The Legendary 1973 Colnago Super

Beauty And Speed

1973 Colnago Super

As a young cyclist in semi-rural Ohio in the early 1970’s, I rode with a loose club of like-minded riders. For the most part we were in our late teens and early twenties, encumbered only by school and part-time jobs, and perhaps a girlfriend. We enjoyed the typical camaraderie of enthusiasts, exploring the lesser traveled byways and gravel roads of our area, often ranging far and wide in search of adventure. We raced at every opportunity, and kept as close track of global cycling events as the news media of the day allowed.

Mostly we rode decent mid-range bikes of the time, always tweaked for performance. There were numerous Schwinns, with the occasional Paramount for the more affluent among us. A few European and British bikes were interspersed, my Dawes among them.

One of the senior members of our group (he was all of 26) had one of the more envied work positions. Roy was a degreed engineer working in the automotive field, and frequently traveled to Europe for work. When he returned he would usually have some new thing to show us, such as the latest innovation from Cinelli or Campagnolo, which would not be generally available for another year or so.

As a recent high school graduate and a freshman college student, I could only imagine the luxury of such acquisitions. 

Roy was happy to show these things off to us, and then use them to good effect, as he was one of the fastest among us. He was also constantly on the search for the newest and most innovative gear, to help ensure his standing.

He returned from one trip with what was, to most of us, a Holy Grail among bikes: a 1973 Colnago Super.

In 1973, Colnago was at the pinnacle of cycling. I addition to the numerous professional victories and championships to their credit, a Colnago pista had been used in 1972 to set the world hour record in the hands of Eddy Merckx. These bikes were legendary.

Roy had brought back, from the Colnago factory, a beautiful frame and fork. He set about building it up with the gear that he knew would give him a distinct advantage: the newly introduced Shimano Dura-Ace group.

At the time, Shimano knew that they had to come out with a group that was on par with Campagnolo’s best, and better in some respects, such as the new crank bcd of 130, which allowed a 39 tooth small ring.

Roy proceeded to build his bike with this new gear. Many in our group were quite vocal with derisive comments about the setup. They were silenced after the first group ride, when Roy proceeded to drop them all, even those who were at or above his level.

That was the day things changed. It was truly a shift in the paradigm; what we had all considered to be the benchmark was no longer unassailable. Suddenly, there was intense competition. Not the polite “we have something, too” of other European companies, it was a full broadside aimed at the very heart of what we had known.

And it worked.

The bike I have built reflects the character of those times, when the more competitive among us were always searching for an advantage. There were no “correct” ways to build, or blind adherence to old technology. If it worked and gave an edge, that was ample justification.

My 1973 Colnago is built with a complete first generation Shimano Dura-Ace group, in black. The few deviations from this are the Cinelli stem and handlebar, and the seatpost, saddle, and Campagnolo seat binder bolt. Shimano did not offer these components in the first generation Dura Ace group in 1973.

I searched patiently for this particular frame, specifically looking for a 1973 Super. They are not that common in my size, which is 62cm ctc, or 64cm the way Colnago measured, which was center of bottom bracket to top of seat tube.

The frame restoration was fairly straightforward. When I found the frame it was quite shabby, with a rattle can paint job. Fortunately it was straight with no big dings. Minor damage was repaired and the beautiful Colnago Salmon Metallic paint was applied by Joe Bell, who also had the correct decal set. Excellent work by a consummate craftsman and his crew of Jon Pucci and Rob Roberson.

It’s not the usual Colnago build. It is built as we did when it was new: for all it’s beauty, it was strictly for business. And that business was speed.

Frame and Fork

The Build

The business end

Original Dura Ace brakes, complete with aluminum brake pad nuts.

For the black group, the lever bodies are also black. Like these.

Black group headset, original black-chromed steel with chrome top nut.

The artist's signature. Beautiful work.

Just for fun.