Concorde Prelude

Evening all. Thought i'd share my final build for the foreseeable time-being. I fancied something that had a bit of pedigree about it and after buying a Ciocc that was (is) dog rough and the ensuing disappointment in that purchase, I treated myself to a lovely little Concorde Prelude. Made with Columbus SL tubeset and in absolutely top drawer condition, this more than made up for the Ciocc. So to the build plan. I had a desire to build something that paid a small homage to the race bikes of the early 90's and looking at the parts bin there were a couple of tidy little bits to start me off; some Record 8-speed DT levers, 1st gen Chorus rear mech & brake calipers and some Athena brake levers. I swapped the C-Record seatpost off another frame and had some 53 -39 chainrings knocking about. A new KMC blue & silver chain added a bit of co-ordination. Reckon some red keo pedals are required though, the grey ones are a bit dull and boring.

Purchased some Athena cranks, Chorus front mech, Chorus headset (that has a misprint on it - says Campagnool!!), ITM stem, a new Turbo saddle and some traditional style bartape. Then some 1st gen Shamal wheels on C-Record hubs shod in colour matched Vittoria open corsa clincher tyres.

This sat done for a month I think while I spent way too long trying to synch the DT shifters and the rear mech - perseverance didn't pay off, I could get 5 out of the 8 gears to run but it was crap to be honest with you. Then fellow RB member Gavr more than kindly offered me a bit of a deal which saw a lovely Record 8-speed rear mech arrive in the post (cheers Gavr!!) so within 25 minutes the new mech was on and indexing beautifully.

Finished it off with some original Coca-Cola bottles and race number (why not? as the frame has a number boss) that just so happens to be an identical blue to the frame and gives it a bit of a Flanders vibe.

First ride yesterday, 40 miles around north Leicestershire and what a truely great ride this frame gives; responsive, assured, nimble. Simply lovely to ride.

Only thing I think I need to do is to get some 5th generation Delta's - I reckon that would more than complete this build and I've yearned for some for a very long time...

Crappy attempt at some arty photography...

Lovely...really liking that - and its my size too.

I've got a similar build for my recently acquired Bianchi SLX and have some 5 pivots deltas for it. You were right to obtain a matching 8 speed rear mech for those levers as its the only way they'll work properly, I've got the same downtube shifters as you...they look the biz!

hi which blue is the most accurate ? it would be great to get a pdm team bike one day

Very nice bike

Absolutely beautiful. :shock: I've got some of those DT shifters too - thanks for the heads-up about the need for a compatible derailleur - you may have saved me much time and frustration there.

Nice bike. Clean and sharp.

I am a fan of Concorde and yours is a really nice looking bike.

Tarloone - SLX, Bianchi & Delta's - that sounds like a recipe for something really rather special! I'll look out for your thread when you've done that build.

Oonaff - the closest I can suggest colourwise would be the blue baize colour found on pool tables. Perhaps the attached picture gives you a better idea... I did a complete T-Cut, polish and then added sheen protection so it's got a real deep shine to it.

Cheers KGT, appreciated.

Rich34 - many thanks and yes, don't even go there with trying to sync anything other than an 8-speed mech - the frustration and lost time trying to suss it just isn't worth it!

Ian.allen2 - agreed, I think there's something about a solid block colour & chrome - seems to keep the look of a bike simple but interesting.

NeilM - They're very nicely made I must admit - as said I only bought this to replace the Ciocc which is a moneypit if ever i've seen one. That Ciocc is early 80's but i've compared it to the Concorde and they are very similar so it would seem that although the decade between the two frames, they quality that Ciocc were building to didn't diminish.

Just needs Delta's I reckon and this one will be fine weather rider and I'm very much looking forward to many a happy mile on it.

Great job Finney1973 - smashing bike