Windsor Bicycles
- Thread starter stevenaleach
- Start date
I still have it, I think it's time it found a new home - photos of it are here:
http://www.wbnoble.com/forsale/Misc_forsale_files/Windsor_bicycle/windsor_professional_bicycle.htm
I measured the down tube and it's 22.5 inches - this is a short-coupled bike so it is pretty snappy in its handling, not at all the laid back riding experience of my Bertain. I believe the serial number is 044, that is stamped in the lug at the top of the down tube. Bars, goosneck are Cinelli, most everything else is campignolo, it has not seen a lot of miles, and it's been properly cared for - not ridden in well over 15 years, so I think it's ready for a new loving home.
Tires are sew-ups, by the way - I really like the way they ride, even on the street, much less rolling resistance, but many places now don't even know what they are - you have to get to a real bike place to get tires and glue - the newer glue strips are actually nicer than the glue in my opinion, much easier to work with.
http://www.wbnoble.com/forsale/Misc_forsale_files/Windsor_bicycle/windsor_professional_bicycle.htm
I measured the down tube and it's 22.5 inches - this is a short-coupled bike so it is pretty snappy in its handling, not at all the laid back riding experience of my Bertain. I believe the serial number is 044, that is stamped in the lug at the top of the down tube. Bars, goosneck are Cinelli, most everything else is campignolo, it has not seen a lot of miles, and it's been properly cared for - not ridden in well over 15 years, so I think it's ready for a new loving home.
Tires are sew-ups, by the way - I really like the way they ride, even on the street, much less rolling resistance, but many places now don't even know what they are - you have to get to a real bike place to get tires and glue - the newer glue strips are actually nicer than the glue in my opinion, much easier to work with.
Thanks for all the old Windsor info. I have one of those orange Windsors from the 70's that I got in '81. I'd heard they were made in Mexico with Columbus tubing, but didn't know much about mine. Unfortunately I've just bent the frame, so am looking for a new one. Maybe one of these Taiwanese ones. The gear may have been cheap, but definitely a cut above Huffy. A friend just this summer said it must have been one of the earliest ones with cotterless cranks. It also sported stem shifters. I still have it, so I can provide more info about it if anyone is interested in researching old bikes.
I did a search for "Windsor Pro" and landed here. Interesting running into this thread...it's been going on for a while. I know nothing of the new vintage Windsors, but...
I bought a Columbus SL double-butted Windsor Pro with full Campy components (Cinelli bars and stem, Concor saddle..very hot at the time) back in 1979 for $600. Mine was silver in color, but shortly after I bought it I had the frame repainted with a plum background and prism metalflake & clearcoat. I had all the components anodized black. Handlebar tape and various painted highlights are in yellow. The bike shop owner (Patio Bike in Milwaukee) called me a few months later and wanted to buy the bike back as the Campy (Record) component set had really jumped in price and the components themselves were worth more than what I paid for the whole bike.
I had sew-ups on it for many years, but switched to clinchers some 20 years back. I've replaced the wheels and tires, but I'm still riding it today. I don't ride as much as I once did, but I've got 60 miles on in the last three days (2 x 30)..so I'm still out there. It's been a great bike. Still love to ride it. I've considered getting something new, but I'm not sure why. Bike still looks like new.
I do remember the poster of Mercx on the orange "Windsor". It was on the wall in the bike shop.
I bought a Columbus SL double-butted Windsor Pro with full Campy components (Cinelli bars and stem, Concor saddle..very hot at the time) back in 1979 for $600. Mine was silver in color, but shortly after I bought it I had the frame repainted with a plum background and prism metalflake & clearcoat. I had all the components anodized black. Handlebar tape and various painted highlights are in yellow. The bike shop owner (Patio Bike in Milwaukee) called me a few months later and wanted to buy the bike back as the Campy (Record) component set had really jumped in price and the components themselves were worth more than what I paid for the whole bike.
I had sew-ups on it for many years, but switched to clinchers some 20 years back. I've replaced the wheels and tires, but I'm still riding it today. I don't ride as much as I once did, but I've got 60 miles on in the last three days (2 x 30)..so I'm still out there. It's been a great bike. Still love to ride it. I've considered getting something new, but I'm not sure why. Bike still looks like new.
I do remember the poster of Mercx on the orange "Windsor". It was on the wall in the bike shop.
Here we go again. The story of Wndsor has already been explained. In the early '70s Windsor was a Mexican bike company, presumably established by a former Cinelli framebuilder. Windsor's pro frames resembled Cinellis with mediocre paint. The "Windsor" Eddy Merckx rode to his hour record in Mexico City in 1972 was a Merckx-liveried track pursuit bike built for him by Colnago. The night before the event, persons unknown plastered the bike with Windsor stickers. Merckx decided to leave the stickers on as a way of showing gratitude to Mexico for use of the track. Sr. Colnago was furious, however, and swore that he would never build another bike for Merckx.
Windsor went belly-up decades ago. Enter BikesDirect, a Dallas corporation, who acquired rights to brands--Mercier, Dawes, Motobecane, as well as Windsor--that were no longer exported to the US. BikesDirect spec's, brands, imports, and retails, through their web site, bikes that are manufactured in Taiwan and China. Some brands are also marketed in smaller volumes on eBay by other sellers. BikesDirect also distributes components and accessories through BikeIsland.com
It's an irony of modern-day marketing that BikesDirect disingenuously attaches its Windsor bikes to the Windsor company that dishonestly tried to lay claim to providing the bike that Eddy Merckx rode to the hour record.
Windsor went belly-up decades ago. Enter BikesDirect, a Dallas corporation, who acquired rights to brands--Mercier, Dawes, Motobecane, as well as Windsor--that were no longer exported to the US. BikesDirect spec's, brands, imports, and retails, through their web site, bikes that are manufactured in Taiwan and China. Some brands are also marketed in smaller volumes on eBay by other sellers. BikesDirect also distributes components and accessories through BikeIsland.com
It's an irony of modern-day marketing that BikesDirect disingenuously attaches its Windsor bikes to the Windsor company that dishonestly tried to lay claim to providing the bike that Eddy Merckx rode to the hour record.
Talk about your irony...your re-re-explanation of the previous140 posts is sort of like "here we go again"^2After all the discussion on the topic I just thought I'd mention I bought one back then and I'm still riding it..no attempt at running additional laps.
Nice pics..
I considered purchasing one around 1975. They were pretty nice. Instead, I waited a couple years and got a Gios a few years later. My wife, whom I married in 1990, had a cheaper Windsor from the '80s, selected for her by an unnamed ex-boyfriend. It was too big for her.
Originally Posted by 531Aussie .
Interesting; i didn't know that about Merckx and the Windsor stickers.
Now, can you tell us who "re-stickered" it since?
Originally Posted by 531Aussie .
Interesting; i didn't know that about Merckx and the Windsor stickers.
Now, can you tell us who "re-stickered" it since?
Darned sure the one in the glass case is the bike, on display at the Merckx subway station in Brussels. I'd read somewhere that two identically set up bikes were taken to Mexico City, and thee other one might be the backup bike. Note the components, black seat post and headset, half-wrap on the handlebars on the record bike, black hubs and full wrap on the other. I wouldn't be surprised if there were some parts swapping and re-use of the backup bike after the record.
All of Merckx's bikes were of lugged steel tube construction, presumably Columbus because that's what Colnago and DeRosa used, but the Masis used earlier in his career may have had some Reynolds. Masi always advertised that he built bikes for Merckx, and the Peugeots from 1868 have some very Masi-like characteristics. They're definitely not PX-10s.
Faliero Masi built for anyone with a Lira and he did not use the 'M' cutout BB on all of his clandestine builds.
It was always said that Masi was the favorite builder of Eddie and indeed there were trade team Peugeots that were NOT made in France.
Who was it that rode for Bianchi and DID ride Celeste-colored framesets WITH the 'M' cutout BB shell?
It was always said that Masi was the favorite builder of Eddie and indeed there were trade team Peugeots that were NOT made in France.
Who was it that rode for Bianchi and DID ride Celeste-colored framesets WITH the 'M' cutout BB shell?
Could have been, OBC...my memory fails me! I have an old cycling book somewhere around here that has a picture of the bottom bracket of this 'Bianchi' and it names the owner/rider of that Masi.
'Decal Jobs' were common back in the day, just as they are now. Reference all the Cyclingnews articles on re-branded equipment, spray-overs, masking tape jobs, etc. And we won't even go into Chicom fake jobs at all!
I own a pair of Masis, one Italian and one American. All I can remember about Windsors from the early 1970's is that were NOT Italian and they were looked down upon because they came from Mexico. At the time, the only thing Mexicio was known for was drug exports and corrupt politics.
Oh wait...that's still true today.
There was a rose-colored Windsor that hung in a local shop for a few years...full Record. I wonder what happened to that bike?
'Decal Jobs' were common back in the day, just as they are now. Reference all the Cyclingnews articles on re-branded equipment, spray-overs, masking tape jobs, etc. And we won't even go into Chicom fake jobs at all!
I own a pair of Masis, one Italian and one American. All I can remember about Windsors from the early 1970's is that were NOT Italian and they were looked down upon because they came from Mexico. At the time, the only thing Mexicio was known for was drug exports and corrupt politics.
Oh wait...that's still true today.
There was a rose-colored Windsor that hung in a local shop for a few years...full Record. I wonder what happened to that bike?
Hello how are you. What bikes you have buy from bikes direct. I have seen on youtube the road bike motobecane mirage slx. And welligton windsor 2.0 and got me interesting.
http://www.wbnoble.com/forsale/Misc_forsale_files/Windsor_bicycle/windsor_professional_bicycle.htm
It will work for entry level, but I think you will wind up wishing you had better stuff if you decide you like cycling and want to stick with it.
The Shimano Sora is at or near the bottom of their product line, and will probably feel like it.
If I were just getting into road, I'd check out Craigslist or something similar for a decent used machine with better components.
Mail-ordering a full bike is iffy as well. Very hard to tell if it will fit you properly...
anadmanni
The Shimano Sora is at or near the bottom of their product line, and will probably feel like it.
If I were just getting into road, I'd check out Craigslist or something similar for a decent used machine with better components.
Mail-ordering a full bike is iffy as well. Very hard to tell if it will fit you properly...
anadmanni
I had posted some measurements earlier, here https://www.cyclingforums.com/threads/windsor-bicycles.26572/page-8#post-3663047
note that there is a huge difference between the "pro" model, that is made with Columbus tubing and the very best equipment (chinelli, campignolo, and so on), and the other bikes made by Windsor at the time that generally were inexpensive and a LOT heavier. I think this bike weighs between 15 and 17 pounds, but that's from memory.
Hi
Welcome to this forums sites. Here you can find a lot of information about your question. But I have doesn’t have much information about it. For more information please visit here.
Welcome to this forums sites. Here you can find a lot of information about your question. But I have doesn’t have much information about it. For more information please visit here.
Nice old Windsor Pro, Bill! Someone underslung the rear brake, possibly to fit the rack. Looks like the less expensive Universal brand sidepulls (Super 68's?) on the old girl. She probably needs only new tape, tires, brake hoods (reproductions are available) and a good lube job. She'll go another 40 years, for sure!
Those brakes are exactly what came on it - my Bertain has side pull Campy brakes, these aren't as nice, but they are much much nicer than the center pulls of the period. The natural rubber brake hoods are pretty brittle, I think the tires may be good, but not sure for how long - I probably changed them the last time my wife rode, but that would be more than 10 years ago for sure. I installed the rack, I don't think I moved the brake, but it's been 40 years. the original tape, I think, was cloth over blue vinyl.
Similar threads
