# 1950's Frejus track bike?



## hzqw2l (Jul 31, 2020)

Local pick-up.  All chrome frame. Mismatched rims with glue on tires.  Campy rear record hub.  Schwinn front. I think it has the correct crank and headset for the frame. Bonus cinelli stem.


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## juvela (Jul 31, 2020)

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Thank you very much for sharing this arrival!   

Are you able to read any marking on frame ends?

Have you checked the tubes for any hallmarks?

Owned an early 1970's example which was fabricated of Libellula.













headset, chainset & seat binder collar appear to be Magistroni (Giostra) products.  bottom bracket fittings markings may include "nicrom."  original cog may have been from this firm as well.

pedals are a road model Sheffield, perhaps the Corsa 655.

both wheels appear to be replacements. original hubs would have likely been made by Fratelli Brivio, regardless of how marked.

a most excellent find!  

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BTW - in case you have not as yet visited it there is a wonderful resource here for vintage Bozzi products, not only the cycles but the fittings suppliers as well.  It is nominally anent the Leggy marque but includes some Frejus as well:









						condorino
					

Legnano Bicycles and My Life on Two Wheels - info@condorino.com




					www.condorino.com
				




webmaster is Mark.

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## hzqw2l (Aug 1, 2020)

juvela said:


> -----
> 
> Thank you very much for sharing this arrival!
> 
> ...



Looked it over this afternoon.  It has faint triangle markings but not legible through the chrome plating.  Magistroni senior bottom bracket and crank.  Stronglight chain ring.  Diamond 56 chain.  Brooks b17 saddle.


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## juvela (Aug 1, 2020)

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Thank you.

That is the Libellula tubing mark.

See that the Magistroni fittings include the NIKROM mark.

Have never heard tell of a Bozzi road frame built of Libellula but there certainly may have been some.

Replacement transfers are available if interested; but then you probably know that already.

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## hzqw2l (Aug 1, 2020)

Is the Libellula tubing lighter than reynolds 531?

Is it common for Frejus? Or track frames in general?


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## kccomet (Aug 1, 2020)

nice find, valuable stem


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## juvela (Aug 2, 2020)

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Libellula -

tube sets from this maker are quite rare

information regarding the tubing is difficult to locate

have no knowledge of its technical specifications nor how it compares with other brands

it is well thought of by the enthusiasts familiar with it

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the Stronglight chainwheel is quite early

chainwheel makers ceased the fabrication of chainwheels with that reinforcing lip about three generations ago

before Verot-Perrin settled on the Stronglight name they used Strong Light

before that they used names such as Acier Diamant for some of their products

there is some company history here -






						Stronglight — Wikipédia
					






					fr.wikipedia.org
				




the cycle's original chainwheel would have been Magistroni brand

the chainwheel bolts which are on there look to be hardware store items.  you may discover them to be fractional rather than metric.

a previous rider must have been quite strong in order to make good use of a 56T chainwheel

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information on Magistroni products is rather limited; here is a bit in case you have not found it already -



			Magistroni
		



Officine Mecchaniche Giostra ceased the manufacture of Magistroni badged products in 1965 and launched the OFMEGA/Of.Me.Ga./OMG badges in 1966.

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lugs -

AFAIK the frame's lug pattern is proprietary with Bozzi.  have never encountered it on another marque.  most likely manufacturer is Agrati but have no hard information.  Agrati ceased manufacture of cycle fittings ~1985 but continued on with their motorbike & moped business through the Agrati-Garelli entity.

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## hzqw2l (Aug 2, 2020)

Found the dragon stamp on the fork legs so fork seems original to the bike.  Also found BIANCHI stamps on the pedals


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## juvela (Aug 2, 2020)

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when you service the machine's head fittings you may discover the dragonfly on the steerer as well

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it was fairly common for Sheffields to get stamped with the name of the bicycle, especially in the case of major marques such as Bianchi...

can see from the new pictures that pedals are not model Corsa 655

they are one of the Sprint series models

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one simple check you could make is to pull one of the axle locknuts on the Campag hub to learn its date.  might be interesting to see how close it is to that of the cycle...




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one small fitting which might be fun to add would be a set of Gaslos, they were offered with the name of the bicycle -









advert of 1955 -







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## GiovanniLiCalsi (Aug 2, 2020)

1956?


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## hzqw2l (Aug 2, 2020)

juvela said:


> -----
> 
> when you service the machine's head fittings you may discover the dragonfly on the steerer as well
> 
> ...



One marked 67...other 68

So is it a worthwhile endeavor to try and find a correct wheelset or just leave it as is?

The former owner told me the original wheels were replaced in the mid seventies.  He bought it from original owner in 1971.  These are glued tires. He said originals were sewn.  He said it was hanging in shed since 1980.  He wanted to restore it with new paint but lucky for me...never did.


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## juvela (Aug 2, 2020)

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if mine, would seek out or build a period correct wheelset

would definitely want FB hubs , regardless of how badged
this forum thread illustrates a variety:

F.B. OEM Hub photos needed

might wish to consider wood rims such as Ghisallo



			Cerchio Ghisallo – dal 1946 il Cerchio in Legno
		


the Clement Elvezia tyre that is on there is a heavy "covered" training tyre

since a previous owner has fitted a brake the cycle must have been employed for training at some point.  the Elvezia rather fits in with that application.  for actual track use silk tyres of much lighter weight would have been employed...

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## juvela (Aug 10, 2020)

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came across this image of a Libellula fork blade marking today and thought to glue it into the thread -





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if you should wish to return the cycle to more of a track configuration one thing which could be done would be to fit track model pedals.  this Noli-Cattaneo model 618 set is correct in terms to national origin, time and application -





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