# Bianchi Project



## Richardnew

Here we go. Another Bianchi project. This is a 1998 Trofeo. This was a Craig's list special. It was really rough (and still is) but all the parts were there. I've got a blog on the bike where I try to keep the project updated. I've done a number of cars in my time but this is my first bike project. It's already a little more than I expected - but then that's usually the case.






Richard


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## Iverider

Welcome to the CABE!

There are a few people on here that are really into lightweights, although it seems many of them are of older vintage (the bikes).

Keep us posted on your projects!


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## bikecrazy

Welcome! I would make some friends at your local bikeshop on this one. They can help you on wheel combos and some of your bikes other issues. Great starter bicycle.


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## Richardnew

I took the bike out for a ride today. I have no gears but the brakes work. I installed the new pads and got them adjusted. I'm making progress here. 

Up to this point I've spent $462 on the project. I'm already over the value of the bike but that's what happens with every restoration project. Here's a breakdown of my costs up to this point. 

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

This was sort of interesting. This happened yesterday when I installed the new tires. 





This is a Vittoria latex tube. This happened with only 4 lbs. of air. Anyone ever see anything like this before?

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

I'm using MKS pedals. First, $25 the price was right. Secondly, they look like the old school Campagnolo pedals. They're definitely not Compangnolo quality but they're pretty decent. If you take them apart and add a little more grease they work nicely.





Richard Newton
Bianchi Blog


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## Richardnew

I've been riding it for 2 days now. It has no gears but we don't have hills in Florida.





The bike is still in the original silver paint. Bianchi offered silver in 1998. That may have been the only year they made silver bikes. That means I'll do the repaint in silver. I can do the decals in blue. 

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

I'm really getting into this bike tire thing. The bike came with slicks. I have no reason to run slicks and a friend of mine felt I should use a treaded tire. He's been riding for twenty years so I actually listen to him. 

Mounting the tires was incredibly difficult. We're not sure why. My friend has done this hundreds of times and usually on the side of the road. He does do the Ride across Iowa (Ragbrai) thing every year. He knows about mounting tires quickly. The rims on me bike are the original Rigida Vela 32 hole rims. They shouldn't have been a problem.





We think the problem (?) may have been with the wheels even though they're perfect wheels. Then again it could be the Continental tires. At any rate they're on the bike. I was told though that if I have a flat I should take the bike to a bike shop. He's not doing this again.

Richard Newton
Bianchi Blog


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## Hermanator3

*Mounting tires*

Some rim & tire combinations are a complete bear to mount & others are easy.  One of the bike shops I worked in sold K2 mountain bikes & one of the models had a tire & rim that made it almost impossible to mount the tire.  And usually mountain bike tires are easier to mount than road bike tires.  Guess it all has to do with tolerances.  My modified 3 speed with 700C rims is shod with Specialized Armadillos. I hope they never go flat on the road.  I'd probably break my plastic tire levers trying to fix the flat.


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## Richardnew

We ended up using WD-40 on the tire and rim. I never like doing that but I've done it on hundreds of car tires. Sometimes you just do what you have to do. Actually there is a special tire lube you can use when mounting car tires. I didn't have any so I used my ever handy can of WD-40.

Richard Newton
Bianchi Restoration


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## Iverider

I like the look of those tires. I may have to pick some up for my commuter (1982 Trek 420)

Are they seriously that tight though? I'd hate to have to fix a flat while going to work with a super tight tire. 

It may have to do with the rim too I suppose.

Bike is looking nice.


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## Richardnew

Yes, they're that right. My friend said if I have a flat on the road just call my wife and drop the bike at the bike shop. He's not doing another one. Now we don't know if the tires are that tight or if my wheels are the issue. All I know is both the tires and wheels appear issue free. Go figure. I really do like them though.

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

I've been riding the bike for a few weeks now. One observation is about the tubes I've used. 






The one on the left is from Specialized and was purchased from the local Trek store. It uses a threaded valve and was made in China. It leaks very little air. The one on the right is latex and has a non-threaded valve stem. It was made in Thailand. It leaks at least 4 lbs a day. I have to fill that one on a regular basis. No complaints about either really. Just an observation. 

btw - what are your feelings about threaded vs. non-threaded valve stems?

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

I'm still riding the bike. I think I've just about made the decision to have it painted very soon. I found a bike shop I like. My only previous experience was with the local Trek store. I'm sure they were a very capable facility but I just couldn't connect with them. 





The best part of EA Bicycles is that they understand Italian bikes. They actually sell them. I feel a lot better about leaving my Bianchi in a store that sells Bianchi. Taking your Bianchi to a Trek dealer is like taking a Ducati to a Harley Davidson dealer. It's just not right. 

Keep in mind that when I say I'm going to get the bike painted that means everything has to come part. Everything. 

Then it all goes back together - properly. This could get very interesting.

Richard Newton
Restoration Project


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## Richardnew

Some other Bianchi projects.

This one is just stunning. I'm jealous. 





Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

The bike is now in the shop getting all the little stuff taken care of. I'm going to hold off on the paint for at least six months. Right now I've spent $604 dollars on a bike that the Bicycle Blue Book says is worth $217. All of the details are on my blog. 

btw - I really like this bike.





Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

It's always the little parts that make you crazy. While my bike came with most of the parts a few were missing.  Like these crank dust covers. 

Bianchi isn't a lot of help with these parts. They're interested in selling new bikes. That means you have to go to Evil Bay. 





There are a lot of generic dust covers and a lot of plastic ones. It seems most bikes use a 22 mm dust cover. 

I found a lot of Campagnolo dust covers but very few Bianchi one. Prices are all over the place. People are selling the same dust covers for $10 and $30. Those are Campy covers. You can get an entire Bianchi crank are set complete with all the caps and dust covers for $24.95. Then just try to buy a pair of Bianchi dust caps. Prices go as high as $60.00 for a pair.

I ended up buying a pair from a guy in Canada for $37.99 They say Bianchi and they're made out of aluminum. They might even be original NOS. 

Richard Newton
*The Bianchi Project*


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## Hermanator3

Richardnew said:


> I've been riding the bike for a few weeks now. One observation is about the tubes I've used.
> 
> View attachment 103767
> 
> The one on the left is from Specialized and was purchased from the local Trek store. It uses a threaded valve and was made in China. It leaks very little air. The one on the right is latex and has a non-threaded valve stem. It was made in Thailand. It leaks at least 4 lbs a day. I have to fill that one on a regular basis. No complaints about either really. Just an observation.
> 
> btw - what are your feelings about threaded vs. non-threaded valve stems?
> 
> Richard Newton




Latex tubes always lose more air though they are lighter.  I prefer threaded stems because you can tighten the stem nut against the rim which helps keep the stem from moving around, lessening the chance of a leak around the base of the stem.


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## ohdeebee

Here's one I did a few years ago. The entire bike, seat, tires, chain, etc. were all spray painted red. I stripped everything and repainted the frame/fork and polished everything else. Full Shimano 600 (Ultegra) group.


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## Richardnew

That's beautiful. How did you strip the paint? I'm thinking of using a soda blaster. I've done that with cars and it worked nicely.

Richard Newton
Bianchi Blog


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## Richardnew

I've had my bike back from the shop for about a week now. I've been riding the bike every morning. EA Bicyles did a great job getting this bike working properly. The biggest problem was with the rear wheel. I knew the bearing was loose. I didn't realize the spokes were loose as well. EA took care of the whole mess and this bike is a lot nicer to ride. 

I really wonder though if anyone in Florida needs 24 speeds. I track my rides and in the course of ten miles there's a 43 foot elevation change. Yes, Florida is pretty flat. I only use about 6 of the speeds in a normal ride.






I seriously thought about using a blue wrap for the handlebars. I thought the blue would go nicely with the Bianchi silver. I believe that 1998 was the only year the Bianchi used silver paint. That means I'm going to have repaint this bike silver. 

While my first inclination was to use a blue handlebar wrap when I thought about it a little more I decided to use the Bianchi green. Besides it says Bianchi on it. The blue wrap was just a generic handlebar wrap. I can't do that to a Binachi. Can I?

Richard Newton
Bianchi Blog


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## Richardnew

1948 Bianchi on eBay





Really bad pictures and a $5,000 price. It's beautiful though. My bike should only look this good.

Richard Newton


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## ohdeebee

Richardnew said:


> That's beautiful. How did you strip the paint? I'm thinking of using a soda blaster. I've done that with cars and it worked nicely.
> 
> Richard Newton
> Bianchi Blog




I use a chemical paint stripper then sand everything smooth. Make sure you're wearing gloves while using the stripper.


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## Richardnew

I'm old enough to remember when we could buy real paint stripper. The kind that would eat your skin away if you go any on you. The stuff today is sissy stuff. The big problem is all the little crevices on a lugged frame. If you don't get them perfectly clean the final product will look really bad. 

Here's a perfect job. I love it. I also can't imagaine the amount of effort and skill this job took. 





Richard Newton
Bianchi Blog


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## Machine Age Victim

Richardnew said:


> I've had my bike back from the shop for about a week now. I've been riding the bike every morning. EA Bicyles did a great job getting this bike working properly. The biggest problem was with the rear wheel. I knew the bearing was loose. I didn't realize the spokes were loose as well. EA took care of the whole mess and this bike is a lot nicer to ride.
> 
> I really wonder though if anyone in Florida needs 24 speeds. I track my rides and in the course of ten miles there's a 43 foot elevation change. Yes, Florida is pretty flat. I only use about 6 of the speeds in a normal ride.
> 
> View attachment 106182
> 
> I seriously thought about using a blue wrap for the handlebars. I thought the blue would go nicely with the Bianchi silver. I believe that 1998 was the only year the Bianchi used silver paint. That means I'm going to have repaint this bike silver.
> 
> While my first inclination was to use a blue handlebar wrap when I thought about it a little more I decided to use the Bianchi green. Besides it says Bianchi on it. The blue wrap was just a generic handlebar wrap. I can't do that to a Binachi. Can I?
> 
> Richard Newton
> Bianchi Blog




No, you can't do that to a Bianchi  since it is one of the bikes you can get away with using celeste green with (the actual name of Bianchi green, it was made by mixing white and left over drab green after wwii). I believe they used to or still do make tires in celeste green. I've been riding and working on lightweights for about 20 years, restored a couple too, feel free to ask anything, I've likely already went down that road and can tell you where you'll end up!

Where in Florida are you? Some of the road riding in this state can be more dangerous than others!


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## Richardnew

I've been riding the bike for a while now. It was doing just fine until I noticed my rear wheel was a little wobbly. It seems that my rear hub is worn out. It's an old Campy. I can't believe the Campy prices. This is a 32-hole 8-speed cassette. They seem to range from $350 to $500 for a new one. 

My local shop says to avoid the eBay used ones since they're probably as bad as what's on my bike now. He also suggests that I avoid the off brands. He's a Campy fanatic and all of the claims that they're as good as a Campy just aren't true. 





btw - This picture is pre tune up. I have cleaned everything up. I even polished the bad hub. 

Richard Newton


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## sbusiello

Richardnew said:


> I've been riding it for 2 days now. It has no gears but we don't have hills in Florida.
> 
> View attachment 102466
> 
> The bike is still in the original silver paint. Bianchi offered silver in 1998. That may have been the only year they made silver bikes. That means I'll do the repaint in silver. I can do the decals in blue.
> 
> Richard Newton




I have a silver bianchi from 1980


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## Richardnew

Great looking bike. Thanks for sharing. I was hoping to have mine painted shortly. This rear hub thing has slowed me down. The other thing that's slowed me down is an old Raleigh from the 70's. It's interesting to see the difference between an Italian bike and a British/Dutch bike. 

Richard Newton
*Bianchi Project*


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## Richardnew

Here's the bad hub.





This is just one reason why it makes no economic sense to restore a bike. I paid $120 for the bike. I've got over $500 (at least) in the bike at this point. When I'm done with the hub I'll have at least $1,000 in the bike. And it's still not painted.

None of this is a surprise. I've done this with cars. When you watch the Barrett-Jackson auction keep in mind that most of those cars are selling for less than the owners have in them. Ninety percent of the owners are taking a loss.

Why should bike restoration be any different?

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

*Portland Visit*

I stopped at a shop here in the Portland area to look at some older restored bikes. They had a couple of nice older Bianchi bikes. I did get a chance to compare decals and stickers. Some of their bikes had stickers applied on top of the paint. Others had the stickers placed between the color coat and the clear coat. 

I really like the way the clear coat gets rid of the edges on the lettering. I'm leaning more and more towards paint. It seems to be a lot more money than paint but it's still nicer for a restoration. Maybe.

Richard Newton
*Bianchi Restoration Blog*


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## GiovanniLiCalsi

Touring bicycles from the 1960's to 1980's are fetching good prices now.
I bought a new 1971 International Raleigh touring bicycle in 1971.
They are bringing $1,500-2,500.00 in restored or good original condition.
Your bicycle may be worth more the longer you keep it. Campy parts can be acquired at low prices if you are patient.


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## Richardnew

There'a an old saying your post brought to mind. "You can never pay too much but you can buy too soon."

I spent some time today talking to the folks at Elliott Bay Bikes. They do beautiful paint. It seems that to have someone strip and paint a bike is now close to $1,000. That includes decals and a clear coat over everything. 





Powder coating is going to be a lot cheaper but I have to see some of the new powder coat. This is a situation where things are getting better all the time.  Maybe we're approaching the point where it looks as good as paint. Maybe.

Richard Newton


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## GiovanniLiCalsi

Paint is much better.


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## Richardnew

My new hubs were on my doorstep when I arrived home for the Seattle trip.

I'm only concerned about the rear hub but I had to buy them as a pair. I dropped them off at EA Bicycles this morning. 

Richard Newton
Bianchi Restoration Blog


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## Richardnew

*Expense Report*

It's time to talk about something your should never talk about when you restore a bike or car. Money. The smart people never keep receipts nor do they ever total the bills. I'm not that smart. Here's here I am right now. 


Bike                           120.00
New Seat Post     	21.00
Remove old 
Seat Post			30.00
Tire Lever			4.00
2 Tires			105.00
Tire Pump			43.00
Bike Stand			40.00
Brake Pads		 32.00
MKS Pedals 		30.00
Major tune-up		141.98
Front &Rear hubs	 250.00

TOTAL		       $817.00 

I'm almost exactly at what the first owner paid for this bike. There's also a very nice one currently for sale *here.* The asking price is $950.00. I'm very close to being upside down and I haven't painted the bike yet. 

I suspect that when I'm done I will have twice as much money into the bike as it's worth. One problem is that I have a lower end Bianchi. The cost of restoring a rare Bianchi and a low end Bianchi are pretty similar. The variable here is that your initial cost for a high end Bianchi will be greater. 

Keep in mind that you can't make money restoring bikes. Maybe you can make a little if you buy them at a police auction and just fix them up. What fun would that be though?

I added a few Bianchi projects to my blog. You're going to have to scroll down the page to find them.

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

*Bike Shipping*

I'm going to have to ship my bike for painting. Anyone have experience doing this? I'm just sending the bar frame and front forks. That way the box can be a lot smaller.

Here are two companies that handle shipping. I'm sure there are more. 

ShipBikes.com

BikeFlights.com

Richard Newton


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## Freqman1

Richardnew said:


> I'm going to have to ship my bike for painting. Anyone have experience doing this? I'm just sending the bar frame and front forks. That way the box can be a lot smaller.
> 
> Here are two companies that handle shipping. I'm sure there are more.
> 
> ShipBikes.com
> 
> BikeFlights.com
> 
> Richard Newton




FEDEX Ground is how I ship all of my bikes. V/r Shawn


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## Richardnew

*Bianchi Eros*

I just added an Eros to my Other Projects page. As usual, you're going to have to scroll down. Here's the link.





Richard Newton


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## GiovanniLiCalsi

I have good luck with Fedex.
Bicycle Packing

I take the fork and front wheel off and leave the rear wheel on the frame.
I then wrap 2" foam pipe insulation on the wheels around the tires and rims and also use 3/4" pipe insulation on the frame tubes. 1/2" pipe insulation on the seat and chain stays. Use 3/4" pipe insulation on the fork tubes. Use plastic zip-ties or packing tape for fastening pipe insulation. Use bolt, washers and nut to reinforce the fork at the hub axle dropouts.
Then bubble wrap every thing. Dont use more than one layer. Pack the seat in bubble wrap separately. Take the pedals off.
Remove the handle bars from the gooseneck and cover the bars with 3/4" pipe insulation.
Use a standard Specialized bicycle carton for the frame with rear wheel and a Specialized bicycle wheel carton for the front wheel and misc. Specialized bicycle cartons are the strongest.
Wrap all parts with large heavy duty trash bags and tape openings. Then have handy 8 cans of expanding foam purchased from Home Depot. Lay a bed of foam on the inside bottom of carton where the upside down frame will be positioned. Don't go crazy with the foam placement. Remember it expands. Position the upside down frame in the bed of fresh foam then continue to add foam to the spaces between the carton and the frame. Use long disposable gloves. Foam has to wear off your skin or use nasty acetone to remove. You can spritz water on the foam to accelerate the curing. Now add foam popcorn to the spaces and add any small parts. Copy this procedure to the front wheel and fork carton (smaller wheel carton). The expanding foam fill will guarantee that the bicycle and parts do not become piercing projectiles that would rupture the cartons and cause catastrophic damage to the bicycle itself and also create a pathway for losing parts.
Buy a jumbo Sharpie marker and right fragile, keep upright and do not stack on top of box.
This works every time for me. I learned this lesson the hard way. 99% of all damage of contents are from not securing the contents from moving inside the carton.


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## Richardnew

Some really good suggestions here. Thanks. I'm just going to be shipping a bar frame and bare forks. That means the box can be a little smaller and I only have 2 items to secure. I really like the foam idea and the tubing ideas. You've been a great help. 

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

*It's Back*

It took about five weeks to replace the rear hub. That was no fault of EA Bicycles. I spent a week trying to find an original Campy hub. Then I spent a few weeks roaming around Seattle and Portland while the new hub sat in my mailbox. 






Here's the latest blog entry.

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

*Polishing*

Our old bikes have a lot of aluminum. That means we have to keep polishing. Actually in my case I had to start polishing since no one polished anything in the last several decades. I've restored enough vintage race cars to know a little bit about polishing. the main thing is to remember that it can't be rushed. it's going to take some time. 



This is really from my Raleigh. I'm having too much fun riding the Bianchi to start taking it apart again. Since the Raleigh is all apart right now I decide to start working on the aluminum. Italian aluminum is pretty much the same as English aluminum. At least you polish it the same way.



I've outlined some of the steps on my Bianchi blog. It's really just a matter of moving to progressively finer sandpaper and polishes.Here's what I started with.

Richard Newton


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## GiovanniLiCalsi

Always keep in mind that even though you may be upside down, economically, you are getting a wealth of experience, joy and satisfaction of a beautiful project well done.
Don't ever feel bad about riding a bicycle that you brought back from the brink of ruin.
Interesting blog.


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## Richardnew

*Another Motorcycle*

I added another Bianchi motorcycle to the page. I've never seen one in the United States. I wondering if they were ever imported to the states?

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

*Painting*

I'm on a quest to find a painter. I decided to go with paint rather than powder coating. I could give you a lot of reasons but it all comes down to paint just looks nicer. I'm not talking any old paint job though. I want Pebble Beach quality. I want a clear coat over the proper decals. I want perfection. 

This is what I call the Ralph Lauren approach. Ralph has never really restored a car. He's always brought his cars to perfection. Perfection in the sense that they were never that good prior to entering the Lauren collection. I want a paint job that's better then the original factory paint.

Rather than doing the Bianchi I'm going to start with the Raleigh. Here's the fame. 





At this point I've sent pictures out to Airglow in GA. I asked for an estimate and an approximate date. I haven't heard back from them at this point. 

Have any of you found a painter that can do exceptional quality? Let's see who's out there doing really high end paint.

Richard Newton
Bianchi Restoration Blog


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## Gary Mc

I was interested to here about Airglow in Washington GA.  They are about 2 hours from me & I'd love to see some of their work.


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## Richardnew

The Airglow site looks great. I'm hoping someone here has actually dealt with them. 

Also, check out this vintage bike site. Some beautiful lugged steel bikes. 

Richard Newton


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## GiovanniLiCalsi

You could chrome plate the head post lugs and rear stays like the Raleigh International.
Those look like the French Nervex lugs.


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## Richardnew

I like that look. Thanks. Since this is a lower end Raleigh I would have no problem do it. Also, should someone want to paint it at a later date they could. I really wouldn't be altering the bike.

http://www.cyclofiend.com/cc/images10/cc789-3CRW_3415.jpg

I also really like what this owner did with the lugs.

http://www.cyclofiend.com/cc/images10/cc789-4CRW_3419.jpg

I'm not a fanatic about being correct. I do though hate to alter anything in such a way that it can't  be returned to the original. Paint and chrome really don't change anything permanently.

Richard Newton


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## GiovanniLiCalsi

I bought my Raleigh International new in 1971. Still have it. The next year I did change out the Weinmann
 brakes to Campy, cut the brake arc off and the top tube cable stops and used Campy cable clamps, installed a Cinelli fork, Cinelli handlebars, Campy Strada crank set, Campy high-flange hubs, double-butted stainless spokes, Campy seat post, Cinelli handlebar stem, Campy handlebar gear levers, Fiamme rims and Regina road ratio rear gear cluster.

BEFORE


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## Richardnew

Very Nice

Richard


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## Richardnew

*1969 Restoration Project*

This is an interesting project. It's you basic low budget project. You don't always have to spend thousands of dollars on your bike. 

I'm still waiting to hear back from Airglow about painting my bike. They don't seem to be very interested. I'll give them a few more days to respond and then I move on to another shop.

Richard Newton
Bianchi Restoration Project


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## Richardnew

*Given up on Airglow*

Airglow turned out to have a nice web site and not much else. No one bothered to return my calls or my emails. Obviously not the sort of place you want working on your bike. 

I'm going to try a place up in Jacksonville Fl called the Bicycle Clinic. If they don't work out I'm probably going to try one of the places in Seattle I know. First, let's see how this new place works out. They can't do worse than Airglow.

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

*It's The Bicycle Clinic*

I'm impressed with The Bicycle Clinic. They got back to me with a price quote in less than an hour. They'll paint, decal and then clear coat the bike. They'll even redo the chrome on the front forks. The total will be $500.

Richard Newton
Bianchi Blog


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## Iverider

Richardnew said:


> I'm impressed with The Bicycle Clinic. They got back to me with a price quote in less than an hour. They'll paint, decal and then clear coat the bike. They'll even redo the chrome on the front forks. The total will be $500.
> 
> Richard Newton
> Bianchi Blog




Doesn't sound too bad! Post pics when it's painted!


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## Richardnew

*Paint Update*

I have a plan. The bike is going to the Bicycle Clinic in Jacksonville FL. Also, Airglow finally got back to me. He apologized and all but I still have questions.

Now to the price. I gave Bicycle Clinic and Airglow the same specifications. I asked that the bike be painted in the original style and colors. I want them to apply the decals and then shoot clear coat over the entire frame and fork. The front fork will be get new chrome. Everything must be show quality. 

Airglow quoted me a price of $1,200 for this job. Bicycle Clinic quoted me $500. That's a huge difference. I'm going to use the Bicycle Clinic because they got back to me very quickly with a quote. It's not a matter of price as much as it is of customer service. 

Richard Newton
The Bianchi Project


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## Larmo63

Cyclart in Carlsbad, California. They do this kind of work....

http://www.cyclart.com/newindex.html


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## Freqman1

I want to see the $500 paint job. I have a '84 Bianchi that I was going to do myself but at $500 I'd let them do it. V/r Shawn


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## Richardnew

Cyclart seems to be a good place for painting as well.  I'm impressed with the fact they understand the difference between show quality and original paint. That's a huge deal to a lot of people. I'm asking for show quality which is pretty far from original quality. I want my bike painted the way I wished it had been painted - not the way it was originally painted. 

Which ever one you want the paint shop needs to understand your desire. Then they need to carry out your intentions. 

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

Now this is beautiful.


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## Richardnew

It's done. I've ridden it for about 50 miles. It's very very different from my Bianchi. This is the Dutch made Raleigh Grand Prix. The best I can do with the serial number is that it's a 1974 to 1976 version.  The Bianchi is a 1998 model. 

The Raleigh feels huge. Ok - it is. It feels like you're driving an old Bentley or something similar. I need to weigh it soon. It's a lot heavier than my Bianchi. At least it feels that way.






Richard Newton
Bike Restoration Blog

I weighed the two bikes. The Raleigh is heavy.

Bianchi - 24.2 lbs.
Raleigh - 31.0 lbs.


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## Richardnew

A few more pictures.








Richard Newton
Bike Restoration Blog


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## cyclonecoaster.com

*Continental tires ...*



Richardnew said:


> We ended up using WD-40 on the tire and rim. I never like doing that but I've done it on hundreds of car tires. Sometimes you just do what you have to do. Actually there is a special tire lube you can use when mounting car tires. I didn't have any so I used my ever handy can of WD-40.
> 
> Richard Newton
> Bianchi Restoration




Continental makes a great tire - but they always seem to run tight on rims - back when I was riding road & mountain bikes more I would use all brands of tires - I noticed that only the Continental tires were a bear to put on - but the look better than most & performance is second to none - Specialized tires on the other hand could be hand mounted & would almost fall off the rim as you added air & had to be centered as you were adding air to them so they wouldn't have a hop or pop a bead - Just don't get a flat with the Continentals - or if you do make sure you have some top quality tire levers to pull the tires off & fix or replace the tubes ..  ride vintage - Frank


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## Richardnew

The Raleigh has Michelins. I don't like them as much as the Continentals. They just don't have the ride quality. They do look good though. 

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

Here's a detailed list of what my Raleigh cost.

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

It's time for a new build here. I'm finally getting around to my Vitus. My wheels arrived today.





I've added a detailed list to my blog. I'm really open to suggestions here. My next step will be the brakes.

Richard Newton


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## Richardnew

I just violated my All-Camp rule. Ok I also did it on the wheels. 

The Vitus I'm building originally used friction shifters.  I'm doing a conversion. 



 

These are $11.09  on Amazon.com



 

The Campy version is $60.00

The Campy version has the neat little springs but come on. 

Richard Newton


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## Duchess

They both have springs, it's just that they're not visible with the other set. I have them on my USAAF bike and they work great.


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## Richardnew

Thanks - Here they are installed.


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