Masi ID Help!!!

Maximilian71

Retro Newbie
Dear all,

I desperately need your help in identifying this Masi! I tried to do some research but as I am not very competent in Masi bikes i hope that you can help me.

I attach some pictures, but you can find a wider set of pictures here: http://www.flickr.com/x/t/0099009/photos/100751914@N08/

The bike has certainly been bought in Florence(Italy) at the Poggiali shop in the mid 80s. It is not certain if the bike was new or 2nd hand.

The serial number below the bottom M is "TT ?85 71". It is written in tiny characters and not easy to read.

The frame seems to be of a Prestige. It may have been repainted as the paint is quite thick. It has decals of the period 1984-1990. The decal on the downtube is just Masi. Which i have been told to be not common. On the downtube there is also the label "Servizio corse brev. 26360". The "Alberto Masi" signature is on the the drive side of the tobtube. The seat stay caps do not have "Masi" written in it. Nothing is also written in the small tube connecting the two seat stays. signs of two small pantography seems are found at the connection of the small connecting tube and the two seat stays. The chainstays have different color. the one on the drive side is is plated while the other is read as the frame.

The front fork is plated and it has no Masi crest on it. It seems to be a early Masi fork. It actually seems to be the picture n.7 in the bhovey website (http://bhovey.com/Masi/MasiBits/Fork.htm)

The bike is equipped with Campagnolo Super Record. Breaks are certainly from the 70s. From the same period probably are the hubs and shift levers. Unknown is the period of the front and rear derailleur (I looked desperately for the year but i did not found anything). Breaks levers, seat post clamps, head tube and headset are Campagnolo. Seat post is Campagnolo with Masi pantography. While the Campagnolo super Record seems to be complete, the bottom bracket is Campagnolo-Athena.

Stem is 3ttt with the "Alberto Masi" pantography. Handlebar is 3ttt Super Leggero with (horrible) yellow-black cotton tape. Stem and dhandlebar seems more recent than the rest of the bike.

This is the description of all the bike. I would be pleased if some of you could help me to rebuild the story of the bike by identifying the year of frame and its possible model.

Wider set of picture can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/x/t/0099009/photos/100751914@N08/

Thanks a lot in advance for all your help!
M
 

Attachments

  • 20130817_191522_resized.jpg
    20130817_191522_resized.jpg
    230.9 KB · Views: 1,156
  • DSC_0315.jpg
    DSC_0315.jpg
    64.6 KB · Views: 1,156
  • DSC_0319.jpg
    DSC_0319.jpg
    50.2 KB · Views: 1,155
  • firma_salame.jpg
    firma_salame.jpg
    61.2 KB · Views: 1,156
  • pipa.jpg
    pipa.jpg
    50.5 KB · Views: 1,155
  • DSC_0326.jpg
    DSC_0326.jpg
    62.7 KB · Views: 1,155
Although no one replied, i know that some of you was interested on the history of the bike. For this reason i just want to tell you that the puzzle has been solved. The bike is a Masi Prestige 1978 with Fisher slotted fork, repainted on a later stage. Best M
 
Hi thanks a lot for your reply!
Yes, the cables on the bottom bracket are strange for a 1978 but I concluded for 1978 for the following reasons.

Comparing pictures on Itnernet and reading several Masi related posts,
on the basis of the shape of seatstay caps, which have masi brev written on it, of the seatstay bridge, with nothing written on, and of the shape of the chainstay bridge and other details, including especially the slotted fork used till 1978, my initial guess was a Prestige 1976-78.

Then, reading posts on masi serial number and i reading more carefully at the Bob's italian registry (my bike in fact is Italian while the page you posted is for American Masi), i decide to look more carefully at the serial number of my bike as i was missing something.
I looked at it again, with all sorts of light and i found the smoking gun!
The number in fact is: TT (tiny font and above the yellow shape) and ?I55 (larger font and below the yellow shape) followed by 781 or 7811.
On the basis of what i read and the Bob Hovey Italian registry, we can agree that that the bike is a Prestige built in January (November) 1978 and the tiny TT indicates that the bike was repainted and/or modified by Masi on a later stage. And i say by Masi because Masi was used to add letter and numbers when he repainted or made a modification on a bike.


The cables on the bottom bracket are indeed rare for a 1978. As said maybe the bike has been modified when it was repainted. Maybe. However, the year on the frame leave no doubts. Moreover my bike is not the only one with calbes on the bottom bracket.
Here you can find another 1978 Prestige with cables on the bottom bracket.
http://www.velociao.com/2012/masi-pr...frameset-1978/
Excluding the fork that frame is exactly the same of mine.
So, although strange and maybe modified, my bike is not the only 1978 with cables guide on the bottom bracket.

would you agree with my reconstruction?

Now my questions are:
would it be possible that my bike could be one of the first having cable guides on the bottom bracket or this is not simply possible as they have been introduced later?

finally, there is a reason because the drive side chainstay of my bike is plated while the other is painted? I tried to find in vain an explanaition to this.

thanking you in advance for the possible feedback.
M
 
I posted that link as I was reading it at the time as I'm interested in a US Grand Crit. You can follow the links to Italian Masi from there.

Yours has parts from several years on it so that's no help. I believe the prestige is only made in Italy.
Yours doesn't have portacantena holes on the rear drive side dropout and it's got a brazed on front mech hanger unlike the one in your link.

Masi 1978-1980 links

http://www.speedbicycles.ch/showBike.ph ... cc6519e55d
http://www.speedbicycles.ch/showBike.ph ... cc6519e55d
http://www.steel-vintage.com/masi-prest ... set-detail
http://www.steel-vintage.com/alberto-ma ... 428-detail

Look at the links above BB cables right up to 1982 although there may be room for error here.
 
thanks bugloss. The bike may have been modified when repainted in the 80s but the frame is January 78 as indicated in the frae serial number.
 
Show us a good photograph of the numbers on the bottom bracket with the light coming at an angle so we can see what they say.
 
So what you're saying is 8571, your date number in first post.

Quote
"The serial number below the bottom M is "TT ?85 71". It is written in tiny characters and not easy to read."

Is now re read to be 781 or 7811, which coincidentally matches the number on the frame in the link that you found.

Quote
"I looked at it again, with all sorts of light and i found the smoking gun!
The number in fact is: TT (tiny font and above the yellow shape) and ?I55 (larger font and below the yellow shape) followed by 781 or 7811."

And that despite your frame having no portacantena holes in the drive side rear dropout and a front braze on mec hanger unlike the one in the link you posted, you still think it's from 1978.

Have you compared the two bottom brackets as they have very different styles of cable routing
guides ?

Here's a link to a 1986 Masi prestige bottom bracket (ignore all the other bits on the bike though) and compare the bottom bracket only.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/40402003@N ... /lightbox/

It looks very similar, in fact it's identical to yours. That's why I think yours is 1980's, perhaps even 1985, which coincides with the first reading of your date stamp.

If yours really is a 1978 Masi you must have a very rare prototype Prestige model 1985 made in 1978 and perhaps you should make Masi aware of it as it's one of a kind and they're probably looking for it. ;)

Just saying that you might want to check that "smoking gun" as it's firing blanks. :)
 

Attachments

  • DSC_0315.jpg
    DSC_0315.jpg
    64.6 KB · Views: 1,042
  • P7031210.jpg
    P7031210.jpg
    65.8 KB · Views: 1,042

Latest posts

Back
Top