OK, here it is. I'm toying with your delicate little hearts and minds. Soon I'll be receiving angry emails from wives and girlfriends (or husbands and boyfriends) about cars being sold, college funds being raided and wedding rings being pawned. Don't say I didn't warn you. I won't be responsible for broken homes or hearts.
This is it, the vintage reproduction of the original Volumetrica 3V. Oversized steel tubing and internal lugs. These are unbelievably beautiful frames and ride supremely well. The frame will come with the 1" fork unthreaded so that you can choose to use a new threadless headset or have threads cut in the steerer tube and use a traditional headset. The choice will be yours. Rear spacing is 130 so you can use a modern drivetrain if you choose as well. The frames are handmade here in Southern California and the paint is dee-luscious. Trust me, this frame will be worth the begging and pleading or apologizing.
Production is not complete yet and only a handful are being made in this run. Very few... so they will likely vanish very quickly. Price is still TBD, just because production is not done yet.
Would I lie to you? (The answer is no.) These are great and you will love them- I promise.
Tim
20 comments:
oh, i want i want!
i don't see the blue one?????
Nice bike, Tim. Another vote for blue...
had one in the 80's and yes, it was a sweet ride. will the US (SoCal) repro be as good as the original hand built steel from Italy? go ahead, impress me with why & how.
Ooooh. That red is hot. Red is so hot right now. Red is the new blue. Mmmmm.
Please say that they will come in at least a 63...
If I remember correctly, the old steel Masi's were made in SoCal after the family moved to Carlsbad in the late 70's or early 80's. I've read that the SoCal Masi's were the best of the breed and perhaps in the world - better than the Italian Masi's. Is the new builder the same as the old?
Fill us in on the history of Masi, Tim!
Wow, you people like this frame I guess... not that I didn't already suspect that.
Ok, the history; some were made in Italy by Alberto Masi and the others were made by Masi California. There's no way in hell I'm going to get into a debate on which is better. THAT, my friends, is a minefield I wish to stay out of. But yes, they were made in both places.
The ones most frequently seen here in the States were made in California (or contracted by Masi California in Italy...). The famous purple Team 3V was a California Masi.
The new builder isn't "new", though I can't say who right now, and is working closely with Ted Kirkbride himself. Ted was the former owner of Masi, after Faliero, and oversaw Masi California very early on. Ted is a damned good guy and really, really knows his stuff. He has great stories and I can geek-out for hours listening to him.
So that's what I'm willing to tell you today.
Masiguy
Congrats on the retro 3V, great idea! Hope the paint scheme's not final tho... the proportions of the ST panel need some work (too big, too high on the tube). Also would be nice if you reversed the red/white to white/red... Red/white with yellow decals is already very strongly associated with Richard Sachs, don't you think? Besides, white/red is that lovely ol' Faema color scheme that's so popular with Masiphiles.
Bob
Tim...you should change your name to MASI HUH? SALES 101
If the public wants to know which is better, the Italian or the So Cal produced models, and the new models will be produced in So Cal, then you reply "Oh! The So Cal models are far superior!" And then wax poetic on fictional points and dazzle the buyers into purchasing one. #1 should be that you are keeping jobs at home and not outsourcing to foreign lands
Your second edition 3V looks very good! Smart move leaving the fork unthreaded. The white panel is less than great. Is Russ Denny still building frames in your area? If so, he would be a good choice. Thanks for bringing it back.
Is this supposed to be a replica of the 3V team model or the more highly touted 3V Volumetrica model? We need to see the fork crown in more detail. Just who is building these?
The frame you see listed here is a complete forgery and a disgrace to the memory of Faliero Masi and an insult to his son, Alberto. Alberto Masi ceased production of the true internally lugged Volumetrica frames in Italy more than two years ago. The reason? No more internal lugs as they were cast by Microfusione-Italiana, the casting house that made lugs for Masi Italy, Colnago, DeRosa, etc. That firm has been closed for several years due to the lack of demand in Italy for lugged steel frames. Also a true Masi Volumetrica can only be constructed within the Velodromo Vigorelli workshop in Milan, Italy because the special frame table used to construct that frame exists there and no where else in the world. Next is the tubing. Origianlly Isidoro Rezze of Excell tubes in Lyon France made all the 3V tubes. The exact specifications were known only to him and Faliero and Alberto Masi and their crew at the Vigorelli. The very last true 3V frames were built with Dedacciai tubes but the dimensions were not exactly the same as those from Excell. Next are the fork crowns that were cast by Microfusione-Italiana. The true (flat)Masi forkcrowns can only be found at the Vigorelli. The flat ones were made for old Reynolds style dimension blades, 29x16mm.
Geometry of the original Italian Masi 3V rames was much more upright than many frames today. It was conceived when riders were still using toe clips and straps. More importantly was the rake of the fork which to great degree determines the ride of this frame more than many others. The forks were raked on a special mandrel which also exists only at the Vigorelli. You can not duplicate this elsewhere. The ake "Volumetrica" or "3V" frames bulit by Masi USA or their lackey, Mondonico in Italy (who was recently put out to pasture where he belongs) never had the ride quality of the frames constructed at the Vigorelli. Reason? They don't track properly. The geometry is all wrong and the constructers never knew the secret of how to correctly braze an internally lugged frame. Only the boys at the Vigorelli did this right.
There are still some original Vigorelli made 3V frames available.Many were made for the U.S. market under the name Milano3V which is owned by Milano Sport and Alberto Masi. Recently Alberto Masi began reproducing externally lugged steel frames that are now readily available as the "Nuovo Prestige" with oversize lugs that are a copy of the original 1970's Masi Gran Criterium lugs but made for oversize Dedacciai Zero HT tubes.
The "Nuovo Prestige" frames now bear a new logo, "Alberto Masi," which is the exclusive property of the builder himself and Milano Sport. These frames are available made to measure and painted to order. The lugs and flat fork crown are the same as those used by Richard Sachs except they have been modified by Alberto Masi. Sachs collaborated on this project.
How's it going? I wondered how long it would take for you to come here and try to make your point that you are the only one importing "the real Masi". I've heard your slanderous campaign and actually feel sorry for you. Why you feel the need to come here and attack us (me especially) is really beyond me, especially when you don't have all the facts to back up your shameful accusations. Why? Since I know exactly who you are, your attack is not really going to help your cause at all.
The frame that is pictured here was built by Ted Kirkbride in the 80's, using the very lugs you hold so dear. In fact, the bikes we are making now- with Ted and his involvement- use those old lugs that Ted has had sitting in boxes in his workshop. The tubing is tubing from Dedacciai that Ted picked out himself. All of the features of the frame are "authentic".
Honestly, I feel for you and your need to attack like this, hiding behind an anonymous shield- since I know exactly who you are, you are far from being anonymous.
I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and New Years. Good luck to you and Milano3V- I hope you sell a few frames after coming here and slandering us.
Tim Jackson
Masi Bicycles
Since I believe in being honest and transparent, unlike you/ "Anonymous", I have to admit that you are not the same person I was thinking of- I think.
As it turns out, you're in Plano, TX as far as I can tell. However, I do still feel completely perplexed as to why you would go out of your way to come here and attempt to slander us (me) and discredit the brand.
I do honestly wonder why and what this all means and what you possibly have to gain. Personal benefit is the only thing I can think of, otherwise you're just coming her to be an asshole... and that just doesn't make sense to me.
I wish you well.
Tim
You are all leaving out an important segment of Masi history in the World. After Roland Sahm, and High Country Imports came Cicli Masi Inc. A consortium consisting of Ted Kirkbride, and a group of investors who gained the exclusive rights to the Masi secrets and name worldwide (except in Italy.) This group built and distributed both Italian and American Masi bicycles. The term American Masi is really not correct, Masi only built Italian bikes, regardless of point of origin. It should be obvious even to some idiots that Faliero and Alberto could not possibly have built every Masi that exists.
To those of you who think so, I suggest you ask Alberto who his other builders are, or were. Try a production shop in Bergamo you might find at least one of them there.
The Masi group soon decided to engage a now defunct distributor (Ten Speed Drive) to help market the wonderful Masi bicycles. This did not last long, and subsequently the distributor who had an association with Mondonico (Torelli) was engaged. The 3V was built both by Alberto and Cicli Masi during this time. In my humble opinion the San Marcos product was always the superior bike.Alberto with his grand ego priced himself out of the market. The Grand Criterium was exclusively built in San Marcos, CA during this period. Other models were built by contract reame makers in Italy, notably among these is Telai Billato, in Vicensa.
When I left Masi we were still negotiating in Concorezzo with Mr. Mondonico.
The fact tht Masi had to engage other builders should come as no surprise to anyone. Ted who was, and apparently still is the holder of the FALIERO MASI legacy, is the caretaker of the Masi way in the World.
By the way anonymous are you the little weasel who had a bogus Masi booth at interbike in the late 80s?
Post a Comment