WTB: Serotta Pronto 53-54cm TT c-c

[zmalwo]

I recently saw few pictures of Serotta Prontos and thought it looks pretty good, any chance I would find one in this forum?

[jtakeda]

Lol.

That came off snarky. You’re asking for arguably the most coveted serotta on the forum that multiple people have been clamoring for since serotta shut their doors.

[Cat3roadracer]

Originally Posted by zmalwo

I recently saw few pictures of Serotta Prontos and thought it looks pretty good, any chance I would find one in this forum?

Your budget?

[zmalwo]

Originally Posted by Cat3roadracer

Your budget?

It's a Ti frame so ofc I will pay accordingly. Especially for the blue one..

[huck*this]

Don't we all!

[Nooch]

Re "one of the last," I was talking with SHOCK (who's now with No. 22), and he mentioned that there were fewer than 25 Prontos made in total. Maybe 6 - 8 in 54 and 56, 2 58s (one of which Scott has or had), 2 60s, one or two 50s and the rest 52s. So you not only have one of the last Prontos, you have one of the first!

Still my favorite paint job of all the Prontos.

Here

So let's play this game -- there is this one, your's and laupsi's, mine, chousenone's (IIRC), and txcid05, and the one I sold to mwaldhopkins that used to be brian34343434's. That's six of 25, right here on the paceline.

From there, I believe four (others, as mine and brian's were as well) were sold through Cyclesport in Park Ridge, NJ. Brings us to ten of 25.

There was Koop's original prototype, so 11 of 25.

Somewhere out there are 14 more Prontos. Guess I should stop trying to sell mine, LOL.

On a somber note, though, as this is painted in Koop's livery -- Koop passed away a few weeks ago after a twenty or so month long battle with cancer. He was 27, and is deeply, deeply missed by the NY/NJ cycling community.

Here

Which is sadly to say to you, my man, that it's gonna be hard to come by...

(I'm expecting an angry message from TheGunner for even replying in a thread about a pronto for sale/wtb, LOL)

[thegunner]

Originally Posted by Nooch

(I'm expecting an angry message from TheGunner for even replying in a thread about a pronto for sale/wtb, LOL)

you're good. you finally came to your senses.

[madsciencenow]

The blue one has a TT that is longer than what you are after (54.5) and I’m fairly confident in saying it won’t be on the block anytime soon. I’ll also mention a couple other points. 1. There are likely less than 20-25 of these frames that were made in various sizes so finding one in your size will be tricky if not impossible. 2. My understanding is that some of the boys at Serotta that were there at the end are now at No. 22. I don’t own a No. 22 but I did own the blue Pronto you speak of and maybe a better option would be to check out the No. 22 offerings as they strike me as somewhat similar although with obvious differences.


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[Nooch]

Originally Posted by madsciencenow

The blue one has a TT that is longer than what you are after (54.5) and I’m fairly confident in saying it won’t be on the block anytime soon. I’ll also mention a couple other points. 1. There are likely less than 20-25 of these frames that were made in various sizes so finding one in your size will be tricky if not impossible. 2. My understanding is that some of the boys at Serotta that were there at the end are now at No. 22. I don’t own a No. 22 but I did own the blue Pronto you speak of and maybe a better option would be to check out the No. 22 offerings as they strike me as somewhat similar although with obvious differences.


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Honestly, I'd get an all Ti reactor cut for a seatpost, and you're pretty close. Scott, who originally designed the bike, is at No22.

[Nooch]

Originally Posted by thegunner

you're good. you finally came to your senses.

I mean if the OP wanted to offer me $5k....

[nmrt]

OK. Please school me.
Are the Prontos really THAT good? Could be not be mostly a case of desiring something that is good and is no longer made? I mean, why is the Pronto any better than a Spectrum, Seven, Mosaic, Eriksen/Built, or No.22? Did the Pronto undergo massive tube manipulations - swaging, internal and external butting, like the Legend - that might or might not play a part in the riding dynamics but definitely makes the bike special at least in the owners minds.

I await an education.

[Nooch]

Originally Posted by nmrt

OK. Please school me.
Are the Prontos really THAT good? Could be not be mostly a case of desiring something that is good and is no longer made? I mean, why is the Pronto any better than a Spectrum, Seven, Mosaic, Eriksen/Built, or No.22? Did the Pronto undergo massive tube manipulations - swaging, internal and external butting, like the Legend - that might or might not play a part in the riding dynamics but definitely makes the bike special at least in the owners minds.

I await an education.

I don't have a ton to compare it to, at least as far as bikes you've mentioned -- HappyCampyer might be a better resource than I -- but, it's just a great bike.

And it's a unicorn. I have more emotional attachment to the bike than anything I can say about the ride. I'm eternally grateful that I was able to get it back after selling it the first time.

[AngryScientist]

Originally Posted by nmrt

I await an education.

IMO, they were nothing too special compared to todays modern Ti. Mosaaic, Firefly, 22, Strong - they could all build you a bike that is just as good, if not better than the Pronto.

The reason for the popularity of the Pronto - they were supposed to be, or could have been the savior of the big S. A modern titanium race bike built to "normal" proportions (not faster backwards/shopping cart), and available at a reasonable pricepoint. Previously Serottas top tier race models were priced so high in the stratosphere, that joe racer could never afford one. These bikes were poised to be the new face of Serotta to a younger, racier crowd.

and then they made two dozen of them and the company imploded.

I i were really jonsing for one of these, i would never pay a huge premium to put my hands on one, i'd have one made by 22 and have "FRONTO" decals made

[kingpin75s]

Originally Posted by nmrt

OK. Please school me.
Are the Prontos really THAT good? Could be not be mostly a case of desiring something that is good and is no longer made? I mean, why is the Pronto any better than a Spectrum, Seven, Mosaic, Eriksen/Built, or No.22? Did the Pronto undergo massive tube manipulations - swaging, internal and external butting, like the Legend - that might or might not play a part in the riding dynamics but definitely makes the bike special at least in the owners minds.

I await an education.

happycampyer seemed to touch on some of the details in this thread:

https://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=156651

[KarlC]

Originally Posted by kingpin75s

happycampyer seemed to touch on some of the details in this thread:

https://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=156651

Here it is .....

Originally Posted by happycampyer

No �����. Serotta really returned to its racing roots with Pronto. Imo, I don't think another titanium frame quite like it will ever be produced.

Imo, the Pronto was ridiculously underpriced. Serotta developed a latest-generation 1-1/8 � 1-1/4 fork for the project (the S5), butted the main tubes and then put a beefy version of the swaged and butted Legend rear triangle on the bike. That rear triangle has been proven over the years to produce a unique combination of stiffness and smoothness. No one has the tooling in-house to reproduce that rear triangle, and the cost of outsourcing it would be prohibitively expensive.

Fwiw, a discerning forumite and I did an A/B test ride of the Pronto vs. my RSL, and we both agreed that the Pronto was the nicer of the two (I have since sold the RSL). The RSL costs ~$4,600. Given what went into its construction, the Pronto should have cost at least that, but Serotta would have been raked over the coals for introducing another $5K bike.