Mark Bulgier wrote:
>
> I posted some pics of an Ambrosio Champion and guessed it was early 60s
> > http://tinyurl.com/
>
> Chuck Schmidt replied
> > Actually the Ambrosio Champion dates from the early 1950s.
>
> They must have made that design for a long time though, no? Or did
> bikeshops just have a long-lasting stock of them? I have seen it on so
> many early 60s bikes. John Barron's '63 Bianchi Specialissima
> (http://www.velostuf.com/specialissima.jpg) has one, and he is the
> original owner. John, if you're listening, was that stem original in
> '63? My '61 Specialissima has one but I don't know the provenance of
> the stem.
>
> Duane Kennard's '65 Specialissima has the Grand Prix Ambrosio.
My educated guess is that the Ambrosio Champion dates from 1953 and gets its name from "The Campionissimo" Fausto Coppi's '53 Worlds road race win at Lugano.
The Cinelli 1A came out in 1960 (Rome Olympics) with the allen stem bolt and the Ambrosio Gran-Prix with the allen stem bolt probably wasn't too far behind.
It's important to remember that the very latest stuff wasn't always available on a large scale when first introduced.
Anyone else have info?
Chuck Schmidt South Pasadena, Southern California
.