Gios Super Record

http://www.lfgss.com/thread92873.html

Love your thinking.

Buy complete bike, extract bottom bracket - stick the rest of the bike in the parts bin.

I'll just run that past the missus.

Bump? Love this frame!

Amazing !!!

Funnily enough, I got back on to this at the weekend.

I was going to go down the route of getting a Phil Wood bottom bracket, but when I went to Condor to see about getting one, they told me it would be a few months before they get their next shipment.

They then produced a Campagnolo 114mm, Italian threaded cartridge bottom bracket Brand New, for about £16.00. (I reckon I've done a couple of hundred quid on knackered old Super Record Bottom Brackets from around the world in recent weeks.

Obviously I was delighted, and excitedly got the Gios down from its perch in the shed at the weekend.

The bottom bracket fitted perfectly, so I offered up the crankset. None drive side slipped on no problem - moved on to drive side and......

Chain ring hits the chain stays. Shit, fuck, wank. Too depressed to take a photograph.

I think it might be because the Gios seems to have a 70mm bottom bracket shell - but can't be sure.

Can anyone give me a definitive answer, before I top my self?

I bought an original one of these frames off "an internet auction website" in the United States.
It is the most frustrating part of the (or any) build trying to find a bottom bracket with the correct shells and spindle.
I suspect that the shell will be 70mm and will require a 115mm spindle (with slightly more protruding on the drive side to give the neccessary clearance).
I have completed mine but I wish that I had done a photo diary of the build.
I also wanted my wife to take me to Turin to see the Gios shop and possibly buy a new version,like yours,but she didn't fancy the idea.
Please don't give up;I'm really enjoying your build.Good Luck.

Could you contact the Gios shop and ask them for the dimensions?

Bike-vintage.com in the USA have a Campag Record BB for $69, Italian threaded with a 115mm spindle. Love this build... Shit, sorry it's out of stock.

I reckon I am going to get a generic 120mm Campag cartridge BB just to get me back on track. Then, I reckon I will go for a Royce. It will cost, but it will be worth it.

Good idea.Keep going and please keep posting photos.

I've never been so interested in someone else's bottom bracket problems. Good luck JJ.

I thought Italian BB shells are 70mm and English are 68mm?

^That'll give me something to do with my vernier calipers next time I'm in the shed!

great story..
is it finished yet?

I wish there were more build threads written like this, a joy to read.

What a lovely bike! Cannot wait to see that gold cassette on the blue frame!

Thread resuscitation, but yes, a Nuovo Record/Super Record crankset needs a 115.5mm BB with a +5mm offset on the drive side. Having given up trying to get a NOS Super Record BB for reasonable money, I've ordered a Phil Wood one, direct from Mr. Phil. Just hope it works.

BTW, it's for a 1985 Hetchins (originally blue and white, being turned into chrome, black and red at Argos) which I think Mr. Jingle Jangle may know quite well...

Nice dredge!

I need to get back on to the Gios, I think I may now have all the correct parts, but would be really interested to hear how you get on with the Phil Wood.

Also, I look forward to seeing some pictures of the Hetchins.

Cheers..

Did you get a Royce BB? Interested to see how this turns out.

I haven't got as Royce BB yet. I'm sure I bought a NOS Ofmega bracket, or something similar, but now I can't find it for the life of me.

I'm just finishing off another project, then I guess I'll have another go at the GIOS, ready for summer.

This, is, brilliant...

Love this Gios! It is what I aspire to when I (finally) build up my '82 Gios Aero (only 200 ever made). It is in a crappy state, powder coated and rusty, no gear hanger, no forks, wrong decals, cable guides rusted out. Thanks for the inspiration!

Wow, that bike is going to be amazing. I'm building one up myself although can't afford the NOS parts. Look forward to seeing it when its done.

Despite the fact that it has been snowing today, there is no getting away from the fact that spring, if not in the air is definitely on the way. It's the Hell of the Ashdown tomorrow, and their are Easter eggs on the supermarket shelves - so the GIOS has come down from its shelf, and it's time to get back on track.

Back in November, I was experiencing seemingly insurmountable Bottom Bracket problems, nothing seemed to fit, and I seemed to be spending more and more money with less and less success.

I was starting to give up all hope, when it hit me - why not send an e-mail to Marco Gios? Marco was (and is) a lovely fellow, and clearly he would be able to give me the definitive solution - simples innit.

I duly sent an e-mail, detailing my problems, and asking Marco to suggest a solution. I was particularly interested in an alternative to NOS Super-Record, which is terribly expensive and less than 100% reliable.

I was delighted that I received a prompt reply from Turin. I was less delighted when I read it. Here was Marco's suggestion:

a modern "MICHE" italian bottom braket.(this is new, not too much expensive and Made in Italy)
the problem is that the size shoul be between 108 and 112, it depends on you chainring... So you have to try the right choise for your chain allignement...

Ah well - back to square one!

By this point, I was getting increasingly depressed when, in the run up to Christmas I saw an e-Bay offer for an Italian Threaded 115.5mm Record Bottom Bracket, and jumped at the chance. From what I recall, it was a fairly effortless transaction - the bottom bracket arrived promptly, but as it was close to Christmas, it just got slipped into the shed and sort of forgotten about.

A week or so ago, someone resurrected this thread, and off I went to the shed with a vague recollection of having sourced the required part.

Finally found the BB at the bottom of the parts bin, and got out my vernier caliper, according to which, the vendors claims were correct, and I finally had my hands on the holy grail - a Campagnolo Italian Threaded BB with a 115.5mm axle:

So there we go - back in the game!

Couldn't wait to get it fitted into the frame. Slipped in sweet as a nut:

Heart now racing, it was time to offer up the chain set. Would the inner ring, at long last clear the stays? Please God, have mercy:

There you go - there is a God, and this build is now firmly back on track.

However........

The problem with being addicted to buying old Italian bicycle parts over the internet, is you can never be too sure what you are going to get.

Yes I had a Record Bottom Bracket, yes it was Italian threaded, and yes, the axle was 115.5mm long.

The down side was, the axle had clearly seen better days. There was a visible (but difficult to photograph) rough patch on the axle bearing race:

It fitted in the shell, the chain ring span freely - I could have moved on and finished the build. But deep down, I knew it was wrong. A lot of love, blood, sweat, tears and cash have gone into this build, and I couldn't live with such a critical part being so obviously unfit for purpose, so the GIOS went back to its shelf in the shed, and I went back to trawling the internet for bits.

Then...

One lunchtime last week, I had the extreme pleasure of speaking to a true gentleman on the telephone. Said gentleman was none other than Cliff Polton, proprietor of Royce Engineering limited and quite simply a legend. In a calm and professional way, Cliff listened courteously while I outlined my problems, told me what I needed, and took my address and payment details. A couple of days later, this arrived:

Inside the package was this box:

The box was, and still is sealed. It is sealed with this sticker:

Just to be clear, that sticker says; 'Royce British Engineering Excellence Since 1980'.

I am almost too scared to open it - but if the GIOS is ever to grace the Jamaica Road, I must face my fears.

Best I have a cup of tea first.