I recently purchased a Bianchi that’s actually a vintage
bike. I kind of had my eye on another
previously that I never responded to while waiting for the price to go
down. In between that and finding this
one, I had also painted 3 bedrooms in the remodel a color very close to Bianchi
celeste that my wife had selected. One
could say I was intoxicated by taking in so much. It was advertised on the local Craigslist as a
1980 Nuova Racing but, based on the serial number, seems to have been
constructed in ’82.
It was the kind of bike I lusted after as a 14 year old
mowing lawns to afford second hand Peugeots, with those beautifully sculpted pearlescent
aluminum Campagnolo shifters and derailleurs.
As I recall, I so wanted Campy components on the Schwinn Prologue
frameset that I finally saved up for with pizza making money that I built it
with a similar front mech as my “new” Bianchi because it was the least
expensive Campagnolo part in the Performance catalogue.
This bike is more than a little rough, but seems to be
largely the same machine component wise it was when it rolled off the show room
floor in 82 or 83. My biggest concern is
that the originally brazed on top tube brake cable guides have been covered
over by clamp style guides. I haven’t
even taken the clamps off yet to inspect them due to more pressing projects
like painting and moving into our whole house remodel. Where the heck did I put my sockets and
wrench roll?! Depending on the damage, I’ll
decide what to do with the bike.
