OLMO

Old steel road bikes are just gorgeous and the ones with lugs get some extra attention from me. The ride is smooth as butter, and the older ones usually have traditional geometry that is perfect. No weird, "comfort" angles or dimensions. Unfortunately, those older steel bikes are heavy. But, that's not really the point. Like an old Ferrari from the 60s, the pure beauty and ride is a joy and unless you are climbing over some crazy mountain, that weight isn't really an issue and those bikes can still hold their own in a group ride or local crit (okay, I guess it depends on what level).

I came across this old OLMO and it had just been restored. The owner had it painted and it was sitting in the rafters waiting to be assembled. I had to check this gem out. It's probably from the '80s. Sorry about the quality of the pics, since they are off my old iPhone, but no camera could really do this frame justice anyways. It was painted by a true craftsman, and is flawless. It looks like the painter even decided to forgo the traditional stickers and actually painted the logos by masking them off. The lugs have a metallic dark gray that is amazing and has a great depth to the color. The color scheme is tasteful and classic and the chrome fork adds just enough flavor to top it off. The attention to detail shows the original builder's craftsmanship. If I had one criticism, is that I wish it had a nice metal, front badge. Seems weird that it is absent from this frame.

Yeah, it's a minor detail, but something like this needs a good hood ornament. I'm not sure if it had one originally or was always absent, but the steer tube seems a little bare. Wish I could take it for a spin.