In a series of “In the spotlight” articles, we’ll lift the lid on some of the bikes and components we stock, providing an insight into the brands, the manufacturing techniques used, and unique features they offer. In the first of our “In the spotlight” articles, we look at one of the most respected names in cycling and their signature offering – Colnago and their beautifully hand crafted C59 Italia.

Why Italy?
Italian brands are renowned for their style, tradition, heritage and of course, their price tag. Ferrari, Ducati, Gucci, Maserati, Prada, Versace, Alessi – the list goes on. In cycling, this is no different. There are literally hundreds of Italian cycling brands but if there is one name in cycling that epitomises the style, history and tradition of Italian frame building it is Colnago, and specifically it’s founder, Ernesto Colnago.
Luckily for us, a young Ernesto elected not to follow in his father’s footsteps and join the family business, instead choosing to work in the cycle trade. As a young teenager he worked as an apprentice with Gloria Bicycles of Milan, before taking up road racing himself. An accident prematurely ended his racing career, and in 1952 he opened a workshop on Via Garibaldi in Cambiago, just outside of Milan. In 1954 he built his first ever steel frame, and as a highly respected mechanic, he eventually became the head mechanic of the Molteni team, home of legendary racing cyclist Eddy Merckx. Colnago quickly became respected for his frames, and a legend was born.
The C59 Italia
The C59 was 4 years in the making, with over 40 prototypes produced before Colnago settled on the C59 we have in Cycle Art. It’s bloodline is clear – from the Master through the C40, C50 and EPS, the C59 is instantly recognisable as a Colnago. Named in honour of 59 years of Colnago frame building, the C59 is the company’s signature model and is still made in Ernesto’s basement in Cambiago. The lugged construction allows for a massive selection of 22 sizes, 14 traditional and 8 sloping, with various paint finishes available.
Breaking with the new tradition
In a time where carbon fibre frames are manufactured predominantly in the far east, the Colnago C59 remains faithful to Ernesto Colnago’s roots and the tradition of Italian frame building. On a busy day, Colnago’s Cambiago factory can produce just 16 of these framesets, such is the extensive process of producing the C59. This not only ensures that each frame is perfect, but helps retain an air of mystique and desirability to the C59. Indeed, the only other frame still made in Cambiago alongside the C59 is the steel tubed Master.
The manufacture of the C59 starts, predictably though, in the Far East. Carbon fibre for bicycle manufacture is sourced from a handful of producers of raw carbon fibre, and Japanese company Toray are renowned as being the best. Extensively used by Giant (who are widely accepted as being the industry leader in carbon fibre manufacture) and by Boeing in aircraft manufacture, Toray is the largest manufacturer of carbon fibre composites in the world.
Hand built in Italy
The raw carbon fibre is shipped to Italy, where it is hand moulded by the company that produces the Ferrari F1 car chassis into the tubes and lugs that form the basis for Colnago’s Omega carbon lugged construction process, a process that was developed in conjuction with Ferrari Engineering. Ferrari and Colnago’s relationship runs deep, with Ernesto Colnago and Enzo Ferrari, two of the biggest names in Italian sporting history, first meeting in 1986. Key to the Omega process are the lugs, which are made up of 12 individual layers of carbon fibre, consisting of both woven and uni-directional fibre sheets. The custom top tube and down tube of the C59 are internally ribbed, to increase torsional stiffness compared to round or oval tubes, and are filament wound around a stainless steel mandrel. Furthermore, the down tube features a proprietary technology Colnago call “I-Beam”, which features an vertical beam of carbon fibre reinforced with tiny steel rods. This again is designed to increase stiffness with little overall effect on the frame weight.
The tubes are mitred by hand to ensure they fit into the lugs providing maximum overlay. The tubes are then cut to size, depending on the frame size they are for, again by hand. The opposite end of the tube is then also mitred. Tubes and lugs are then inspected and prepared for the bonding process before being bonded together by hand using Colnago’s special resin on a precise, custom steel alignment jig that doubles up as part of the curing oven. Each stage of the frame construction is clamped down onto the jig, ensuring perfect alignment. Once fully constructed, the C59 frame is cleaned, removing any excess resin, and is then cured in the oven and then left to cool in the jig. Once cool, the frame is finished by hand, and placed into smaller jigs to have holes drilled for fittings. The headset fitting is then machined, and finally the frame is once again checked for alignment. Once complete, the frame is sent to Tuscany for painting, once again by hand. Why Tuscany? Colnago say that’s where the artists live, and judging by the finish on the C59 Italia, who are we to argue?
Such a frame is an investment, and Colnago know this, so the C59 is designed to last. For that very reason, unlike most super bikes, Colnago choose to use aluminium parts in the frame instead of carbon. Weight isn’t the critical factor for Colnago, instead concentrating on stiffness, ride and build quality. The headset is a proprietary semi-integrated aluminium affair, so that the cups can be replaced. The dropouts are also aluminium, as is the threaded bottom bracket shell. The front fork is double walled, to protect against crashes. This method of building means the C59 Italia frame weighs over a kilo, but Colnago aren’t worried by this – and neither was Thomas Voeckler as he rode the C59 to the polka dot jersey of the mountains classification in the 2012 Tour de France.
All this heritage, design, attention to detail and Italian craftsmanship comes at a price. Far from being overpriced, the C59 Italia fits into the “reassuringly expensive” category. The frame and forks costs B#3500.
In a shop full of exotic carbon fibre and titanium bicycles, the C59 regularly attracts the most attention, especially from those with an eye for the Italians, and remains many people’s dream bike. For some, it is also the closest they will come to owning a Ferrari.