Beater road bike - Novara Trionfo

 "You will never have to experience defeat if you avoid contests whose outcome is outside your control." - Epictetus

As I write this, the weather is brutally cold and dry.  This morning is was 5 degrees F (-15 degrees C), with a wind chill down at -15F (-26 degrees C).  Hopefully this cold snap is decimating the ticks that harm the wildlife, hornet eggs, and the bark beetles that keep killing red fir trees.

It's not exactly bike riding weather, but I've been on a semi-autistic obsession with getting back into riding again.

 The Masi just got back from the local bike shop, having been lubed and adjusted.  They replaced the handlebar stem with a much taller one.  That should make riding the bike quite a bit more pleasant.  I was also able to find a pair of brand-new chainrings for the vintage bike on eBay, $100 for the pair and happy to pay it.  These will also wear out, so I'm leaving the old ones on the bike for now. 

The Masi is now as good as it was when it was brand new.  However...  I don't want to put a ton of miles on it.  It's irreplaceable, and difficult and expensive to find parts for.  Also it has a harsh ride.  As I mentioned in an earlier post, I was considering buying a cool Centurion Carbon frame bike.  The price was just a bit too high for my liking - a bit over $400, and the bike needed quite a bit of work and replacement parts.  I did go check it out - it was a sweet bike, and it fit me well.  But the price was more than I was willing to go for a fixer.

So I kept looking, and eventually came across this baby:  A Novara Trionfo.  That's the image from the original ad.  Guy was asking $100.  I paid him full price with no dickering.

This is a legit solid Japanese bike with top-quality Tange #1 tubing, lugged construction, 12-speed Shimano 105 with index shifting (meaning the shift levers click into each gear), and Araya rims.  The frame alone was worth $100, never mind the rest of the components.

Other than the wheels, the bike is solid, but needing some TLC.  The guy who sold it to me said that it was under a shelter on some property he had bought recently.  It was in the mud, and exposed to the weather from the sides.  The bike showed a bit of oxidation, but no major rust.

Below:  (Same image as the top photo) What it looked like when I got it home.  The pedal cages are missing the straps.  Other than that, the bike is complete.

Below: Araya rims, complete with extra mud and rusty spoke nipples.

 Below, I took a few "as-found" pictures, because I was pretty sure it would clean up very nicely.

 Chainrings, front derailleur, oxidized crank arm, and rusty chain. 

Below: Rusty freewheel cogs, rear derailleur, rusty chain, rusty pedal bolt. Also note the rusty (chrome plated!!!) chainstay.

 

 

Below:  looking forward from under the saddle

Below:  A reasonably lightweight Nitto handlebar stem.

Like the Masi, the first thing I started on was wheels.  Unlike the Masi, they were in rough shape. After cleaning, the wheels had to go to the bike shop for truing-up, bearing grease, and spoke tightening.  The rim flanges where the brakes pinch have lost much of the anodizing, and have developed some pits. 

Below:  Rusty freewheel cogs.  I've found that Kaboom shower cleaner (made by Oxy-Clean) is amazing on rust.  It seems to be quite a bit stronger than vinegar.

 

 

Below:  The crank arm and chainrings, before and after a bit of cleaning, de-rusting and polishing.

 

 

Below:  Handlebar stem before and after a go on the buffing wheel.

Below:  The frame, now cleaned up, with a pair of new tires (which cost as much as the bike did).

Frame number:  KL600517

From what I've been able to learn, this frame was manufactured by Katakura (the "K") in December (the "L") of 1986 (the "6") and was frame # 517 of that month.  The bike was a second-generation Trionfo model, sold as the "New 105" - for the Shimano 105 shifters/brake set.  This would have been sold as a 1987 model, as it was made so late in the year 1986.  Anyway, as I mentioned earlier, it has awesome Tange 1 tubing, and some nice chrome features.

This is very likely the same manufacturer that made the sweet Centurion bikes, however this frame was specified and imported from Japan by REI.

The saddle and seatpost were not in bad shape - just dirty.  They came clean well enough.  The air pump was scrap, unfortunately.

Below:  A really nice touch!  Chrome rear-wheel dropouts.  This is a high-wear point on the frame that always loses paint and corrodes - due to removing the rear wheel to repair flat tires.  Even the Masi doesn't have this nice chrome work.

Below:  All cleaned up with a nice set of vintage pedals from eBay, and almost ready to go together!  The chain has been de-rusted and sprayed with WD-40 (bottom center). 

The wheels came back from the bike shop today.  The tech said to lightly sand the wheel flanges to remove the oxides and pitting so that the brakes would grab consistently.  So I did that, and then installed the tires and tubes.

 

 

Below:  The front forks have these little wedges known as "Lawyer Tabs".  In the event you forget to lock your front wheel axle in place with the lever, these will prevent the wheel from coming off the bike.  I hate Lawyer Tabs, because when I release the wheel, I want it off - that's the entire point of a quick-release lever.  I've always ground the Lawyer Tabs off my bikes. 

Below: Shit that a litigious society inflicts on you.  Lawyer Tabs.

 

 

Below:  The far Lawyer Tab has been ground off.

 

 

Below:  Just how I like it!  The wheel will drop right out when the quick-release lever is flipped over.

 

 

Swapping out the brakes.  The rubber on the old one (bottom) is no doubt ready to crack and fall apart.

 

 

Below:  The down-tube has a pretty good dent underneath, but I don't think it will affect the strength of the frame member very much.  If there were a kink, I'd be concerned.

I replaced the handlebar tape, adjusted the new brakes, re-installed the chain and took it for a short ride.  I made a few adjustments to the brake lever position, saddle height, handlebar height, and it rode really nice.  Sweet handling bike, and really not too bad looking.  Once I get it in some decent light, I'll get some more pictures up.

It's not cosmetically perfect, and I don't really care too much, as long as it's not a rust-bucket, like before.  What matters to me is that it's solid, comfortable and safe.  It should make a great, inexpensive beater bike.

Edit:  Before and after, below: