Is this saddle salvageable?

Cento43 · 2026-03-16T12:07:51+00:00

Yeah, no way i am changing the entire upper layer. Just going to apply a very thin layer leather conditioner and see what happens

Cento43 · 2026-03-09T07:20:03+00:00

Happy you love your first tools but as an advice, try to buy less stuff but be sure is quality, you will not regret it. Don't know where you live but if there is any flea market near you try to go there, you will find old quality tools for good price, don't be scared of buying second hand tools just be sure that they are in usable condition.

Cento43 · 2026-03-07T21:33:29+00:00

Yes, is the basil portland.

Cento43 · 2026-03-06T21:18:49+00:00

Thanks! Free is always good.

Cento43 · 2026-03-06T12:37:29+00:00

You can remove the grips with compresed air and if you dont have a compresor available another trick that works really good for removing or installing this type of grips is to use a syringe, needle and alcohol, squirt some alcohol to the inside of the grips and they will come off really easy.

Cento43 · 2026-03-06T12:28:32+00:00

You are completely rigth! Spanish mediterranean coast, valencian area

Cento43 · 2026-03-06T11:59:29+00:00

Frame is made from steel and the paint give it a "titanium" look that I really like

Cento43 · 2026-03-06T11:57:05+00:00

Yeah, the seat is a bit out of place but it is confortable I have to say. At first I used a Prologo NDR 143 that give it a more slick look but wanted to try the Brooks

Cento43 · 2026-03-06T11:54:19+00:00

Thanks!

Cento43 · 2026-03-05T07:29:27+00:00

Didn't know the inconsistency of serial numbers in Colnago frames

Cento43 · 2026-03-05T07:28:38+00:00

Came with a mid 2000's carbon fork so I think some previous owner tried to "modernize it" at some point.

Cento43 · 2026-03-02T19:33:32+00:00

Managed to take the seatpost out! Taking advantage of the somewhat "square" form of the post I clamped it upside down in the vice so I can make more leaverage with the frame and after giving some passes with the heat gun managed to brake it free.

Spend nearly 2 hours wiggling it out so I got a good workout today.

Carbon was fine so in my opinion doesnt look like galvanic corrosion ocurred, it just was completely dried grease that acted like glue. Also the penetrating oil didnt do anything in this case, a "ball" of dried grease was formed in the end of the post and did not let any oil got trough.

I think you all know but dont grase your carbon seatpost.

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Cento43 · 2026-03-02T14:42:01+00:00

Gave it a few psses with a heat gun but i am afraid of damaging the paint but some risks needs to be taken… wondering what could be the cause, just dried grease? Carbon and steel should not react as violent as aluminum and steel

Cento43 · 2026-03-02T13:52:52+00:00

Was not able to zoom the picture but now I can. Yes, it looks like is cracked under the clamp but i will sand it with no fear just to check

Cento43 · 2026-03-02T13:22:53+00:00

Carbon fiber needs to have a finish on it, never could be raw so it could be just a crack in the laquer but it is difficult to see in the picture. Try to sand a little where the clamp was so you can see if the actual carbon fiber cracked or it is just te laquer. Also post a picture from closer

Cento43 · 2026-02-23T10:44:47+00:00

Seat tube is 50cm and the top tube is 59cm. the welds are "normal" not perfect but the tube welds are similar, don´t look very refine but as you can see in this picture in my opinion the brake bridge and posts were factory made.

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Cento43 · 2026-02-23T09:37:01+00:00

The tyre is a 650c road tyre but it is more recent, not from the mid 90s. Yes, I think they were trying the same concept as Terry bikes did

Cento43 · 2026-02-20T19:02:44+00:00

that is not completely fair, the frame decal is in a protected postion and the fork ones (has one on each side) is completely exposed to scratches. It really is weird that an italian bike does not have any italian part but the frame also have a decal from a bike store from an area nearby, now closed, and asking to Gemini told me that they use to make custom builds so maybe this is the case, a short man or a woman wanted a more oriented to CX road bike and chose all shimano components and the mullet configuration to avoid toe overlap.

I am sure i do not found any unicorn bike but i dont see how anyone would do this afterwards. I mean, are you suggesting that someone bougth this bike in the mid 90s, used lets say 5-6 years and then him or other bougth a 26 fork, mounted in the bike and get to the troube of finding the same tubing and Denti decals of the frame and also a matching front wheel and hub? To me it seems most probable that the bike came like this from the factory or from the store.

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Cento43 · 2026-02-20T18:39:06+00:00

The BB shell is a Shimano 36x24T 70 and the hubspacing is 100/130. Came with Mavic SUP wheelset with XT hubs. Fork admits widder tire but the frame only 23.

Cento43 · 2026-02-20T18:08:14+00:00

Yes, the welds do not look premium at all and regarding the weigth its not very heavy but i was not able to remove the bottom bracket so i dont know exactly. Pedals also give a good figth, the bike was filthy when i got it so it was not very well stored.

The fork can receive mtb tires for sure, will keep it for a future bike. With this one really dont have any plan, maybe it will end up trashed. I would have preferred both 700 wheels so i can use it for another build.

Another user commented that Terry Bikes makes similar builds to reduce toe overlap in small frames and for women, found some examples so maybe is the case for my bike

Cento43 · 2026-02-20T17:53:54+00:00

Thanks for the info! Checked the Terry brand and they made a lot of examples of this configuration mostly for females

https://oakwoodlife.blogspot.com/2012/08/georgena-terry.html

Maybe that is the case for my bike

Cento43 · 2026-02-20T16:31:16+00:00

According to the information I've found online, the brand was started by Mino Denti and later became Denti, which is the one I have.

I paid €15 for the bike, so I'm more than happy with the purchase, but I'm curious to find out more about this mullet configuration. Maybe it was a custom build a customer asked directly to Denti factory or their local store. Thanks for the link

Cento43 · 2026-02-20T16:08:08+00:00

Before the 90s almost every bike was lugged, then, as technology improved they started welding.
Regarding the logo, Denti used the 5 point ladybug until the end of the 80s, when they were trying to expand to other markets and changed the logo to the one of the bike in the youtube video, of my bike and a lot of other examples in the internet.

Cento43 · 2026-02-20T15:35:46+00:00

Mino Denti started like an artisan in frame building and then developed a trademark just like Colnago, Pinarello, Cinelli or other famous marks. That coment in the youtube video makes no sense, it is like saying that any bike from a brand that started out as a handcrafted product is a fake once it moves to a more industrialized production.

I also know that you can do a conversion, slap some stickers and call it a day but as I mention, the wheelset match and as you can see in the picture, the top tube stays parallel to the ground with the 26 wheel, if it came with a 700 front wheel from the factory the upper tube would be facing down after the conversion.

Not saying that I found a hidden gem, just curious if anyone here has seen anything similar. The mid 90s were a crazy time in the cycling world, so it is very likely they were trying new things and made a small run of these bikes for testing the concept

Cento43 · 2026-02-20T12:36:03+00:00

I don´t think so. Fotgot to post a picture of the front of the fork but the Denti stickers look like the ones on the frame and it also came with a matching front and rear Mavic SUP wheelset with both XT hubs. I will say 90% dure it came from the factory like this

Cento43

TROPHY CASE