Re: [CR]Masi Questions!

(Example: Humor)

From: <"brianbaylis@juno.com">
Date: Mon, 27 Dec 2004 17:57:07 GMT
To: gharnold@mindspring.com
Subject: Re: [CR]Masi Questions!
cc: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org

Greg,

To answer your question regarding Pogliaghi vs Masi in build quality, to my humble eye, Masi is a more carefully built and cleaner job of framebuilding than Pogliaghi. That is not to say there is anything wrong with Pogs, they are charming and have a style all their own. I admire them, like the graphics in most cases, and the track frames seem to be the nicest ones. I had one myself in 1972, and I'd really like to find her again. A 48cm bike that was an odd green when new, repainted red later on.

No doubt they knew each other. In competition? Sort of probably.

The white/orange combo paint job was most likely a custom or non original job; depending on wheather it was Italian or CA. Very few two tone paint jobs came out of Carlsbad; and then only on special order which was very rare or for an employee bike, again very rare.

Brian Baylis La Mesa, CA Off to work on a bunch of Masis and Pogliaghis today.


-- "greg@nofatcomm.com" wrote:


Greetings and Happy holidays all...

I am trying to convince the wife of the rarity and er, usefulness!, of a 1972 Masi GC in my size that I've come across, and I need your help ... I've read through the archives to get as much info as i could ... I was wondering if the current experts could shed some light on a few of the following questions:

In 1972 - and in that general 1968-75 era - were 60+cm Italian bikes as often produced as the smaller ones? I've often read that these larger frames (I ride 62-63cm bikes) are less collectible/valuable, yet I find them much harder to come by... curious.

I'm considering a 1972 Masi - no serial number, with a 'V' stamped in the BB. From what I read it has to be Italian because 'all US Masis's had serial numbers'. Is this 'V' any indication of where it was built or by whom?

It has a 'twin plate' fork but it appears to be the fischer 'faux' drilled plate - which to my eyes is more elegant looking than the normal twin plate crown - is it a more unusual fork?

Were the 1972 Italian Masi's somehow inferior to the 1973 Carlsbads? Seems there is alot of chest puffing among the US Masi builders(!) of that era - I mean that in good fun please - but how bad were the Italian frames at that time? The one Im looking at looks pretty clean...where was the venerable Mario C. building in 1972?

What color schemes were available in 1972? I recently let a Masi go on ebay with a cool two tone orange-white head tube configuration. Was this a custom paint job?

Finally - when did all the pantography start or stop with these bikes? I've seen some really wonderful examples of Italian Masi's with 'Falerio' cut into the stems, and 'M's cut out of the chainrings - and then later 'Alberto' in the stems ... were these 'one-off' customizations or did the factory offer these options?

Oh - and one other thing - Does anyone know if Falerio and Sante Pogliaghi knew each other? Were in competition? Does anyone else but me think Pogliaghi built as well if not better than Masi? (Is that Masi sacrilege?)

thanks all for your help - and for helping me justify my Christmas present....

greg arnold
alresford, Hampshire