Camillanicole

Hey all

I recently picked up a vintage bike that looked in good condition and stripped off all the paint. There was no branding on the bike aside from raccomi stickers and I can find very little information about what that was. However, I would love if someone could tell me the era or what type of tubing it is! I know it's columbus from the stamp but that is literally the extent of my knowledge! I've posted some photos and also one of the components Thanks so much for any help!

juvela

Hello Camillanicole,

Welcome to the forum and thank you for sharing your mystery find.

We are clearly in the early eighties here. Frame looks "production" as opposed to "artisianal."

One possibility is that it may be a contract build done for a distributor.

A potential source of clues you did not mention is the bottom bracket shell. Are there any markings there?

Raccomi threads at other cycling forums -

Italian brand Raccomi...Looking for its history

raccomi track

Riccomi???

0.2HP

Another potential source of clues is the bottom bracket threading: Sheldon Brown's Bicycle Bicycle Bottom Bracket Crib Sheet

Also: Sheldon Brown's Bottom Bracket Size Database

Chombi

Hmmm... Nothing really stands out on that frame to suggest what it is. In fact it's quite plain, when it comes to Italian frame. Almost looking like a French frame instead of Italian, especially with those medium point, windowless lugs that look like they are Bocamas, very common to Peugeot race bikes in the 80's. Same with the domed seat and chain stays. So don't count out it having been built by a French company as one of their Columbus tubed special models.......... Or it could also be one of those Italian "contract" frames built for other companies to sell as theirs. That's where these Columbus dropouts usually come up.
If the Modolo brake caliper shown was original to the bike, it suggest a mid level bike at best, so maybe Columbus Aelle/Tretubi at best,..........unless you find rifling at the ends of the seat and down tubes in the BB shell.......... which means you hit the jackpot with an SLX tubed frame!

exxongraftek

Look for a rather faint Columbus "dove in a circle" stamp on the fork steer tube if you don't see any "rifling" looking down the inside of the steer tube or seat tube.
SLX will have rifling. Unfortunately, just because the dropouts are marked Columbus does not absolutely guarantee the frame is also Columbus tubing.
Columbus dropouts were a lower cost alternative to Campagnolo dropouts back then.

cbutler

+1

I have a Geoffrey Butler with Reynolds 531 and Columbus dropouts.

It looks like a late 80's frame due to the style of the fork crown and the spatter paint over black in your dropout pic.
My guess is mid range Japanese, a nice frameset worthy of a nice paint job.

please post pics of your progress.

P!N20

Just dusting this one off...

* cb400bill - can we move this to the normal C&V section? And add Raccomi to the title? *

Came across this Raccomi and thought I'd throw it on here just to see if anyone knows anything: https://www.1226.bike/bikes/raconi-restoration/

It appears the few internet references to Raccomi originate from Australia, so it's possible it was a bike shop's in house brand here.

Still, while we have plenty of marques that leverage off Italian names, they don't usually come with the liberal use of the Italian flag like this one, so it's not a definite.

The head badge logo is pretty cool! I'm filing the Cinelli decals under Red Herring.