Last spring, I lucked out on a Guerciotti GL7100 “Record Track” from either 1984 or 1985 (decals suggest ‘85, fork panto suggests ‘84) in really rough shape, and I decided to make a run out of restoring it. It turned out that the bike had been in a front-end collision sometime around 1998 or so, but had remained ridden on the street for another 9 years without incident. There’s actually a really sad story attached to the history of the bike — the previous owner, a messenger who worked in Boston and New York passed away far too young — so I felt somewhat compelled to try to save the bike from the scrap heap.
For a variety of reasons (work, new baby, Stronglight cranks that I lacked the 23.35mm extractor for) I haven’t gotten around to getting it repaired until now, but I’ve finally gotten a builder to confirm to work on it, and in short order. After speaking to the folks at Bilenky in Philadelphia, CyclArt in California, and a few other restorers, I found out that famed track bike builder Tom Kellogg of Spectrum Cycles in Pennsylvania does repairs, and at a reasonable rate. After speaking to him, he agreed to take the project on.
Tom is going to replace the top tube and down tube, realign the fork, and skim out any dents he may find. There is a small dent in the fork on the side (not from the front-end impact) that I am going to try to have filled as well, but likely when I have the fork rechromed. I have decided not to repaint the frame immediately, though I have managed to source an appropriate set of original Guerciotti decals from a shop in Belgium, so when the time comes it will look proper — I wish I could find an original Ten Speed Drive Imports sticker to fully complete the effect!
The 10+ years of messengering this frame has seen are clearly marked on its skin. After peeling off the electrical tape used to cover up the decals, the extent of the paint damage is pretty clear (although with the tubes getting replaced, it doesn’t really matter.) Surprisingly, the chrome on the chainstay is pretty good, and the chrome on the fork blades (though not the crown) is decent as well. With any luck, I should be able to get both properly rechromed and bring the frame back to its original glory. The frame rode remarkably well considering how off it is currently — a bit flexy, but a dynamic feeling ride. I’m looking forward to the feel when it’s aligned as it was originally meant to be.
This is my first restoration, so I’m a bit nervous, but hopefully it’ll turn out well.
