stardognine

Very, very nice. 👍 Your attention to detail is far beyond my abilities.

Brad L 

It’s possible that they deducted for the hoods since I didn’t place in the top 3 of my category (1956-87 original paint). The “Best Italian” award may have been that they just liked it better.

It appears it was Vittoria who made the hoods.
https://velobase.com/ViewComponent.a...e47e1&Enum=103

Brad L 

This is my last photo post before heading off for a short vacation through Tuesday.

The shifters cleaned up really well after my typical revamp. It definitely looks good on the bike.

juvela

-----

Fratelli Pietra -

the model Nr. 306 brake levers are correct for the date of the cycle

the pivot pins, part nr. 359, were changed ~1968 to these from the previous brass examples
iirc the cable anchor in the lever also changed at this epoch from steel to dural (not illustrated in parts drawing below)

one thing ran into with them is that in some cases the pins are wont to walk out of their billeting with use

when they do so the heads can damage costly hoods

if have occasion to replace hoods or have levers apart for other reason like to place a drop of loctite on the threads to encourage them to remain home



hoods -

there were two models sold under the Vittoria name, separate from the ones done for Pietra

these were termed the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France

readers may recall member iab making wonderful reproductions of the Giro d'Italia pattern which he documented here on the forum several years back

one pattern can be seen above on brake lever Nr. 303 and part number Nr. 353/Z

other products included gum rubber handlebar plugs bearing a star symbol and slip over sleeve for brake levers

-----

Brad L 

Thanks for the tip. I’ll check them occasionally and add loctite if I notice any movement.

satbuilder 

Link to the @iab brake hood thread:
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...ria-hoods.html

juvela

-----

forgot to mention above -

the Vittoria hoods of both patterns were stocked by Ron Kitching in his Everything Cycling handbooks

they are shown in the editions of 1963 and 1970

the hoods done by iab are of the Giro d'Italia pattern which was also offered by the manufacturer in white

the Tour de France pattern was a smooth design without the "bumps" of the Giro d'Italia

in the handbook edition of 1963 the Vittoria products are shown on pages 52 & 53

RonKit was a stockist for the hoods, handlebar plugs, brake lever sleeves, Fulmine tubular carrier and a torch bracket from Vittoria

-----

repechage

I liked the stencil downtube graphics from when I first saw them in 1970.

maybe 1972 was a transition as other bikes assigned 1972 have a sticker there and slightly different appearance.

Brad L 

The pedals were treated the same as the other parts.





And I located a set of Legnano brand Gaslo end caps for about $40. This is after a good polishing.



And I found a Legnano jersey to go along with the bike. The color is a little too green and not enough olive. It'll do for now.

Brad L 

The rear derailleur was in decent enough condition, but was VERY dirty. A bit of TLC and it's good as new.

Brad L 

Building the bike can start in earnest. First was to fit the stem and brake levers to the bars, then the assembly to the bike.





Then comes the pump peg, the cranks, and the front and rear derailleurs. All parts that clamp to the tubing have the contact surfaces lined with clear shipping tape and trimmed to the edges to protect the paint.

Brad L 

Time to wrap the bars. Of course, I chose red Newbaum's cloth tape. Whether I normally wrap top-down or bottom-up, using the Gaslo end caps necessitates wrapping bottom up as the cap's tangs fit around the outside of the bars and the tape holds them in place. To be sure they stayed in place, I taped two opposing tangs with Scotch tape, then let the bar tape stick to the other tangs. I also Scotch taped the brake lever straps to the bars to hold them in place, then removed the levers before wrapping the bars. Getting the lever's mounting bolt to thread into the strap after wrapping the bars was quite fiddly.






It's really starting to look like a Legnano now.

repechage

Sensible but you covered up the bar sticker on the LH side. We would start the tape beyond that.

merziac

Brad L

Great work Brad, very nice.

Was good to meet you at the motel in Cambria, should have asked about bikes but was in a bit of a dither as you could probably tell.

My Legnano collection consists of a rusty DS crank arm w/rings and pedal that I got and cleaned up to give me inspiration, for someday.

AngryScientist 

Wow, what a nice friday morning distraction this was to wander through. Your attention to detail and painstaking disassembly of every part is remarkable! The hunt for all the proper parts was also quite impressive!

I saw the pics of this bike though I missed seeing it in person. I would have been embarrassed with the state of disarray of my Eroica bike in comparison!

What route did you do? What's the water bottle carrying situation for riding this beauty? It sure was a warm day in Cambria!

Brad L 

This one was show only. I have since added a TA Criterium bottle cage. I put 17 miles on it last month and found it rides really nice. I'm hoping to ride it this weekend a put a respectable amount of miles on it.

I rode my 1983 Gitane Interclub on the 70 mile route. The Gitane has a 14-32 freewheel and a Stronglight 99 crankset with 36/48 rings which allowed me to climb most of the brutal hills.

Brad L 

There's nothing better than chatting about bikes and Alfas.

RustyJames 

Alfas? You definitely have my attention. Always Looking For Another!

Brad L 

I cheated a bit on this next step. Instead of building a set of wheels for this bike, I took the newly built wheels from my 69 Colnago Super. I "thought" the rectangular Fiamme badge was correct for 1972, but it's not and it cost me a few points at the concours. I'll correct it in the near future. The original freewheel was in excellent condition so it got a thorough service and was reinstalled.






I then installed the brake cables and housings. While most Legnanos you'll see have red or lizard green cable housings, I chose to use white, since this is the color used on Legnano ads from the early 70s.





Add the seatpost, saddle, and shifter cables and it's almost done.

merziac

You need a plunger stand like they have.

iab

From the 1972 Legnano catalog, if it is of any interest. This is obviously the Italian catalog and I don't no if this spec matches what was exported.

aceves 

Awesome restoration Brad L! Everything looks right on this bike!

aceves

juvela

-----

$40 for the Gaslos is a very good buy!

Congratulations on being an excellent shopper.


-----

Brad L 

That's interesting info, but several parts don't coincide with what I have and what I know was original, such as the Universal 61 brakes. I suspect there was a bit of variation when they switched from Universal to Campagnolo brakes and when the catalogs were printed. There are a few aspects of this bike that don't jive with the norm, such as the gold lining. I suspect I'll never know 100%.

iab

I'd chalk it up to what they sold in Italy versus what was imported to the US. In the same catalog, the Gran Premio has mod 68s. You would have to go to the low-end Sport bikes before seeing center pulls.