Cinelli
Encyclopedia
Cinelli is an Italian bicycle manufacturing company based in Milan
, Italy
, producing mostly road bicycles and components; production is estimated at 80 percent components, 20 percent bicycles.
, Italy, 9 February 1916, died 20 April 2001), a former professional road racer and president of the Italian Cyclists' Association. He was a professional racer from 1937 to 1944, winning Milan – San Remo in 1943, the Giro di Lombardia in 1938, and the Tour of the Apennines in 1937. He started a company under his name in 1948.
Cinelli was the seventh of 10 children, the son of a small landowner near Florence
. He became interested in bicycle technology after mechanical failures in races. Failure to interest manufacturers with his ideas in 1946 led him to start his own company. His brother Giotto was making steel stems and bars in Florence and Cinelli moved the business to Milan
, centre of the Italian cycling industry. He made stems, bars and frames but depended on wholesaling for other companies. By his retirement, Cinelli's own goods half the business. Stems and bars were 80 per cent of Cinelli's own sales.
Cinelli moved to alloy production in 1963, later than other manufacturers because he was concerned about strength. Annual production of alloy stems and bars rose from 5,000 in the 1950s, to 7,500 in the early 1960s. By 1978 the figure was 150,000.
He made no more than 700 frames a year. In 1974, he designed an aerodynamic bike on which Ole Ritter
broke his own hour record. The staple product was the Super Corsa road model made from 1947.
, in 1978. In 1997 Cinelli became a division of Gruppo SpA.
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, producing mostly road bicycles and components; production is estimated at 80 percent components, 20 percent bicycles.
History
Cinelli was founded in 1948 by Cino Cinelli (born MontespertoliMontespertoli
Montespertoli is a comune in the Province of Florence in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 20 km southwest of Florence....
, Italy, 9 February 1916, died 20 April 2001), a former professional road racer and president of the Italian Cyclists' Association. He was a professional racer from 1937 to 1944, winning Milan – San Remo in 1943, the Giro di Lombardia in 1938, and the Tour of the Apennines in 1937. He started a company under his name in 1948.
Cinelli was the seventh of 10 children, the son of a small landowner near Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
. He became interested in bicycle technology after mechanical failures in races. Failure to interest manufacturers with his ideas in 1946 led him to start his own company. His brother Giotto was making steel stems and bars in Florence and Cinelli moved the business to Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, centre of the Italian cycling industry. He made stems, bars and frames but depended on wholesaling for other companies. By his retirement, Cinelli's own goods half the business. Stems and bars were 80 per cent of Cinelli's own sales.
Cinelli moved to alloy production in 1963, later than other manufacturers because he was concerned about strength. Annual production of alloy stems and bars rose from 5,000 in the 1950s, to 7,500 in the early 1960s. By 1978 the figure was 150,000.
He made no more than 700 frames a year. In 1974, he designed an aerodynamic bike on which Ole Ritter
Ole Ritter
Ole Ritter is a former Danish racing cyclist.-Amateur years:As an amateur he rode for ABC Denmark....
broke his own hour record. The staple product was the Super Corsa road model made from 1947.
Trade mark
The Cinelli head badge was originally hand-painted. Later, it became a decal. The design featured a knight's helmet, inspired by a family heirloom, with a red lily - symbol of Florence - and a green serpent, symbol of Milan.Company ownership
The presidency of the company passed to Antonio Colombo, owner of Columbus tubingColumbus Tubing
Columbus is a manufacturer of steel tubing used in bicycle frames, located in Settala, in the Province of Milan. The company was founded in 1919 by A.L. Columbo and was taken over by Columbo's youngest son, Antonio, in 1977...
, in 1978. In 1997 Cinelli became a division of Gruppo SpA.
Innovative products
- Binda toe-straps (acquired by Cinelli - 1958)
- Integral sloping fork crown (1950?)
- Unicanitor saddle (1962 - from acquisition of Unica) The first plastic-bodied saddle.
- Bivalent Hub (1960?) - After removal the freewheel stays attached to the frame; front and rear wheels are therefore interchangeable.
- M71 Pedal (1971) The first quick-release pedal. (ref. 1971 Cinelli Catalog)
- Cinelli Model 1R stem with hidden clamp bolt (1971, ref Catalog M71, above).
- Laser (1980) Track pursuit and time trial model which pioneered TiG welding in bicycle frames.
- Rampichino (1985) The first mountain bike in Italy
- Cork Ribbon (1987) handlebar tape