After a drawn out search for Campagnolo parts, I built up a 90s Gios frame (now for sale) and had just got it finished when this one came up on fleabay. The seller acquired it from the estate manager at Chevening, the foreign secretary's official residence in Kent, where it had apparently been left by its previous owner, the Rt Hon Douglas Hurd. It was only moved as William Hague is obliged to share the place with Nick Clegg and ordered a clear out - who said the coalition government was completely useless?
Considering it's spent 20 years in a shed, the frame and forks are in good condition. Some superficial rust was removed from the chrome by rubbing with aluminium foil and water, while the seized quill stem needed more invasive surgery. Parts are mostly Chorus, with the exception of the modern Xenon compact cranks now stripped of their black finish. They look pretty similar to period cranks, while the 34t small ring helps me get up the local hills. I've got a Chorus Ti seatpin to match the 3ttt stem but haven't decided if I'll use it. Overall I'm pretty happy with the bike. It's not light going uphill and it's pretty twitchy going down, but it looks cool.
Considering it's spent 20 years in a shed, the frame and forks are in good condition. Some superficial rust was removed from the chrome by rubbing with aluminium foil and water, while the seized quill stem needed more invasive surgery. Parts are mostly Chorus, with the exception of the modern Xenon compact cranks now stripped of their black finish. They look pretty similar to period cranks, while the 34t small ring helps me get up the local hills. I've got a Chorus Ti seatpin to match the 3ttt stem but haven't decided if I'll use it. Overall I'm pretty happy with the bike. It's not light going uphill and it's pretty twitchy going down, but it looks cool.
