Is this a fake Pinarello?



noew

New Member
Aug 7, 2006
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I got a fabulously good deal on this used full carbon Pinarello bike. After getting it, I'm having an acute nagging feeling that this frame could be a fake. My local bike shop thinks it's dodgy too. The decals look fake. There is no serial number. No one knows the model or the age (except that it's an old frame). The guy I bought it off said his brother who's gone overseas gave him the bike. Most probably the brother bought it in Europe. I tried surfing the net but I can't find another Pinarello frame that looks like this. Can anyone help? Have I been conned?
 
noew said:
I got a fabulously good deal on this used full carbon Pinarello bike. After getting it, I'm having an acute nagging feeling that this frame could be a fake. My local bike shop thinks it's dodgy too. The decals look fake. There is no serial number. No one knows the model or the age (except that it's an old frame). The guy I bought it off said his brother who's gone overseas gave him the bike. Most probably the brother bought it in Europe. I tried surfing the net but I can't find another Pinarello frame that looks like this. Can anyone help? Have I been conned?
Pinarello used to be vocal that saying Carbon was not the ideal frame material, touting magnesium instead and only using carbon stays on their frames. Like Cannondale they changed the party line and did come out with a carbon frame, but IIRC the 4:13 frame they came out with last year was the first all carbon Pinarello. I would say its a pretty safe bet this is a knock-off with decals.
 
I have an old (80's) style Pinarello frame that has decals like that. My frame is blue with white Pinarello decals. The diffference is the material in the frame. Mine is all steel. Don't know if they might have made a carbon frame in mid 80's early 90's but due to trends of the time, would say no.
 
There's a blurry photo 4 up from the bottom of this page that looks very much like your bike - it looks like a TT - http://www.pinarello.com/eng/about_history.php

maybe you can figure out who it is, what year it is and see if you can find a better photo. It must be 96 or 97 from the text around it.

In fact it looks like you may possibly have a Pinarello Espinada maybe?
from the sounds of this article they've been doing carbon monocoque on TT bikes for some time now. Indeed far from having a fake Pinarello you may have something very rare and special?

http://www.competitivecyclist.com/za/CCY?PAGE=PRODUCT&PRODUCT.ID=1233
 
Send the pics to Pinarello and ask 'em. If it is indeed some version of the Espada, lock it away in Fort Knox. In that case (remote) it is very valuable and rare.
 
I don't know if it's fake, but it's still a really good looking bike imho.
 
That's as fake as fake can get. What you've got is an Aegis frame. Checkout the distinctive seatpost clamp on the top tube, just ahead of the seatpost.
 
alienator said:
That's as fake as fake can get. What you've got is an Aegis frame. Checkout the distinctive seatpost clamp on the top tube, just ahead of the seatpost.
So is that frame any good? If he got a good deal presuming it was a pina, did he at least get his money's worth?

Looking at those pics back to back, the things that gives it away is the seatpost clamp... identical...
 
Looks like our early AEGIS Aro 700 or even earlier version sold under different names (like Basso, Profile, Racing Bik). also, looks like the headtube was wrapped in fake looking carbon from the picture.

Someday you can send it back and we can turn it back into an AEGIS!

Pete

AEGIS Racing Bikes USA
351 Champlain Street
Van Buren, Maine 04785

1-877-33-AEGIS

Made in Maine since 1986
 
Ah well - could have been a cool story if it had really been an old Pinarello, but can't argue with the photo of the Aegis - they certainly are identical.
 
We still have that model, using the same molds and sweeping seatt ube.. Riders of this particular model are passionate about their Aros!! Got a guy up here with over 75,000 miles on his!! I can barely find time for 25 miles a week!!
 
OT
WAY COOL - you have dinky TT bikes! at just 5 feet I didn't think that there was anything out there short of full custom that I could ride.....

I just got my new road bike so unless I win the lottery, which is extra unlikely since I don't buy tickets, I can't afford it right now, but I will certainly keep my eye on you guys.

Do you ever sell just the frame/forks with out the componant packages?
 
We do sell framsets only.

I'm fitting a 4'11" woman today on a Swift. Our Victories (700c) go down to a 48.5 top tube and may be OK for you, if you're OK with the toe overlap.
 
AEGIS said:
We do sell framsets only.

I'm fitting a 4'11" woman today on a Swift. Our Victories (700c) go down to a 48.5 top tube and may be OK for you, if you're OK with the toe overlap.
I've never had a problem with toe overlap on any of my small frame 700c bikes (I have a brand new Specialized Ruby Pro, which I love) - guess I just have small feet.

I've not ruled out (and unlike on my road bike, think it may be more to my advantage) 650's for a TT bike

like I said its not in the cards right now - having just purchased a rather expensive road bike, but maybe next year.
 
My husband had an idea of how this bike may have ended up with Pinarello stickers. Sometimes sponsored atheletes don't like/fit the bikes their sponsor makes so they get another brand (in this case it would be Aegis) and have it re-decaled. I saw a bike on ebay that was like this. It belonged to a woman who was a pro and the team bikes were Lemonds, but her TT bike was custom so it had been at one time labled with Lemond decals.

Just a thought, but maybe the guy who sold it to you wasn't trying to misrepresent it. (not that it sounds like you still didn't get a good deal - those Aegis bikes look pretty nice)
 
Holy old threads, Batman :)

Hmm, it looks kinda dodgy.
Didn't all old steel Pinarellos have embossings on the fork lug, and/or near the top of the seat stay?
It's got junky parts on, and I reckon the fork's bent, so I wouldn't pay 120 Euro for it, even it was real.