Tag Record

Campagnolo, Component Makers

Tullio Campagnolo: The Legend, the Patents and the Record

Eleven Campagnolo catalog covers arranged in date order on a dark background, from the black Catalogo N. 12 of about 1955 to the white catalogue n. 18 of 1986

Campagnolo says its founder invented the quick release after a snowbound race in 1927 and patented it in 1930. The record tells a richer story: a first patent filed in May 1933, the cam quick release in April 1943, a parallelogram derailleur he perfected rather than invented, magnesium wheels for Lamborghini, a signed account of his life that never mentions the snow and a 1981 conviction that English-language histories leave out.

Eric Anschutz
October 22, 2026

Campagnolo, Component Makers

Campagnolo History: A Timeline of Key Patent, Product and Racing Events

A dated timeline of Campagnolo from Tullio Campagnolo's birth in Vicenza in 1901 to the minority investment of 2026: his first patent of May 1933, the cam quick release of 1943, the Cambio Corsa and the Paris-Roubaix, the Gran Sport, Record and Super Record, magnesium wheels for Lamborghini, C-Record, Syncro and Ergopower, with the Croce d'Aune story marked as the legend it is.

Eric Anschutz
October 22, 2026

Campagnolo, Component Makers

How to Identify and Date Vintage Campagnolo Components

The Campagnolo Prodotti Speciali oval with the striped globe and the blue Campagnolo script, from the cover of Catalogue No. 16, centered on a white banner

A practical guide to dating vintage Campagnolo parts from the firm's own catalogs of about 1951 to 1986: when each model came and went, the changes you can measure on the part and what the numbers, the patent words and the address on a catalog or a box can tell you.

Eric Anschutz
October 22, 2026

Bicycle Makers, De Rosa

De Rosa History: A Timeline of Key Craftsmanship and Racing Events

A De Rosa frame begins and ends with a single conviction: that steel, and later titanium, aluminum and carbon, can always be coaxed a little further toward perfection. From a teenage apprentice bent over a Milan workbench to a family…

Eric Anschutz
July 5, 2026

Component Makers, Idéale

Idéale Saddles: Going Back in Time With Rare Company Photos

Postcard view of the F. Tron works at Pont-Saint-Pierre seen across the millpond, a tall brick chimney rising beside the three story mill building

This feature article provides an unprecedented visual window into the industrial soul of the Idéale brand, presenting rare archival photographs of the F. Tron & Cie and Tron & Berthet facilities and the generations of artisans who defined them. The images trace the company's journey from its hydraulic roots at a former wool mill to the height of its mid-century power.

Eric Anschutz
March 20, 2026

Component Makers, Idéale

Idéale History: A Timeline of Key Corporate and Technical Events

An Idéale 64 Cyclo-Touriste in tan leather on a chrome seatpost, its hawk bill nose and Croupon Garanti oval catching the light above the coiled rear springs

The history of Idéale is a century-long narrative of industrial perseverance and technical mastery that transformed a modest Parisian stamping workshop into the emblematic brand of the French saddle. Founded in 1890 by Jean-François Tron, this timeline traces its pursuit of extreme lightness through Duralumin and Titanium chassis and its racing pedigree under Marcel Berthet.

Eric Anschutz
March 20, 2026

Component Makers, Idéale

Idéale Saddles: Behind the Leather Curtain

Daniel Rebour cartoon advertisement from Le Cycle in which two hands break in a cow like leather, promoting the Idéale No. 90 competition saddle rodée main in steel or duralumin

Idéale saddles remain among the least understood classic bicycle components given their standout prominence and frequent exorbitant value. This feature unpacks the dizzying array of models produced under the Idéale marque, 82 and counting, and the collapsing French cycling industry that nearly ended the brand before its recent revival.