through-the-wars patina (AKA: paint chips). The chrome on the fork is in super shape, too. If it were me, I'd try to retain it in condition as much as possible and just do some rust-prevention/paint touch-up. Somebody had a link to the Gios blue in a recent post.

Please save her

DD

due ruote 

jeirvine 

I have a '76 Colnago Super, where the paint was in similar shape, but decals were basically gone. I re-decaled it, and it is now quite presentable. One of these days I'll find some good touch-up paint, but for now it's a pretty sharp looking bike that I don't mind riding the heck out of.

Big Block

you are in a better position to carefully examine the frame, but I would treat the paint chips with Evaporust, then wipe off.
What is left may just be the red primer used before the Gios Blue.
The red primer on my Professional

chainstay by philip.knight, on Flickr

satbuilder 

friendofpugs

Wonderful score, OP.

Big Block

if it is used with the red primer
post #7

xiaoman1 

OP, Great find!
My Gios had the same Gios and I found a nail polish that matched it perfectly...also some aerosol spray paint that is a match. I had to replace a rear dropout and it is very hard to tell where the repair was made.
If Interested I will dig out the paint and post some pics.
Best, Ben

cb400bill

repechage

Psst, 70's era Gios handle better than the later ones, my opinionated opinion.

Lazyass

That frame is worthy of a professional refinish.

rideandgoseek 

I very much appreciate everyone's input and opinions on what I should do with this Gios.

After the discussion here and further research one thing is most definitely clear, and that's the fact that this is an iconic bike worthy of full restoration. With that being said, at the moment it is not in the cards for me. I've decided I'm gonna treat the rust with Evaporust, touch up the paint using the House of Kolor Marine Blue and then decide on decals. The only reason I'm hesitant on decals is that this bike has "Record" decals and the ones that have been suggested above are that of a "Super Record". I'd hate to rebrand this model incorrectly even if it has been mentioned that the frames are ultimately the same. Does this bother anyone else or am I just overthinking it?

Not in a huge hurry with this one but I'll be sure to update the thread as I move forward

Soylent 

Nothing wrong with doing that. Measure the length of "Record" on your bike and see if it's the same as on Greg's set. May be as simple as cutting off the "Super". If not I'm sure he could modify a set.

rideandgoseek 

^That was my thought in regards to the Super Record v Record issue.

I guess other than that the only clear difference I see is the GIOS top tube decal is white on mine and black in the decal set. No real rectifying that obviously

Soylent 

I'm sure Greg could correct that. But truthfully, if your plan is a full restore down the road, I would just remove the rust, wax it, and maybe clearcoat the bottom of the bottom bracket shell. Just ride it with all the patina, rudy decals and all, and enjoy it for a while. Knowing that it will have a full restore down the road.