Help putting a date on a Merckx frame

[bren82]

I've just bought a beautiful Merckx Corsa frame in telekom colors.
Looked everywhere, but I can't seem to put a manufacturing year on it.
It's a Merckx corsa SL tubing, with hidden cable routing and the old Merckx logo. I'm attaching a couple of pictures.
Any idea what year this frame is?

[paredown]

My old eyes can't make out the BB numbers, but this should get you started:

http://www.cadre.org/Merckx/

I've heard that it is not 100%, but I am not a Merckx expert...

[christian]

91-92. Nice rig.

[oldpotatoe]

I've just bought a beautiful Merckx Corsa frame in telekom colors.
Looked everywhere, but I can't seem to put a manufacturing year on it.
It's a Merckx corsa SL tubing, with hidden cable routing and the old Merckx logo. I'm attaching a couple of pictures.
Any idea what year this frame is?

I would say mid, late 80s..braze on FD tab but single bottle mount..

BUT Merckx's had not a whole bunch of consistency sometimes..also depended on what market it was destined for.

[christian]

Team Telekom was created in 91; before that it was Stuttgart and used a different scheme. I think that color combo was only used on team bikes in 91, but with the new script. I agree this bike is a very very early Telekom replica.

[christian]

And FWIW, in the 92 catalog, the Century has internal routing, but the Corsa has 12 o'clock mounts, a braze-on fd tab, and what looks like single bottle bosses.

Speaks both to inconsistency of production... And that the details of this bike align to 91-92.

[rccardr]

Pretty much agree, but could be as late a 93 given the entry point for The TT cable routing; earlier hidden guides were closer to 12 O'clock if I recall correctly.

Also, if those Shimano 1055 shift levers are OEM, and they are 8 speed, that would point to likely 93. If 7 speed, then 91-92. But as others have said, lots of inconsistency with Eddy frames.

[tiretrax]

Team Telekom was created in 91; before that it was Stuttgart and used a different scheme. I think that color combo was only used on team bikes in 91, but with the new script. I agree this bike is a very very early Telekom replica.

Replacement decals?

[vjp]

I just sold an 84/85 EM last week with the same Telekom paint and older graphic. It didn't appear to be a repaint, and had a number holder. EM used the "Spear Point" paint design right from the beginning of his company in many different colour combinations and I wonder if Telekom adopted this existing, seldom used combo?

[mmtmatrix]

Does anyone know when the new script, non cursive was used? Or was it also semi-inconsistent?

[christian]

Semi-inconsistent would be too kind, but it feels like to me like the transition point was 88-89 ish. Maybe a year earlier.

[choke]

Like everything else Merckx....who knows?

I'm pretty sure this is from the 1985 catalog. I have one like the yellow one (though the DS chainstay is chrome) and the BB markings are consistent with an '85.

[texbike]

Does anyone know when the new script, non cursive was used? Or was it also semi-inconsistent?

Yep. Also semi-inconsistent. I've seen original paint, Motorola-scheme bikes with the older script that couldn't have been any earlier than 1991. My original paint, '89 7-Eleven CE has the newer script on it. It also has a much earlier style BB shell.

Dating a Merckx is usually an imprecise exercise. Use of tubing, decals, braze-ons, BB shells, etc can be inconsistent. However, it seems that you can nail down the age to a 1-4 year period in most cases by cross-referencing models, tubing, paint schemes, decals, braze-ons, BB shells, cable routing, and fork crowns with catalogs and the Cadre serial # guide. Sometimes there'll be a real head-scratcher, but you can usually get close to the year by considering all the details in relation to one another.

Texbike

[11.4]

Like everything else Merckx....who knows?

I'm pretty sure this is from the 1985 catalog. I have one like the yellow one (though the DS chainstay is chrome) and the BB markings are consistent with an '85.

I've owned all three on the left. My favorite was always the flat-top fork crown version on the far left, but the top tube cable guides corroded almost immediately. I was living nearby and Eddy redid it with internal top tube guides, race number tab, and a nickel plated undercoat, so it never rusted again. He would do pretty much anything you wanted that made sense -- no stupid geometries, no paint jobs or decals that violated his brand identity, but for the little stuff he was pretty easy. You'd see pros come in with bikes in the off season, asking for changes, and he'd make all of them. He was really good about it. Eddy was pretty much the first rider to make any financial security during his racing career, so the bike business was for a challenge and fun, and he was willing to do all kinds of favors for friends and pros. He was (and is) simply a very good guy.

As for the OP's bike, since the paint job didn't exist til winter '91, and the chrome probably makes it an original paint job (a repaint probably wouldn't have been chromed), I don't see how it could be earlier. All the details look like a 91-92 frame. There's no knowing for sure, as everyone above has said, but it's hard to figure out the combination of features as anything else.

[bren82]

Thanks for the suggestions! If it helps, the serial number is:

H C
4C 7791

[zmudshark]

Why not go with what the serial number suggests, and figure it was a one-off for 'a guy' Eddy knew? A lot of older pros had Eddy build bikes for them after they retired.

As mentioned, he would accommodate a reasonable buyer.

[bren82]

Looks like it is a 91-93 frame. Thanks for the help!

[Emerxil]

Maybe it could be useful to someone...
C7791 = summer 1991, on the Corsa model just such lettering was used (earlier on Professional), this painting pattern was used by Team Telekom in 1991-1994, such "entry points" were used since 1990, and such a top tube slides model until 1991, a catalogue for 1987 (gold stickers were introduced in 1986, 3-Athlete - 2 years earlier)