Description
Here we present one of the finest racing bikes of the 1980s - and surprisingly it is not made from steel.
Vitus made themselves a name as France's leading manufacturers of high-quality frame tubing. Their products were on a par with Reynolds and Columbus. And they were right at the forefront of the introduction of new materials on which they collaborated with TVT, an aerospace company. Their aluminium and carbon fiber frames were ridden by Sean Kelly, Greg LeMond and Miguel Indurain.
The Vitus Carbone 9 finds itself right in the middle of this quest for the most modern frame. The Carbone frames have been launched in the early 1980s, in collaboration with TVT, Ateliers de la Rive and Angenieux-CLB - and were made of carbon fiber enforced tubes which were glued in aluminium lugs.
The geometry of these frames were rather aggressive for their time, though the frame itself proved to be rather flexible due to the aluminium lugs and fork. They were not the best frame for sprinting but extremely comfortable and forgiving.
The Carbone 9 was already a very developed version of the earliest models and was probably most popularly used by the Professional Team KAS. It really was a top notch frame of its time and KAS riders were really happy to change to them from the full aluminium frames they rode before.
Our exemplar shows its quality also through its parts: the groupset is a complete Campagnolo one. The legendary C-Record is what we find for componentry, including a set of beautiful Cobalto brakes.
And then there are the wheels. Campagnolo's most expensive Sigma rims have been used and the freewheel is nothing less than a super-rare Campagnolo aluminium 28t one! That is pretty much the best stuff you could buy for money at its time. And altogether the bike ends up weighing less than 8.3kg.
And since we fully checked the bike, it is ridable and ready to go!
Rare and exquisite in every detail.
Vitus made themselves a name as France's leading manufacturers of high-quality frame tubing. Their products were on a par with Reynolds and Columbus. And they were right at the forefront of the introduction of new materials on which they collaborated with TVT, an aerospace company. Their aluminium and carbon fiber frames were ridden by Sean Kelly, Greg LeMond and Miguel Indurain.
The Vitus Carbone 9 finds itself right in the middle of this quest for the most modern frame. The Carbone frames have been launched in the early 1980s, in collaboration with TVT, Ateliers de la Rive and Angenieux-CLB - and were made of carbon fiber enforced tubes which were glued in aluminium lugs.
The geometry of these frames were rather aggressive for their time, though the frame itself proved to be rather flexible due to the aluminium lugs and fork. They were not the best frame for sprinting but extremely comfortable and forgiving.
The Carbone 9 was already a very developed version of the earliest models and was probably most popularly used by the Professional Team KAS. It really was a top notch frame of its time and KAS riders were really happy to change to them from the full aluminium frames they rode before.
Our exemplar shows its quality also through its parts: the groupset is a complete Campagnolo one. The legendary C-Record is what we find for componentry, including a set of beautiful Cobalto brakes.
And then there are the wheels. Campagnolo's most expensive Sigma rims have been used and the freewheel is nothing less than a super-rare Campagnolo aluminium 28t one! That is pretty much the best stuff you could buy for money at its time. And altogether the bike ends up weighing less than 8.3kg.
And since we fully checked the bike, it is ridable and ready to go!
Rare and exquisite in every detail.
Size Information
Size (Center-Top) | 52 cm |
---|---|
Top Tube | 53 cm |
Head Tube | 10.5 cm |
Standover | 78 cm |
Details
Brand | Vitus |
---|---|
Shifters | Campagnolo C-Record |
Crankset | Campagnolo C-Record; 170mm |
Bottom Bracket | Campagnolo C-Record |
Seat | Selle Italia Turbo |
Hubs | Freewheel 14-28 |
Rims | Campagnolo Sigma |
Tires | Continental Giro; 700c tubular |
Stem | 3ttt; 110mm |
Stembar | 3ttt; 40cm |
Chain | YBN Classic; hard plated |
Pedals | Not included |