Did the Colnago Master ever come with a 1-1/8" headtube?

[SteveFrench]

Anybody know?

Thanks!

[Grant McLean]

Steel lugged Colnago frames will have a 1" fork.

-g

[aaronf]

Yeah, in 20+ years I have never seen anything but 1" for lugged steel Colnago frames.
One of my mates bought a new Master in 2009 and it was 1".
Cannot say absolutely definitively that one does not exist, but I would certainly be surprised if you find one.

[SteveFrench]

I'm going to look at one tomorrow. The owner claims it is a 1-1/8", which I asked him to confirm and he did. I will definitely bring a ruler to verify. Thanks for your comments, guys. I'll let you know what I find.

[KidWok]

Nope...IIRC they stuck with 1" on even their carbon fiber bikes while everyone else had switched to 1-1/8".

Tai

[Grant McLean]

I'm going to look at one tomorrow. The owner claims it is a 1-1/8", which I asked him to confirm and he did. I will definitely bring a ruler to verify. Thanks for your comments, guys. I'll let you know what I find.

Is the frame without a fork? The headset cups are bigger than 1"
if this person isn't familiar with the details of this stuff, it would be easy
to misunderstand what a 1" headset is.

-g

[Jeff N.]

1" only for the Master. With a steel fork/steerer, 1.125" would be overkill anyway, IMO. Jeff N.

[SteveFrench]

Nope...IIRC they stuck with 1" on even their carbon fiber bikes while everyone else had switched to 1-1/8".

Tai



The guy sent me a photo of the frame/fork with a modern clamp style stem. My suspicion is that it's a 1" threadless steerer tube and the gentleman didn't really measure it. It's a two hour drive so I really hope I'm wrong. Although, I have seen a photo of it with a 31.8mm ritchey 4-axis stem on it. I wasn't able to find any evidence of a 1" threadless ritchey 4-axis existing.

[SteveFrench]

Is the frame without a fork? The headset cups are bigger than 1"
if this person isn't familiar with the details of this stuff, it would be easy
to misunderstand what a 1" headset is.

-g

Comes with a fork and headset. I'm going to bring a 1-1/8 stem to verify.

[SteveFrench]

Pics for reference. Maybe it's a 1" threadless? Or not a master at all...?

[mvrider]

Are you sure there's no shim under the stem collar? I picked up a C40 from the forum (thanks, krhea!), and it came with a 1" steerer with a shim, making it possible to use standard 1-1/8" stems.

[SteveFrench]

Are you sure there's no shim under the stem collar? I picked up a C40 from the forum (thanks, krhea!), and it came with a 1" steerer with a shim, making it possible to use standard 1-1/8" stems.

Good idea. I'll look out for that. But I'm also thinking that it would be unlikely that colnago would pair a 1" threadless fork with this frame. But who knows.

[130R]

that silver ring under the stem tells me that it is a shim. ritchey stems came with them.

100% sure that's a 1"

good luck!

[SteveFrench]

that silver ring under the stem tells me that it is a shim. ritchey stems came with them.

100% sure that's a 1"

good luck!

Good eye! **** now this is a tougher decision.

[Louis]

**** now this is a tougher decision.

Why does it matter that much?

1) It will certainly be stiff enough.

2) You will be able to find a stem that works, or you just use a shim.

[SteveFrench]

Why does it matter that much?

1) It will certainly be stiff enough.

2) You will be able to find a stem that works, or you just use a shim.



A master with a 1-1/8 is interesting. Otherwise it's just one of many. Still a cool frame though.

[Fixed]

No way
IMHO
Cheers

[CaptStash]

Not that I'm an expert on all things Colnago, but the Master I have in the basement, as well as a few others I just checked on eBay all have a more traditional curved fork. Those straight legs look suspect to me. Also, I agree that there is a shim under the stem. Looks just like the one I have on my ti bike.

CaptStash....

[christian]

But I'm also thinking that it would be unlikely that colnago would pair a 1" threadless fork with this frame. But who knows.Why would that be unlikely? They've done that with every single "Master" frame they've built since, oh, 1997.

[SteveFrench]

Why would that be unlikely? They've done that with every single "Master" frame they've built since, oh, 1997.


Please forgive me!

[Jeff N.]

Are you sure there's no shim under the stem collar? I picked up a C40 from the forum (thanks, krhea!), and it came with a 1" steerer with a shim, making it possible to use standard 1-1/8" stems.Absolutely. That's a one incher. Jeff N.

[mvrider]

Not that I'm an expert on all things Colnago, but the Master I have in the basement, as well as a few others I just checked on eBay all have a more traditional curved fork. Those straight legs look suspect to me. Also, I agree that there is a shim under the stem. Looks just like the one I have on my ti bike.

CaptStash....

The current Master X-Light has the straight Precisa fork... when was the switch made from curved to straight?

http://www.colnago.com/wp-content/files_mf/cache/th_8ed9c1ce78866d059886ff20cf9118da_mastermain1.jp g

[oldpotatoe]

The current Master X-Light has the straight Precisa fork... when was the switch made from curved to straight?

http://www.colnago.com/wp-content/files_mf/cache/th_8ed9c1ce78866d059886ff20cf9118da_mastermain1.jp g

I sold 'Nagos a decade ago and these had a straight steel fork then. This one and the Technos(really nice frame, BTW-somewhat 'odd' sizing tho).

[Grant McLean]

But I'm also thinking that it would be unlikely that colnago would pair a 1" threadless fork with this frame.

Colnago was very late to adopt 1 1/8" headsets even on carbon frames!
My 2003 C40 has a 1" fork. Maybe he's grumpy, but Ernesto has a very
traditional attitude about design.

-g

http://active-s.com/blog/img/colnago_c40hp_1.jpg

[SteveFrench]

Thanks for the info, guys. Nice pics! Hopefully I'll be adding one to the stable this evening.

[OperaLover]

Why does it matter that much?

1) It will certainly be stiff enough.

2) You will be able to find a stem that works, or you just use a shim.

What he said is correct. I note that in the picture, the frame say "CLASSIC" Shoulgn't it say MASTER?

[KidWok]

Don't let the one-inch threadless stop you from picking up an incredible bike. In terms of an industry accepted "standard", it was short-lived. Only reason why they went to larger diameter was because of using CF and alum, which needed a larger diameter to match the performance of one-inch steel. I rarely see anyone using a one-inch stem on these things. I used a shim for the entire length of the steer tube above the headset so that it would look nice and flush. As a result, I also used a 1-1/8th top cap.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c151/TaiLee77/IMG_4127.jpg

And I just picked this up off local CL...now I just got to wait for my son to grow into it.
http://images.craigslist.org/5N35K55Fe3nd3Ia3M6c7f53dcbf945bea1037.jpg

It's pretty ridiculous that they're charging $2,600 now for a steel bike that has remained unchanged in ages, but used ones can be had for not that much.

Tai

[chismog]

What he said is correct. I note that in the picture, the frame say "CLASSIC" Shoulgn't it say MASTER?

Yes. Hope this reaches the buyer in time...

This frame is not a Master. Master will have all three main tubes in X shape. Tecnos has shaped top and down tubes, but round seat tube. Classic and lower models have no shaped tubes and use lower quality steel. The one exception is the Elegant, which is round EL tubing all around. You can distinguish those by the fancy chrome star point Master lugs at the head tube.

As others have said, Colnago has never put anything but 1" forks on their steel frames.

Hope this helps!

[SteveFrench]

Yes. Hope this reaches the buyer in time...

This frame is not a Master. Master will have all three main tubes in X shape. Tecnos has shaped top and down tubes, but round seat tube. Classic and lower models have no shaped tubes and use lower quality steel. The one exception is the Elegant, which is round EL tubing all around. You can distinguish those by the fancy chrome star point Master lugs at the head tube.

As others have said, Colnago has never put anything but 1" forks on their steel frames.

Hope this helps!

Yup. In my haste I purchased a Colnago Classic by accident, and probably paid too much. Live and learn. It is a very nice looking frame though. I'm not sure at the moment what I plan on doing with it.

[KidWok]

Yup. In my haste I purchased a Colnago Classic by accident, and probably paid too much. Live and learn. It is a very nice looking frame though. I'm not sure at the moment what I plan on doing with it.

Yeah...it's still a very nice bike and probably rides pretty well too. Build it up and ride the snot out of it!

Tai

[SteveFrench]

Yeah...it's still a very nice bike and probably rides pretty well too. Build it up and ride the snot out of it!

Tai


Thanks! will do!

[Fixed]

The master is a great /beautiful bike from the mastro
colnago = A pedigree. 2nd to none
Cheers :)

[Jeff N.]

Yes, 1" on all Masters.

[Jeff N.]

98987

[Jeff N.]

Don't let the one-inch threadless stop you from picking up an incredible bike. In terms of an industry accepted "standard", it was short-lived. Only reason why they went to larger diameter was because of using CF and alum, which needed a larger diameter to match the performance of one-inch steel. I rarely see anyone using a one-inch stem on these things. I used a shim for the entire length of the steer tube above the headset so that it would look nice and flush. As a result, I also used a 1-1/8th top cap.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c151/TaiLee77/IMG_4127.jpg

And I just picked this up off local CL...now I just got to wait for my son to grow into it.
http://images.craigslist.org/5N35K55Fe3nd3Ia3M6c7f53dcbf945bea1037.jpg

It's pretty ridiculous that they're charging $2,600 now for a steel bike that has remained unchanged in ages, but used ones can be had for not that much.

TaiShim for the whole length? OUTSTANDING IDEA! I wish they had shims that you could cut to length!

[Fivethumbs]

FWIW I think the bike looks really cool. It looks like it would be a lot of fun to ride.

[bluesea]

98987

Urs would have been been proud.

[chismog]

Steve, sorry my note did not reach you in time. That said, I still think you have a very nice frame there. Having owned a Master before, I can say only your eyes will miss the Master features. The Classic is going to ride really nice and will give you that same Colnago feel that the Master would.

This is just my suspicion- while all those fancy Master lugs and X shaped tubes look great, they don't do much for the ride. I think they were added in the 80s mostly to prevent easy knockoffs and provide a visual distinction. Sure, I'm a sucker for looks and love the Master features. But mostly, I loved the way that bike rode and I'll bet the Classic is very similar.

Hope you love it! I think you will.