# Attn: Pista Palace guy...



## chuckice (Aug 25, 2004)

Did you build the Fondo bike for Bettini? Pix!


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## The_Kraken (Jul 28, 2009)

*I sure did.*

I have a billion pics. And actually many will be surfacing here and there. Briko used the bike in a photo shoot and the bike and shop will be featured in his upcoming biographical training guide book thing.

Unfortunately, it was cats and dogs yesterday and I got left with cleaning up the bikes and shipping them back out. Gimme a few hours and I will post SUPERCAMPIONISSIMO.


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## chuckice (Aug 25, 2004)

Excellent.


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## chuckice (Aug 25, 2004)

I guess I found a sneak peak.  That weather looks awful...


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## The_Kraken (Jul 28, 2009)

I love it, no water bottle.


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## chuckice (Aug 25, 2004)

What size is that frame?


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## The_Kraken (Jul 28, 2009)

48 Sloping


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## JeremyP (Apr 30, 2006)

Beautiful, the shamals look great with it. Love how the Saronni is next to it. If the Zabel was on the right side of Bettini it would be perfect!


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## ComesAtime (Dec 27, 2009)

He doesn't ride a Specialized? LOL


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## one80 (Feb 22, 2006)

When are we going to get some more decent shots of "supercampionissimo"?


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## The_Kraken (Jul 28, 2009)

*Your wish is my command*

Tonight SUPERCAMPIONISSIMO will be posted in full bloody detail.


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## one80 (Feb 22, 2006)

Probably a sort point now, but will we ever see the *original* supercampionissimo?


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## The_Kraken (Jul 28, 2009)

*supercampionissimo*

Supercampionissimo will one day be posted in full glory. But I'd rather not create an advertisment for PBK until after legal matters are resolved.


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## moondog-dparky (Feb 8, 2005)

i picked up Supercampionissimo from Justin @ PP - he was great to deal with, btw. i finally received the last of the parts i plan to put on it so it will be complete next week. i'll post a pic once it's complete.

this issue with PBK concerns me - not only because Colnago was less than honest PP, but because these kind of cut rates devalue the brand. i wonder if the upcoming release of the C59 had anything to do with the ultra low pricing? either way, i like the color, PP had it in stock, and it has Bettini's signature. what's not to like about that deal? they're a great shop and i'd recommend using them to everyone here.


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

moondog-dparky said:


> i picked up Supercampionissimo from Justin @ PP - he was great to deal with, btw. i finally received the last of the parts i plan to put on it so it will be complete next week. i'll post a pic once it's complete.
> 
> this issue with PBK concerns me - not only because Colnago was less than honest PP, but because these kind of cut rates devalue the brand. i wonder if the upcoming release of the C59 had anything to do with the ultra low pricing? either way, i like the color, PP had it in stock, and it has Bettini's signature. what's not to like about that deal? they're a great shop and i'd recommend using them to everyone here.


What is the C59? Never mind, I just did a google search on it. So, is the C50 going to become the C60, or will the C60 come later on down the line?

Is Bettini's signature cleared over to protect it?

Nice frame regardless.

As far as "cheapening" the brand is concerned, I seriously doubt that is the case with the history that Colnago has. You want to talk about cheapening the brand, how about we talk about manufacturing frames in Taiwan and selling them at a much lower price than the frames manufactured in Italy? What exactly does that do for the brand?


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## Jbartmc (Sep 14, 2007)

I agree with the point that cheapening the brand occurs with Asian Colnagos. As for the PBK EPS in white, that simply dilutes the value of having the first group of them at Pista Palace, as well as mistreating one of its strongest US retailers.


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## JeremyP (Apr 30, 2006)

these cheap asian colnagos make the brand more assessable, and gives colnago extra dollars that would have went to pinarello or wilier. for us, we would never even consider buying one, let alone a sloping colnago, but we're a minority. as to pr99, have you guys seen the size of these uk online bikestores? take a look inside chainreaction: http://www.bikemagic.com/ride-features/25-years-of-chain-reaction-cycles/7467.html


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

Jbartmc said:


> I agree with the point that cheapening the brand occurs with Asian Colnagos. As for the PBK EPS in white, that simply dilutes the value of having the first group of them at Pista Palace, as well as mistreating one of its strongest US retailers.


It depends on what the fine print in the contract says between Colnago and Pista Palace, if there really even is one. Somehow, I think Colnago plays things fast and loose with its frame distributorship and retailers with no real price control. Personally, I am fine with that. I don't think there should ever be a MSRP that is enforced, and Europe pretty much has that in law. That is not the case in the US. A manufacturer can enforce a minimum MSRP by black balling a retailer and no longer selling to the retailer if the retailer sells below MSRP.

If a retailer in Europe wants to sell Colnagos for a single dollar in profit and can be profitable doing so, why shouldn't they?


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## moondog-dparky (Feb 8, 2005)

in general, i agree with you Jbartmc - i bought my c40 from maestro and was happy to save the $$$. if a company can make money selling it cheaper, hey, that's the way the cookie crumbles. the overall problem though, is that US-based companies take it in the shorts. if colnago won't / can't do something to protect pricing and their brand worldwide, then they should bail on holding the US sellers feet to the fire. i don't know the actual #'s, but i'd be willing to be that the US is the biggest consumer of their frames - so it would be in there own interest to help the local guys sell their frames more easily, even if it meant giving them some leniency in the pricing. it's the internet age and people will find what they want somewhere...
i was willing to pay a premium for this frame because ( at the time ) it was a limited color and i appreciated the service from PP. and i still agree with this decision.


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

moondog-dparky said:


> in general, i agree with you Jbartmc - i bought my c40 from maestro and was happy to save the $$$. if a company can make money selling it cheaper, hey, that's the way the cookie crumbles. the overall problem though, is that US-based companies take it in the shorts. if colnago won't / can't do something to protect pricing and their brand worldwide, then they should bail on holding the US sellers feet to the fire. i don't know the actual #'s, but i'd be willing to be that the US is the biggest consumer of their frames - so it would be in there own interest to help the local guys sell their frames more easily, even if it meant giving them some leniency in the pricing. it's the internet age and people will find what they want somewhere...
> i was willing to pay a premium for this frame because ( at the time ) it was a limited color and i appreciated the service from PP. and i still agree with this decision.


You know, I wouldn't mind paying a couple hundred dollars more for a $3,000 frame from a LBS that had it in stock and treated me right. However, we aren't talking about just a couple hundred dollars here. The difference on an EPS from a US retailer and PBK is $1,500. The difference between my C50 was $3,150 from Europe versus $4,400 from the US. The difference on my Cristallo was $2,500 from Europe versus $3,600 in the US. Taking all three examples into account, the savings amount is nearly 30%, and that was after shipping for the Cristallo and C50. Now, that is utterly nuts. If I can find a reputable dealer in Europe that will send me the frame and I can save $1,000+, I'm going to do it. I found the same thing with Campy. Buying in the US cost about 30% more than buying from Europe, and the cheapest price in the US was online and shipped from lickbike.


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## moondog-dparky (Feb 8, 2005)

again, i agree with this - i bought every other piece on this bike from europe. i rarely shop directly from my LBS as they just can't compete price-wise. and i think this is prudent for the buyer, even if it sucks for the seller.

my issue with colnago is that it just isn't good business to have the rest of the world market priced one way, and then the US market priced another. it's confusing for their customers, and it's tough on their US-based vendors. basically, all they can sell on is service and color availability (if they have it). if i did not want PR99 specifically, i would've just gone through maestro or PBK like i did before. you are absolutely right about 30%.

i have a great relationship with my LBS service-wise and for consumable items, but they can never compete on the hard items like components, etc. - even if they try to price match they are still way over a margin that i would consider acceptable. i'd pay up to 15% more at my LBS vs overseas pricing, but it's never even that close. for example, i got the 3T ergonova LTD bar and stem at PBK and total price was ~$400. my LBS wanted $630 for the pair. that is absurd and out of the ball park.

i do sympathize with the LBS situation and wish that the european companies would work harder with the US shops to make their lives easier. while the euro vs dollar rate is a big part of this equation, it's not the whole story - this price differential has been around for a long while, even back when the exchange rate was much more equitable.


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

moondog-dparky said:


> again, i agree with this - i bought every other piece on this bike from europe. i rarely shop directly from my LBS as they just can't compete price-wise. and i think this is prudent for the buyer, even if it sucks for the seller.
> 
> my issue with colnago is that it just isn't good business to have the rest of the world market priced one way, and then the US market priced another. it's confusing for their customers, and it's tough on their US-based vendors. basically, all they can sell on is service and color availability (if they have it). if i did not want PR99 specifically, i would've just gone through maestro or PBK like i did before. you are absolutely right about 30%.
> 
> ...


Oh, I completely agree with you. I like Colnago frames, but I don't like Colnago business practices. Exactly when will Colnago's business practices change my mind about its frames, I have no idea.

I also do not buy into the exchange rate issue because frames from Maestro are cheaper than in the US and they are based upon the pound and frames in Switzerland are cheaper than the US and they are based upon the Swiss Franc. My cousin that lives in Italy, where frames are based upon the euro, cannot believe what they cost in the US. So, the exchange rate is a bunch of BS.

European vendors are paying for their frames in pounds, euros, and swiss francs, and when they sell them to us all they are doing is converting their price to US dollars. Even with shipping and a 5% duty on the frame, it still comes out to 25% or so cheaper. The only thing I can attribute this to is Colnago thinking that the American market is full of a bunch of fat, rich slobs that don't know any better, or Colnago just flat out preferring its European and Asian retailers over its American retailers. Utlimately, I just see it as Colnago having some sort of contempt for America.

Then, do not even get me started with the exclusive paint schemes, etc.


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