mtb-timeline

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<div column 50% #intro>
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===== Cinelli =====


Cino Cinelli founded Cinelli & C.S.r.l.((Cinelli & Compagnia Societa a responsabilita limitata)) in 1944, after a successful road racing career cut short only by WWII, to resell components made by his brother Giotto Cinelli.  Cinelli & C. started to sell Cinelli branded bikes in 1947 and merged with Giotto's company of Milan in 1948, which is often stated at the proper start date for Cinelli.
In 1978 Cino Cinelli sold his company to Antonio Colombo, maker of Columbus tubes.  At this point Cinelli was selling over 150,000 bars and stems per year and yet less than 700 frames a year.  In 1985, under Antonio's direction, Cinelli introduced the Rampichino mountain bike, which is listed in many sources as being the first European mountain bike((Yet, in Italy, [[bianchi:start|Bianchi]] of Milan sold imported MTBs starting in 1983 and [[rossin:start|Rossin]] sold Italian made MTBs in 1983/4 - while many, if not most, European large bike makers were making MTBs by this time; some as early as 1981.)).  Cinelli went all in on MTB manufacturing and a possible [[https://issuu.com/cinelli.vintage/docs/cinelli_1986_yellow|1986 Cinelli catalog]] has //seventeen// MTBs listed in the first half of the catalog (with components not available until 1987) and then, in the next half, another //eight// MTBs (with components not available until 1990.)  This "catalog" is likely a survey of multiple catalogs and its dating will be ignored.  According to the catalog, the MTB models available were: Rampichino, The Absolute Machine, The Machine, Ottomilainsu'((The catalogs spells Ottomilainsu' with a trailing apostrophe.  It also sometimes appears as
Ottomilainsù in Italian.)) , Argento Vivo, Orizzonte, Tuttifruti, Sentiero Bicolor, Sentiero Salamandra, Sentiero Optical, Mimetika, Ottomilauno, Rampichino Vertical & Rampichino Country.
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<blockquote>
Mountain bike, date of birth: California 1978 and Italy 1985.
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Invented in San Francisco by Gary Fisher, and reinvented in Milan by Antonio Colombo for Cinelli.
<cite>
1994 Cinelli catalog
[[http://benscycle.blogspot.com/2012/08/recent-scan-cinelli-frames-bicycles.html|benscycle]]
</cite>
</blockquote>

Despite being a very popular component manufacturer, only a //single// complete Cinelli catalog exists online with mountain bikes, so that dating will be based upon the usual trust and assumptions that the installed components are original.

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Most Cinellis were built in Milan but a few early 90's Cinellis were built and imported from Taiwan by the Gary Fisher brand while it was owned by Anlen of Taiwan.  Gary Fisher distributed Cinelli MTBs in the US at this time.




Resources:

  * [[https://www.cinellivintage.it/history?lang=en|cinellivintage]]
  * [[https://usa.cinelli-milano.com/pages/history|cinelli-milano]]
  * [[https://www.facebook.com/cinellivintage/|facebook]]
  * [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cino_Cinelli]]
  * [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinelli]]
  * [[https://www.facebook.com/cinelliofficialstore|facebook]]
  * [[https://vintagevelore-cycling.com/cinelli-rampichino-country-columbus-cromor-or/|vintagevelore]]
  * [[https://www.cyclist.co.uk/in-depth/in-pictures-cinelli-s-classic-bikes|cyclist.co.uk]]
  * [[https://www.internimagazine.com/design/projects/bicycle-by-alessandro-mendini/|internimagazine]]
  * [[https://www.amazon.com/Cinelli-Bicycle-Lodovico-Pignatti-Morano/dp/0847838676|amazon]]


{{columbus.jpg?500|Columbus tubing}}
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The stuff which bikes are made from.
[[https://www.cyclist.co.uk/in-depth/in-pictures-cinelli-s-classic-bikes|cyclist.co.uk]]

</div>


<div column 45%>
{{cino.jpg?400|Cino Cinelli, 1938, Grio d'Onore, Milano, Italy}}
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Cino Cinelli, 1938, Grio d'Onore, Milano, Italy
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[[https://www.cinellivintage.it/history?lang=en|cinvellivintage]],
[[https://www.facebook.com/AlterCycles/photos/1214075075307608|facebook]]
</div>



<div column 50% #s1985>
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===== 1985 Rampichino Airone =====
Rampichino is Italian for the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short-toed_treecreeper|Short-toed tree-creeper]], a small, common European bird.  Airone is Italian for Heron and is an Italian [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airone|nature magazine]] which exclusively offered Cinelli Rampichinos to its readers in 1985.
Shimano XT M700 v1 component group (1982-84), non-original Biopace 600-EX FC-6206 cranks (1984-87), Tommaselli levers, butted and lugged Columbus tubing.
</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1985.jpg?300|1985 Rampichino Airone }}
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1985 Rampichino Airone
[[ https://www.mtb-news.de/forum/t/price-drop-cinelli-rampichino-airone-n-460-year-1984-price-drop.967955/|mtb-news.de]]
</div>





<div column 50% #s1986>
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===== 1986 Rampchino =====
Cinelli, bicicletta Rampichino painted by [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alessandro_Mendini|Alessandro Mendini]], 1986.
Cinelli often partnered with prominent artists to join sport, art & design.
</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1986.jpg?300|1986 Rampchino }}
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1986 Rampchino
[[ https://rvca.com/es/blog/art/Cinelli-Columbus-Continuum.html|rvca]]
</div>


<div column 50% #s1987>
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===== 1987 Rampichino =====
Deore MT-60 (1987-88).
This bike shows up in the 1986? catalog with these Shimano components, which themselves don't show up until the 1987 Shimano catalog.  ((The 1987 Shimano catalog was printed in December 1986.  Perhaps the MT-60 sampled a few months earlier?))

</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1987.jpg?300|1987 Rampichino }}
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1987 Rampichino
[[ https://www.facebook.com/groups/235433082462/permalink/10160636380017463/|facebook]]
</div>





<div column 50% #s1988>
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===== 1988 Sentiero =====
Shimano Exage Mountain (1988-89), TIG welded Columbus tubing.  Cinelli MTBs decidedly go down market at this point in an attempt to make mountain biking even more popular/profitable.
</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1988.jpg?300|1988 Sentiero }}
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1988 Sentiero
[[ https://www.facebook.com/groups/235433082462/permalink/10160049634602463/|facebook]]
</div>



<div column 50% #s1989>
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===== 1989 The Absolute Machine =====
Deore XT M732 (1989) gruppo, Columbus tubing.
</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1989.jpg?300|1989 The Absolute Machine }}
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1989 The Absolute Machine
[[ https://bmxmuseum.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=728582&p=60|bmxmuseum]]
</div>





<div column 50% #s1990>
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===== 1990 Rampichino Country =====
Shimano Deore LX groupset (1990-93), TIG welded Columbus tubing,
The C89022286 serial number suggests a 1989 data but the components are consistent with 1990+.
</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1990.jpg?300|1990 Rampichino Country }}
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1990 Rampichino Country
[[ https://www.facebook.com/groups/235433082462/permalink/10160691100887463/|facebook]]
</div>


<div column 50% #s1991>
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===== 1991 Argento Vivo =====
Designed by Gary Fisher with a circuit board seat-tube, Fisher headset.
SunTour XC Expert & Comp derailleurs (1990-92).  Serial number "AL90120113" which likely implies that it is built in Taiwan by Anlen with Columbus tubing.


{{ayrton.jpg?300|Ayrton Senna}}
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1991 Monaco Grand Prix, Ayrton Senna riding with a disconnected front brake, just before one of his 41 Grand Prix wins.
[[https://www.reddit.com/r/Vintage_bicycles/comments/n45d31/cool_pic_of_ayrton_senna_in_a_90s_cinelli_with/|reddit]]
</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1991.jpg?300|1991 Argento Vivo }}
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1991 Argento Vivo
[[ http://mombatbicycles.com/MOMBAT/Bikes/1991_Cinelli_Argento.html|mombat]]
</div>





<div column 50% #s1992>
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===== 1992 Mimetika =====
Shimano 200GS group (1990-93).  The second cheapest of all Shimano components.
Mimetica is Italian for "camouflage."  A better model name might be "psichedelico."
</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1992.jpg?300|1992 Mimetika }}
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1992 Mimetika
[[ https://steel-vintage.com/products/cinelli-mimetika-vintage-mtb-1980s?_pos=2&_sid=779dd6e1f&_ss=r|steel-vintage]]
</div>


<div column 50% #s1993>
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===== 1993 Argento Vivo =====
Aluminum frame (by who?), non-original Marzocchi XC600 forks (1995).
Shimano LX gruppo (1990-92) equipped on other 1993 Cinellis.
</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1993.jpg?300|1993 Argento Vivo }}
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1993 Argento Vivo
[[https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1985071788316837&set=gm.3948326271922161|facebook]]
</div>

<div column 50% #s1994>
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===== 1994 Argentovivo =====
Shimano Deore LX (RD-M560) (1993+ thus), Rock Shox,
</div>
<div column 45%>
{{1994.jpg?300|1994 Argentovivo }}
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1994 Argentovivo
[[https://mountainbikemuseum.nl/en/mountainbikes/cinelli-argentovivo-297| mountainbikemuseum.nl]]
</div>