I can well understand Linda price drooling, on a snowy day, over this 1988 Swiss Show bike.. it's quite a looker.
There are two bikes on the ICS site, but the frame is the same one, just the parts have changed overa period of 4 years.
The bike, based on a MAGNI, presumably Italian frame, was first shown at the Cologne Show in 1984, on the ICS stand - ICS meaning Italcicli Cycle Systems, based at Hardturmstraat 135, 8005 Zurich, the Swiss city with more banks per 100 metres of "straat" than jewellery shops - and that really is saying something.
I was working the Show for a French exporter and on one of the few occasions I had to stroll around the other booths, I came across the ICS stand. and the MAGNI was quite an eyecatcher -all gold plate (or lacquer) and blue flam paint. My theory was that if you're rich enough to live in Zurich, already have most of your wealth stashed away in one of those undisclosed and secret Swiss bank accounts, you just have to find something to do with the small gold change in your back pocket and the guys at ICS came up with a reasonanable solution.
There were two bikes on the stand plus several presentation boxes of ICS "tweaked" Campag accessories. The ICS had two model ranges - MAGNI "Ecklusiv ORO" and MAGNI "Exklusiv CX" The first one speaks for itself and the second one although promising something more aerodynamic was in fact the same bike with more chrome plate and less gold, Basically the frames were chromium-plated all over, with the main triangle being a flam transparent blue over the chrome - guaranteed to look good, but not to last very long. It may have been gold plate on the frame or more likely a brass plate.
The component groups were based on the Campag Super Record groupo with the addition of a Cinelli 1R stem. The "First Class Gold" boasted a "18carat, 5 micron gold-plated finish, while the "First Class Chrome" had a "high lustre chromium plate finish. The catalogue goes on to read "The salient features of these groups are: 3-D system adjustable diagonal gear derailleur chain-wheel and front derailleur with chain guides, anatomically designed control levers." A footnote added " Superb accesories for the forward-looking" cyclist" The demon teaks on the chainset were five triangular chain guides one attached to each of the crank-to-ring bolts. The purpose of these was simply to stop, by the most expensive method known to the Swiss ccycle engineer, the chain from over-shootong the big ring. The front mech had a quadrant-shaped plate added to the leading edge of the inner plate of the mech, this addition being almost as long as the cage itself, and looking very precarious as it edged forward and downwards of the inner ring. It's purpose - to make sure the chain would not derail offthe inner ring when shifting down. The Swiss have patetented these gizmos but are still cosidering whether to take out a patent on the small pocket screwdriver.
The ultimate luxury of this set -(can you take much mor of this , Linda.. but you asked the question from over there in Denver..?) was the gently upswept gear lever - aerodynamics! which could be mounted on top of or at each side of the downtube. And for those of us who normally ride our bikes wearing ventilated back peccary skin driving gloves, the Swiss had had the foresight to erase the nasty Campag logos off the levers and to replace them with nice layers of sude leather. All in all I reckon this is just the sort of bike you need when riding to the Banque de Zurich, with a couple of gold bars in the back pockets of your ICS "maillot". I also reckon hat the doorman would even offer to park it up for you, gold trouserbands and all.
Looking very closely at the incredibly expensively produced catalogue I note the cut-outs on the head lugs of the frame, rather "T" shaped and very distinctly one of Tommasini's superb products.
I note that for the 1988, apart from the more up-to-date Campag accessories, the frame had benefitted from a new pair of forks.
Last minute thoughts.. I think it's gold lacquer on the frame, not brass plate, because the fork crown and the drop-outs are still chrome-plated, unless of course they also have some wonderful in-vat masking techniques in Switzerland.
Norris Lockley
PS ICS are probably no longer offreing these extravaganzas any longer because I understand that there are now no longer any chrome -plating plants in the country, having been banned because of the chemival polution caused by the residues from the plating process.