# Starting a new project: Merckx Corsa-01



## orbeamike

I am pretty excited to have finally found a decent Merckx frame in my size at a good price.
I also own a Columbus SL De Rosa and SLX Guerciotti. Both I find comfortable but not as stiff as I would have liked. 
I am eager to find out if the Deda shaped tubing and MX bottom bracket used on this bike is going to make any difference in stiffness. 

Still looking for a couple more parts and I hope to have this on the road in a couple of months.


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## eddymerckx#01

I have the same bike(color as well& original owner) w/ dura-ace& just added a red/white merckx leader which is awesome the 01 is very comfortable,I put a carbon fork on mine,your gonna luv it.


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## jroden

I added a profile carbon fork to my Corsa after I bent the original, it still handles just fine and I don't miss the extra couple pounds, plus it looks fairly sharp, in my opinion.


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## atpjunkie

*the Belgian Scheme*

(yellow with red and black highlites) is sharp. I think some company has MXL's in that livery.


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## orbeamike

*Finished project*

This project was finished just in time for the sun to stay for good here in NorCal. I was also pretty lucky to acquire the 8 speed parts at a very decent price. Sometimes I am just shocked at how much 8 speed parts (especially the ergos and rear derailleur) go for on ebay.......
It is a very smooth ride. I am looking forward to a century ride in Tahoe on this bike early June. The light blue tires stay on for the moment, as soon as they wear out I'll be getting ones with red side walls to complete the color scheme!

The Guerciotti?........well just because it's such a pretty bike.


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## jroden

Is the tubing oval shaped at the bottom bracket like the MXL? My corsa has round tubing is is noticably less stiff than my MX Leader, though it rides very nicely.

What's with Norcal with old bikes? I rode mine out there when I was visiting a couple weeks ago and got all sorts of compliments on what is really a pretty beatup example of a corsa with the wrong fork, then I saw lots of people riding chewed up old steel bikes like mine--I'd fit right in out there, here in Buffalo, NY people break out the modern bikes once the salt is off the roads and scorn people like me on steels bikes, go figure.


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## orbeamike

*Corsa-01 is a special breed*

I am 6'1" and around 180 so the frame difference in my size is more noticable. The down tube and seat tube are oval shaped at the bottom bracket, 
I also see lots of old bikes around here, partly due to the bike culture and our fair weather. Old bikes are like old cars here, they are around for a long, long time. I certainly enjoy riding these old steel bikes. 

Mike


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## jroden

What really sets my heart beating is seeing old cars and trucks--I saw a late 1970's Suburban 3/4 ton 4WD W/ the 454 without a speck of rust used as a daily driver by someone. There are zero examples of those left around here, the bodies are simply gone. I remember when I was a kid cars around here would rust out so badly the floors would fall out and the frame supports would break away, allowing the car to break in half. We never see cool old cars on the road. My Corsa is starting to rust, so I used it for winter service this year and you can see the extra rusting from just 3 months, despite my washing it after most every ride and bringing it inside to dry out. We use salt, some sort of white stuff, sand and slag on the roads, not exactly a healthy combination for a driveline.

That said, I love riding in the rural parts of New York, we have so many roads that wind all over the place and our roads are very uncrowded, we just don't have so many old bikes on them...


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## cannibal

*stunning bike!*

(Quote) So far I have logged few hundred miles on this bike and it has been pure joy! Compare to the SLX Guerciotti and SL De Rosa this bike is noticebly stiffer, partly due to the oversized and shaped zero uno tubing and MXL bottom bracket. It is also a very smooth ride. 

First off, that is one drop dead gorgeous bike. I didn't know the about the similarities between the Corsa 01 and the MXL. with the exception of the tubing brand Deda instead of Columbus. I had two SLX Corsa Extra Merckx bikes, late eighties and early nineties models, not as stiff as I wanted due to my weight, but I loved the feel of steel, always a tradeoff in life. When the MXL emerged, it was love at first sight and I bought two of them between 1995-1998, no regrets whatsoever, not even in the frame weight department. Question about the chainstays on your Merckx Corsa 01, are they as massive as the MXL? I couldn't assess based on the photos?


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## cannibal

*stunning bike!*

(Quote) So far I have logged few hundred miles on this bike and it has been pure joy! Compare to the SLX Guerciotti and SL De Rosa this bike is noticebly stiffer, partly due to the oversized and shaped zero uno tubing and MXL bottom bracket. It is also a very smooth ride. 

First off, that is one drop dead gorgeous bike. I didn't know the about the similarities between the Corsa 01 and the MXL. with the exception of the tubing brand Deda instead of Columbus. I had two SLX Corsa Extra Merckx bikes, late eighties and early nineties models, not as stiff as I wanted due to my weight, but I loved the feel of steel, always a tradeoff in life. When the MXL emerged, it was love at first sight and I bought two of them between 1995-1998, no regrets whatsoever, not even in the frame weight department. Question about the chainstays on your Merckx Corsa 01, are they as massive as the MXL? I couldn't assess based on the photos?


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## orbeamike

*The chain stays are not as massive*

Thanks Cannibal,
I've seen the MXL massive chain stays and the Corsa-01 definitely do not have them. Even tho I have been eyeing Merckx bikes for a long time, this is my very 1st Merckx owner experience. So far I have been so impressed with it I may have to go buy that orange/blue size 58 MXL in a bike shop I frequent.


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## jroden

I have a standard Corsa and a new MXL. I have been riding the MXL a lot in the last couple weeks and switched to the corsa today because it was raining. I do think the Corsa seems to have a little nicer ride in some respects, the stiffness is really quite noticeable, like when you reef on it in a big gear on a little climb, the Corsa flexes enough that the chain rubs a little, while the MXL feels like you are pushing against something rigid. Perhaps the MXL tends to transfer more energy to the wheels, making them flex a little more, who knows.

I find them both such remarkable bikes to ride. I am almost thinking of buying one of the Merckx lightweights for racing to replace my dented up specialized--so I'd have:

New model Merckx Alu Cross
MX LEader in Molteni (23.22 lbs--checked it the other day)
Cruddy old Corsa
Some spiffy new aluminium or carbon 17 pounder from Merckx

That would be a great garage.


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## tarwheel2

*Corsa .01*

One of my great disappointments in cycling was missing out on the sale of a Corsa .01 in the same yellow color scheme as yours. The seller backed out at the last minute when he decided he couldn't part with the frame, which was a new-old-stock replacement from Merckx for an older frame that had cracked. I ended up buying a new Corsa .01 in the black/red with flames color scheme. My Corsa is as stiff a frame as I will ever need, and I think an MXL might be too stiff for my taste.


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