Replaceable cups are preferable, but up until now have meant external threaded items, which can’t provide structural support to tubes. This leads to the objection that we don’t need yet another BB standard (currently there are eight), but Colnago insists it’s justified.Īs the company sees it, the problem with current press-fit BB options is that their tolerance fit makes them susceptible to wear that can lead to anything from annoying creaks to outright frame-binning. 'So we ended up inventing a new BB “standard”, our ThreadFit82.5.’ ‘Making it bigger was essential to being able to use wider tubes, but that meant we’d have to sacrifice our beloved and problem-free threaded BB. ‘The bottom bracket is probably the heart of this project,’ explains Fumagalli. Where the C59 was packing a down tube that peaked at around 44mm in width, the C60 pushes those limits to 66mm at the point where it joins the bottom bracket lug, and 51.5mm at the end of the seat tube compared to 34.9mm for the C59. But unlike its C-series carbon predecessors, the ‘stellar ribs’ of the Master tubes extend the length of the top tube and down tube and part way up the seat tube (which must end in a round profile to accommodate the seatpost), meaning the lugs also get the crimped shape.Ĭolnago claims this adds stiffness beyond that of the C59 and, while it’s hard to contest this claim without saws and a degree in composite materials, I’m not going to argue with a man who has built bikes for Eddy Merckx.Īnd if stiffness-obsessed armchair engineers need more convincing, they need only examine the tube diameters. This lightweight racer (just 7.7 kg without pedals) is capable to measure itself even with the recent high-tech carbon bikes.Except for forays into aluminium with bikes such as the Dream, and ‘monocoque’ bikes such as the C35, Colnago has built its flagship frames in the tube-lug mode, and there’s no let up with the C60.Īs with its forebears, the C60 incorporates the company’s iconic crimped Master tubing. Piece of more recent bicycle history which is highly collectible indeed, but at the same time it is a great treat to ride. We have just changed the tires, so you will be enjoy the smooth rolling of the Continental GP Supersonic clinchers with lightweight inner tubes. This bike is in original condition and is equipped with Campagnolo Record 10-speed groupset completed with Colnago branded parts like carbon rims, stem, pedals or even the bottle. Mengoni helped to kick-start careers of such riders as Hincapie, Bauer or Lemond. This Italian born American was a mentor of many great cyclists from USA. Whats more, this one has been a personal bike of a very influential man in cycling at the time - Fred Mengoni. This Colnago CF1 Carbon Road Bicycle is in excellent condition and it has been barely ridden. Colnago issued a very limited number of these nowadays highly collectible bikes - just 500 pieces. But this time the frame was exceptionally light and better suited for a serious racing. In 2001 was introduced another collaboration project presented as "Colnago for Ferrari" and the CF1 model with it's monocoque construction linked back to the C35. The "Concept" was followed by another carbon fibre creations like Volo, Carbitubo, C35 or the ultra-successful C40. The prototype was a mad and truly captivating technical exercise, but more importantly it started the whole saga of Colnago carbon fibre frames, of which the latest issue we have seen in this years Tour de France. The first attempts resulted into an introduction of the "Concept" at the 1986 Milano bike show. Ferrari Engineering helped Ernesto to implement carbon fibre into a bicycle frame design. He also started a collaboration with another privileged Italian brand - Ferrari. When it comes to the introduction of innovations to the market, Colnago became almost unrivaled. During the 1980s, he started to intensify his company's efforts on the introduction of new materials and designs. Ernesto Colnago has always been one of the most innovative, forward looking and also eccentric bicycle manufactures of all time.