Italian ARDEA ladies bike needs some help

[timax]

I bought this bike for my wife. Its her first bike in many years and I want to do a good job so i want to say what i'm thinking and ask that you let me know if i'm on the right track or if i'm crazy etc
So ...Problems i can see so far are....bent fork at the crown,should be easy to fix?? 590 chrome rims are crap and need replacing as do the tires and hubs. Chrome needs renewing every where. So first , tires...I want some cream tires and have found that schwalbe do the delta cruiser in cream in 37-590 but I cant find any here in Aus so may have to get them from Harris Cyclery in the U S. Rims....They also do Sun alloy polished rims that i'm thinking of getting but really i want to keep it as Italian as possible. Most of the vintage stuff i'm finding is English and most of the Italian stuff is Road race. This bike does have Bianchi brakes but I can't find a brand on the steel hubs. The stem and bars are one piece with even the brake levers as part of the bar. Is this common? So one thought is a total restoration keeping it as original as possible and another is to put some nice alloy bars like the Nitto Montmartre bar from Velo Orange and some alloy fenders , rims ,Brooks Saddle etc. Paint will be probably by Star Enamelers keeping the chrome lugs.
Can't find any info at all about the brand or when it may have been made so i'm open to anything.
Regards Tim

[hartleymartin]

590mm rims may be hard to come by. If you are going to be upgrading it, try alloy 650B rims (584mm rim size).

Those mudguards look to be in pretty good nick, so you may not have to get new ones. You can get those stripped down and re-painted at the same time as the frame.

[timax]

Thanks for that . I have been looking into the 650 option. I quite like the Grand Bios hetre tires but have no idea where to find them in Australia . I think there is enough adjustment on the brakes as its only 3mm different .

[hartleymartin]

The Chainring Transit Authority is a supplier of 650B stuff in Australia. Apparently the largest supplier of this stuff in Australia.

[timax]

Thanks for that. I did have a quick glance but will go back for a closer look. I see they also do frame painting. Anyone had one done by them?

[elk]

You asked for it . I'm calling you crazy . In my opinion the bike is just right as it is . Beautiful patina , still has most of it's original paint , a real head turner . I have one similar , a Botecchia , but it's cracked and had a poor respray years ago so isn't as nice as yours .

Mine was bought new in 1954 and sent to Oz in 1955 when the owner migrated . Yours could be of similar age but it's hard to tell for sure as they still make them like that . Below pics were taken in Modena , Italy , 2 years ago . If you ever get the chance to visit , do so . One of the most beautiful and serene Italian towns , it excludes cars from the center and most people ride a bike . Plenty of jaw dropping eye candy and great food too .

[spirito]

You asked for it . I'm calling you crazy . In my opinion the bike is just right as it is . Beautiful patina , still has most of it's original paint , a real head turner .

Very much agree. The beauty of that bike is in it's originality and character. Swapping parts unless absolutely necessary would devalue it greatly and lose much of it's appeal. I understand the rims are gone and it would be much better with Alu rims and modern tyres. That makes sense but of course where possible try to keep it looking in the same style. Overall the frame needs lots of cleaning and the chrome needs some 0000 steel wool and buff/polishing and it will mostly come up well. Peter at Star Enamel is a great talent and I'd use his services to clean and touch up the paint and encapsulate it with a clear coat so it doesn't deteriorate with further use.

Nothing beats original. There's plenty of modern parts but that costs money and will wash out it's flavour. You could do that to most any junker and build it to period style but this Ardea is far more classic, and just screams Italian. Keep it low key and original. Trying to remake that as a new bike is (IMO) just a waste of money and making it far less appealing.

Chainring Transit Authority have 650b rims and tyres in stock and they'd be close to size so that the look is right. Alu rims will make braking much better and will improve it's riding about.

BTW, the fork is best solved by brazing in a new steerer. It's not hard but it's not worth being cheap at this area - failure has it's consequneces.

BTW (2) ... that bike is some catch. well bought

[toff]

I know where you can get new 590mm chrome rims for around $25 each. I also know where you can get whitewall or gumwall tyres to match. Whitewall tyres are more expensive and about $20 each. Gumwall probably about half that.

PM me if interested.

Regards,

Chris

[spirito]

PM me if interested.

Shall I bring my wife

[timax]

Well........your right of course. It's a beautiful bike as it is. I like the idea of getting star enamelers to touch up the paint and clear coat. Will start and give the bars a polish and see just how much chrome is left. You should have a look at some of the bikes on ebay Italy type in Bianchi and see all the old city bikes ooozing with style. Just lovely .