# Merckx Professional tubeset?



## jsl (Feb 18, 2007)

Hey guys. I've had this frameset for a couple of years and was always curious about the tubeset. It's an unmarked frame, but I assume it is a Professional. Cable routing over the BB, 1 set of bottle holes, number hanger, sloping fork crown, etc. I've read that various tubesets were used for these over the years. Is there a way to check and see what tubeset it is built with? JSL


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## latman (Apr 24, 2004)

seatpost diameter? Any rifling in the tubes at the BB ? what are serial numbers under the BB shell ? Could the fork be newer? It may have replaced the original painted flat crown one ?


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## jsl (Feb 18, 2007)

The seatpost is 27.2 and the frame number is P5 E7228. I'll have to pull the BB to check for rifling. I don't have any reason to think the fork has been swapped, but you never know.


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## latman (Apr 24, 2004)

27.2 is columbus isn't it ? Are the fork crown and brake bridge made for the nutted brakes ? I'm not an expert but it seems strange to see the EM on the seat stay caps AND the top mount BB cable guides.

edited to say compared to the "autograph" writing on the caps


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## velomateo (Mar 7, 2009)

I'm going to guess Columbus SL. Your bike looks like an early 80's bike, with the single bottle mount, over the BB routing and nutted brakes - I think SLX showed up around 84. Very nice bike though. That fork is odd, although it could have been one of the first bikes to use that style fork crown - but I would guess it is a replacement. I can see the fork is fitted with a nutted brake assembly, but would it accept a recessed mounted brake?


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## cathyandrob (Jun 15, 2006)

*'82-'83 I think*

The Over BB cabling was only in the first few years, the original fork was probably flat crown.

Fork is about '86 or later maybe.

The autograph on the seat stay cap is from the first run 1980, maybe '81.

Then again, I'm just talking out of my ar$e, just stuff I have seen and looking at the cadre/merckx site.


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## hroch (Jul 9, 2008)

My wild guess would be SL/SP mix, based on this info on slightly younger "SLX" branded bike and later Max/miniMax mix for MXL, discussed in some other thread.
SL top&seat tube, SP downtube (makes sense as a stiffer "backbone"), ?SP seat and chainstays and fork blades. But this is just a guess, no real data to support that.


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## jsl (Feb 18, 2007)

The frame and fork both use recessed mount brakes. I just happened to have the nutted brakes laying around and used them on this bike.


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## paredown (Oct 18, 2006)

There's a nice Merckx Pro on Denver Craigslist now--original owner, and he seems very clear that it is a 1982, purchased by him in 1983. It already has the understay cable for the rear mech...and the tubing is Columbus--but the decal is damaged so you can't see it clearly. It looks like the generic Columbus decal, though (before they started differentiating) which would suggest SL or SP, often based on the size of the frame. Listing here

Interesting though--that makes the window for the bikes with the cable stop on the top of the stay quite narrow, if they had already switched to the bottom of the stay by 1982...


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