Franz Maasen – Verkauft
The one-man factory in Frankfurt knew its trade. Each bike was unique - there was no series production. A frame made to measure, so to speak. This example from 1971 is no exception.
Frame building at its best
Franz Maasen knew his craft. The one-man manufactory from Frankfurt am Main was known for its unique soldering technique. In this process, the pipes were plugged together at the respective soldering point and not heated with a Bunsen burner, but placed in a charcoal oven. This caused the solder joint to eventually ignite and join the pipes to the joints. A very elegant and gentle process that prevented distortion in the frame. This frame was made of Reynolds 531 tubing - as was customary for Maasen frames - and covered with a black effect paint.
Original down to the last screw
This road bike is in a unique state of preservation. It is completely untouched and unrestored. The handlebar tape, the brake hoods, the cables, the tires are original. All that is normally replaced, here is still original. So not to be found again.
The legend Cino Cinelli swore by wooden rims
Until the Second World War, wooden rims were state of the art for racing and track wheels. Increasing research into light metal alloys then finally replaced them with aluminum rims and they were successively replaced. Nevertheless, the damping property of the natural product still makes old racers rave today. Because of this, they were still used for a long time in cobblestone races such as Paris-Roubaix. Another advantage was the low thermal conductivity of wood, which prevented the rim from heating up during long and steep descents and thus leveled the issue of tire wandering.
There were no limits to personalization
There was no off-the-peg bike at Franz Maasen. Here, you could choose every single part. And not only that. For example, if you wanted your name on the crown of the fork, this wish was fulfilled. Also you can see here in the fork scabbard a "Ffm" pantograph, which is an acronym for Frankfurt am Main. Franz Maasen enjoyed an excellent reputation and knew his craft. However, he was also known for not serving every customer. You had to court his favor if you wanted to buy a bike from him. Unimaginable today.
The beginning of a new era - "Record"
With the introduction of the first Campagnolo Record generation, Campagnolo laid the foundation for its most famous groupset.
The best rear derailleur of its time
Only a few years earlier, Campagnolo brought the first parallelogram rear derailleur onto the market. With this, the manufacturer achieved a breakthrough. In 1963, the Record rear derailleur was brought onto the market. Thanks to the reworked shift cage, it can guide the chain better and thus serve a larger gear range. That year, 110 out of 130 participants in the Tour de France rode a Campagnolo rear derailleur.
Wood - a material from the beginnings of cycling
In cycling, a number of materials have been used and tested over time in the search for high-performance materials. The history of wood goes back to the beginnings of cycling. At the beginning, solid wood was still used, which then no longer corresponded to the state of the art due to the invention of pneumatic tyres. As a result, the rims had to be made slimmer, which was achieved by a multi-layer construction of long-fibre wood. The individual layers were glued together and staggered in order to prevent warping and to increase the load-bearing capacity. These rims were all painstakingly made by hand and at the customer's request.
CAMPAGNOLO ESTABLISHES THE CONCEPT OF THE "GROUP" FOR THE FIRST TIME
In the late 50s and early 60s Campagnolo Campagnolo develops other bicycle components apart from the rear derailleur and introduces the concept of the complete groupset. The various parts are matched to each other and are marketed together on the market.
Manufacturer
Maasen
Model
hergestellt für Bernhard Trumpp
Year of manufacture
1971
Tube set
Reynolds 531
Groupset
Campagnolo Record
Paintwork
Schwarz Metallic Effekt
Frame height c - t
57 cm
Top tube length c - c
56,5 cm
Condition
Original paint, no dents or cracks
