jet sanchEz

This is very interesting to me as I also have an early 1970s Cinelli that does not have any drillings for water bottle cages and I thought maybe the frame was custom.

When did CInelli start drilling water bottle bosses into their frames?

Gorgeous bike, I wish mine looked as nice

Is the stem period correct or is it perhaps a newer addition?

Rooney 

I ordered the two pairs of hoods. I'm deciding between red cotton tape or maroon/burgundy. Or maybe red with a couple coats of amber shellac for something between the two. The bottle cage is a bit loose where the tubing attaches to the body so we'll see how long it lasts. As far as I know, the stem is original, says Cinelli on the top. The bike also came with an extra 3T stem of the same period.

Pulled the bottom bracket apart today to clean and grease things. It spun so smoothly before that; I doubt I needed to open it up. The fixed cup wasn't budging, so I left it in during the overhaul. The cranks spin just as well as before. I degunked the chainrings, crank arms, and front and rear derailleurs, and finally the freewheel. Threw on a chain I had laying around and got the derailleurs shifting again. The old brittle tubulars are off. The rims will need to be cleaned and the wheels trued before new tires can go on. The headset still needs an overhaul but that's tomorrow work. The pedals could probably also use overhauls, and the brake calipers still need to be cleaned. I guess its time to order some brake housing as well.

AdventureManCO 

What a gorgeous bicycle and an incredibly generous gift. I think you're doing a great job with it so far.

EDIT: does this one qualify as the 'you suck' of the year?

smd4

Pretty soon you'll be riding a piece of history...

cranky old road 

I have a Nisi tubular rim that is serrated. (But the decal is wing shaped). Makes sense that the front rim will have been replaced due to greater braking wear on the original front.

Kabuki12

As far as gearing , the 26 would probably be OK and 42 up front . The NR derailleur likes this set up and shifting is fantastic. I have since gone to a 41 chain ring on a 144 BCD NR/SR crank ( TA Specialties made them and they are out there) plus a 28 low on the FW. What I did was move the dropout screws all the way back as far as possible and it shifts great. The sacrifice is sometimes "big to big" is hard to get but rarely needed any way. I need the extra help on climbing now a days and every little bit helps! One year at Eroica Ca. I was talking to Wes about it and he claimed that a 30 will work if you remove the screws altogether, but I am not sure...never tried it. I would imagine you would need a few extra chain links , but I dunno. I am going to change the RD on my Motobecane to a 1st generation Cyclone GT(long cage) from a Campagnolo NR unit so I can run a nice touring FW and maybe a different crank but that would not be appropriate for this Cinelli .

merziac

Yeah, never been a tubi guy so don't really pay attention that much.

Was basically spitballin that it likely wasn't original, I think they are fairly obscure, rare, etc.

Rooney 

Did some online shopping. On the way are some brake hoods, grey housing that's supposed to be a close match for the original without the absurd prices, and red newbaums.

I work at a bike shop, so I'll put an order in for some tubulars and tubular tape (I've glued tubulars before and have little interest in repeating that performance). The brake pads have plenty of meat left, I'll rough em up a little, and they should do just fine. Maybe I should've been more strict with my purchases so I could enter this in the next $100 clunker challenge

Bad Lag

Yes, that is odd and out of character.

I've seen vintage NOS tubular rims from time to time. I wonder if a pair of Fiamme Red or Gold Labels is available. If you get the proper rims, you could re-use the spokes.

ETA - I took a quick look and found a 36 hole Fiamme Red Label rim for $45. They also had a Gold Label (Ergal). That it is used means it will fit right in to the restoration. They also had a Gold Label (Ergal).

South Salem Cycleworks

bikingshearer 

If that serial number corresponds to a 1973 build date, it is almost certainly a coincidence. Cinelli serial numbers seem to have been randomly assigned - if there was any rhyme or reason to the numbering system, the secret died with Cino. I have two mid-1960s SCs. One is serial number 14xx, the other is 85xx. If there are other known 1973 frames with a close serial number, that's a decent sign, but it is hardly conclusive.

The best way I have found to date a Cinelli frame is to consult the Velo Retro Cinelli timeline and compare your frame's attributes to it. For example, the timeline says that Cinelli started including braze-ons for bottle cages c.1974-75, which would support your 1973 estimate. Based on the history of the bike, the date codes on the components also support your estimate. I would trust those factors much for dating the frame than the serial number.

Fantastic score. I. for one, would not have minded if you spread the rear from 120 to 126. I had one of mine spread to 130 to fit a Campy 10sp triple drivetrain (and have never regretted it), and have kept the other one at 120 (it is Eroica compliant although not period-correct). Different strokes, and all that.

Fredo76

The serrated rim is likely an Ambrosio. They are wonderful for braking. As long as the rims have no dings, and no eyelets are pulling out, they are fine. The mismatch is 'patina' if anything is.

And IMHO, the tubular wheels are much more than fine; they are essential to the character of the bike, and not just for looks.

With removable valve cores, sealant, and double-sided rim tape, sew-ups are a breeze these days. And nothing else will 'ride' as original, IMO.

As for spreading the rear, I would not unless this proves to be your main ride, and you're sure you really want to. For lower gearing, consider a triplizer (a 42 inner ring with arms extending inward to form a 74 BCD for a third chainring).


'triplizer' w/28T chainring

What a wonderful bike! Absolutely gorgeous and in such fine shape!

Congratulations.

satbuilder 

Beautiful bike, Care to tell us where you found the grey housing?

Rooney 

Bike Recyclery. I saved a length of the original housing. I’ll post a comparison when the new stuff arrives.

JohnDThompson 

Agreed, that's a Hi-E cage. Not home free yet, though; Hi-E water bottles were not standard size/shape, and a standard bottle may not fit securely.

kroozer 

I would still dump the cage: it looks like it was made by a 4 year-old, it's held on with a hose clamp, and it apparently needs a piece of foam-something to protect the frame.The Italians were extremely conservative with their racing bike aesthetics, and this needs a proper Italian cage. If the bike had Hi-E hubs, everybody would be clamoring to switch to proper Campagnolo.

Rooney 

Brake housing arrived today. Top bit (w/ exposed coil) is what came off the bike, lower is what I received. The white balance isn’t perfect. New stuff is more opaque and grey vs. the more translucent take off. Plenty close enough for me. Hope this helps anyone else curious.

Rooney 

Any recommendations for a more proper cage? I'm not attached to the Hi-E cage; though, I'm not terribly bothered by its attachment method. It doesn't require whatever that "protective" piece was either.

Andrew_G

Two suggestions:

1) Cycles Grand Bois (in Japan) makes reproduction Campy brake cable sets. Not cheap, but supposedly fully reverse compatible:

https://cyclesgrandbois-com.translat...n&_x_tr_pto=sc

GB also has 'Italian" style housing (not a full cable set), which you can probably get here in the USA:

https://cyclesgrandbois-com.translat...n&_x_tr_pto=sc

2) Specialties TA makes a modern alloy bottle cage, which is copied after the older style steel ones:
https://specialites-ta.com/porte-bid...458006965.html

It depends on how badly you want to be 'period correct'. There may be steel TA bottle cages on eBay (eBay France?) as well as some european vintage shops:
a) https://www.renaissance-cycle.com
b) https://boutique.vintage-bike-shop.com/en/

Rooney 

Haven’t had much reason to update this thread as I’ve been waiting on parts. Today, the hoods finally arrived from Italy! They feel very good and have the slightest bit of transparency to them.





Unfortunately, I won’t be able to grab the bike from the storage unit until Saturday or Sunday. I’ll get the wheels cleaned up and trued, and set up the brakes and wrap the bars. Still need to order some tubulars too.

repechage

those look good. I have had variable success with repro hoods.

leaving a Cinelli in a storage locker?!?

Rooney 

A quick update: tires and toe straps finally arrived.

I installed the brake hoods (some wrestling required) then wrapped the bars, and installed the housing which will definitely benefit from some generous lubrication. The brake cables aren’t cut to final length yet.

I want to overhaul the hubs, true the wheels, then clean off the old adhesives. The Vittoria Corsa Controls are being stretched so final mounting will be easier. Once the wheels are done I’ll trim the brake cables to their finished length. I also need to cut the rear brake housing a teeny bit shorter to match the arc of the front housing.

bikingshearer 

Lookin' good!

cinelliguy 

Agreed, looks really good, coming along nicely! You're going to love riding it.

merziac

@Rooney

I would encourage you to hit the saddle with oldschool black shoe polish and shoe shine. Put on sparingly and worked in a dab at a time will have it looking stellar.

And yes I know it can transfer but you wear black shorts, right?

After awhile it will burnish in and not transfer.

Andrew_G

I similarly vote against spreading the rear end of the wonderful Cinelli SC frameset. To fit in a wider freewheel, you can use a thinner locknut on the left side, and add spacers to the right side. Then re-dish the rear wheel, if the nipples will still turn on the spokes. The original Campy Record rear hub locknuts are 8 mm thick, part number 33/8. Campy also made a thinner locknut for the Record rear hub. The 6mm thick locknut is part number 33/6. Distributor Euro Asia still shows both 8mm and 6mm locknuts available. Here's the 6mm Record rear hub locknut: https://www.euroasiaimports.com/prod...-966p21985.htm I'm doubt a 7 speed freewheel will fit within a 120mm rear end, but I believe that a narrow 6 freewheel will (while using a 6mm locknut on the left side). Or you could use an even thinner Campy Tipo locknut and add even more spacers to the right side. The Campy Pista rear hub locknut is also extra thin. I presume the threading of a pista rear hub is the same as a road hub:https://www.euroasiaimports.com/prod...-966p21987.htm You can find freewheels on eBay. I haven't checked for 5-6 speed lately. Some of the sellers don't know or care to state what the FW threading is (ISO, Italian or British). IRD is making new 5, 6 and 7 speed freewheels. My experience is that the IRD FW threading was originally ISO but later changed to English (British) thread. I'd check directly with IRD and confirm the FW theading. You can easily find English (British) thread rear hubs (and pairs) used or new on eBay, and then have a nice clincher wheelset built. I had to add a 1mm spacer under the IRD freewheel because the FW body wasn't deep enough to properly fit on a NR rear hub. Here's the IRD freewheel page: https://www.interlocracing.com/shop?search=freewheel The legacy Sachs (or Regina, if you can find them) freewheels are nicer than the IRD, in my opinion. BF members have commented in other threads about old style new manufacture clincher rims.