For Sale: Retro Alan alloy-lugged carbon frame - pristine!

**Circa 1990s ALAN CORSA SUPER CARBONIO carbon-aluminium frame and forks with Campag headset. **

Frame size 60cm seat tube (61c-t) to suit riders of around 6ft.

I bought this Italian thoroughbred brand new (old stock) a few years ago. It was built up and I used it very occasionally on dry roads - I have probably covered no more than a couple of hundred miles on it. The rest of the time it has been hung on the wall as 'art'.

Not sure how old it is but it probably dates from the 1990s. I understand that the Spanish Teka cycling team used similar frames for their team bikes in the late 80s. Also, BH used ALAN frames.

ALAN is a small Italian producer famed for their 'glued and screwed' process of bonding dural or carbon tubes into alloy lugs. The very first ever carbon bike frame (a prototype built by Raleigh in 1973, I believe) was based on ALAN lugs with aerospace carbon tubes. The frame here is effectively a productionised version built by ALAN. It is extremely light for the era. The frame weighs about 1680g (good for a frame this size) and the alloy fork weighs about 520g according to my scales.

As you can see from the pictures it is in almost-as-new condition. There is one tiny mark on the down tube and also some paint has rubbed off from one of the chainstays. The carbon beneath the paint is unaffected. Also, there is some 'spidering' beneath the lacquer in a couple of places on the alloy seat-cluster and the bottom bracket. This was there before I got the frame but could easily be polished out after removing some of the lacquer from the alloy. The pictures show these imperfections. The head lugs are not affected at all and these feature typical ALAN engravings.

Overall, the condition of this frame is quite outstanding. It comes complete with a Campagnolo headset in excellent condition.

With its steep angles (74deg), its light weight and a short wheelbase it is an excellent climber. It also gives a comfortable ride.

This was a state-of-the-art and very expensive frameset in its day. Nowadays, ALAN frames are quite collectible and this is one of the rarest of them all with its airbrushed artwork. I have seen several of these ALAN Carbonio frames in bare carbon but have yet to see a similar one to this.

The price I am asking is £320. NOW SOLD

6 Attachments

That is awesome - too big for me though :(

That is nice and if my name was Alan I'd have it ;p

my name is ALAN,but its way to big

my name is not alan AND it is the wrong size.

My name is not Alan; It is my size. I should not be looking at this thread. Beautiful bike. Good luck.

Okay, let's get this straight - this frame was not made by a bloke called Alan. Or even for a bloke called Alan. The story goes that the name of the builder was Alfonso and his wife/sister (or maybe both?) was named Anna. The name comes from the shortened versions of their names.

By great fortune, Alfonso chose to put his name first. It would not have had quite the same cachet if the AL and the AN were transposed...

Coat?

I knew some one called Alan but it would not fit him and he did not cycle and he is dead.

Awesome frame....glad it is too big for me....love the colour scheme.

Okay, let's get this straight - this frame was not made by a bloke called Alan. Or even for a bloke called Alan. The story goes that the name of the builder was Alfonso and his wife/sister (or maybe both?) was named Anna. The name comes from the shortened versions of their names.

By great fortune, Alfonso chose to put his name first. It would not have had quite the same cachet if the AL and the AN were transposed...

Aluminium Anodised.
ALAN.

All nonsense.
Mr. Ludovic Falconi, the founder of the company, named the bikes after his 2 kids: Alberto and Anna.
AL and AN
Both are still working in the company.
Thank the old Mr. Falconi that he put his son's name first...

**From the ALAN 2007 website:
**ALAN is, at first sight, a bit of an odd name for an Italian framebuilder. When the founder of the company, Sig. Ludovic Falconi set the company up in 1972, he thought to use the first two letters of the christian names of each of his two children to form the company name ... so Alberto and his siter Anna contributed "Al" and "An".

Alberto has now largely taken over from his father, and Anna works with him in the company, so this is still very much a family affair, which has been in the business of building bicycle frames for a long time.

Unlike many producers, Alan do all of their own design and production in Europe, having accumulated great experience over the years - Ludovic established the company in 1972 by importing airframe bonding technology and airframe-grade aluminium alloys into the world of cycles with the then-futuristic looking Alan Record frames. These frames had polished, smooth lugs and anodised tubes, making them unlike any other frame on the market in both performance and looks.

In cyclo-cross and on the road, Alan frames won many important victories, especially at home in the mountains on the road, and in the rough world of cyclo-cross where the slightly more compliant ride of these early aluminium frames was appreciated by the riders, as was the light weight.

Not content to rest on this success, though, Ludovic launched the first commercially available carbon fibre frames on the world in 1976. Made using broadly similar processes to the alu frames, the Record Carbonio used Toray Carbon woven tubes, bonded with alloy lugs and a special process to prevent galvanic corrosion at the joint, which many producers even today omit, compromising the lifespan of their product.

20 World Cyclo Cross titles have been won on Alan frames, along with five World Track titles. Countless other races and titles have been won on bicycles and frames that incorporate parts made by the Alan factory for framebuilders the world over - Alan have unmatched experience, and many of the icons of cycle manufacture have, over the years, come to respect that experience and to call upon it.

As we go into 2007, Alan meets the new year with new designs, cutting-edge technology, and the assurance of quality that comes with "Made in Italy".

I knew some one called Alan but it would not fit him and he did not cycle and he is dead.

This is hilarious, can we be friends again?

Dutch Cheese... Thank you for supplying that information from the ALAN brochure. I've been trying to find out whether that story is true for ages.

This is hilarious, can we be friends again?

yes....you are a chap with passionate beliefs and i respect that and would much rather have you as a friend than as an enemy.....

Is this frame set still for sale?
If so, I might be interested.
Cheers,
Marc
Montreal, Canada