All photos courtesy Pat Gill.
Giuseppi 'Pepe' Marinoni is, thankfully, still building bikes the old fashioned way in Terrebonne, Québec. I don't know if he does any welding but I know that his wife, Simone paints and decals the frames. In fact, she painted, placed the decals and airbrushed my name on my frame - a beautiful job.
Giuseppi Marinoni is one of Canada's best known frame builders, an old world frame builder that believes steel bikes built by hand are the best. I can attest to that.
Pat Gill's 'M' Experience...
Pat came across my blog while researching Marinoni. And, my restoration played a part in his decision to go for a 2010 Piuma.
Pat mentioned to me, "I reasoned that a frame that was worth restoring and upgrading with a modern gruppo, after 25 years, must be special. Now after 26,000kms, I still feel as happy as the day I got her!"
I'm pleased that my Marinoni experience can directly influence someone to decide on one. It is one the finest made steel frames in the world.
"As you know, Marinoni's measure for sizing is a bit different, I think his 49cm frame is the equivalent to others 54cm. Old school pump peg and chain catcher on the rear stay. When I first got the bike I was carrying a full sized frame pump but I didn't like the aesthetic and the rattles that came with it. My build was nearly exactly the same as yours, Veloce 10 spd, 12-25, 53 x 39 chainrings, Skeleton brakes, Khamshin wheels, Cadence stem and seatpost, Time RSX carbon pedals.
Since then, I've upgraded some components... Fisik Chameleon saddle, 3T carbon seatpost, Zonda 2 way fit wheelset and I've gone to a compact crankset, Centaur 50 x 34. I really feel that the seatpost upgrade made a noticeable difference over the tar and chip backroads in these parts. The combination of a light oversize steel tube frame and carbon fork in addition to the carbon post eliminates almost all of the buzz from the handlebars and saddle, its comfortable. The compact lets me feel a little younger when I'm going up our short steep climbs of the escarpment.
I'm very happy with my "M" and I look forward to many thousands of kilometers on her."
Well done Pat, huge thanks for sharing your photos and continue enjoyment ...with your 'M'!
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