• Sprinks’ 1967 Atala

    Here’s an obscure (to me) Atala Italian 10-Speed. According to Sheldon the Atala was one of the few bicycles of any quality imported to the US before the Bike Boom. Atala is still around and they still make bicycles. Interestingly, they’re also responsible for the Vuelta wheels that are always on clearance at everyone’s favorite Secret Website.

    1967 Atala

    Officine Meccaniche Atala Marca Depositata Milano

    Here’s my OTS I just picked up this summer before school started. It’s my daily ride. When it was first purchased, it had aero bars, a single cage for the pedals, strapped on water bottle cage. It’s since had the tape replaced, aero bars, water bottle cage, and the pedal cage removed. Not sure what model this is, but it rides great. According to the original owner, he bought for his wife in ’67, was well used, and then put away in the garage. Not too long ago, a neighbor of borrowed the bike for triathlon events (hence aero bars). This also explains the replacement parts currently on the bike such as the updated saddle, handlebars, brake levers, and rear derailleur. The bike still has what appears the original Campagnolo front derailleur and lever shifters. The neighbor eventually returned it and bought his own new bike. It sat in the garage until finally the guy sold it to me on craigslist this past summer. Everyday this bike now gets rode and taken up 35 mph (clocked by bike computer and trailing car) through Blacksburg, VA on my way to class. Hope you all enjoy!

    Thanks Sprinks

    Related posts:

    1. Bob H.’s 1967 Schwinn Varsity
    2. Dave M’s 1974 Schwinn Continental and 1967 Huffy Cruiser
    3. Aedan’s 1970s Fausto Coppi
    4. Bricknd’s 1974 Schwinn Le Tour
    5. Art’s 1975ish Gitane


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    This entry (permalink) was posted on Tuesday, September 29th, 2009 at 6:49 AM by Cameron and categorized in Owner Submitted.

    • spike

      It’s an Atala Gran Sport. The sole US importer was Stuyvesant Bicycle of New York City, and there are still lots of old Atalas on the streets of NYC. They also imported Bottecchia, and along with Frejus and Legnano, imported by Thomas Avenia in NYC, these were for a long time the only commonly available Italian bicycles in the US. When the bike boom hit the East coast in the early 70s, they had trouble keeping up with demand. It was a very old-fashioned factory, and their attempt to modernize their products took a long time. The new models introduced in 1980 were not a success and faced overwhelming competition from Japanese imports.

    • sprinks

      Spike,
      Thanks for the info! I’ll definitely have to remember that. I’m actually going to NYC in a few months and will have to look for more of them.

    • Davey

      I just picked up an Atala. Trying to figure out model and year. It has a different paint job than the original and definitely not all the original parts. Same headbadge as the above pictured. I can’t seem to find anywhere online that can give me any real answers. Anywhere I can find out info about serial number?

    • spike

      Post a pic and I can give you a rough date; I used to work at Stuyvesant Bicycle in New York.

    • Dave

      Hi Spike, was reading this thread with inteest, I have an unidentified Atala as well. Not sure if I am in the right crowd here though, mine is an “Atala twista 5 speed”. No high end components here, but still… curvy italian style and lots of chrome. I am guessing mid sixties vintage, from the large shift lever and the plastic body simplex derailleur. New here, just getting my bearings. Maybe I should start a new thread…but its just a five speed!?!

    • Spike

      Atalas are tough to date because the basic bikes didn’t change very much. Often the Simplex derailleur has a date on the back of the pulley cage. Other clues can be reflectors in the wheels and pedals, these were not mandated until the mid-70s or so.

    • john baughman

      I bought a new Atala Competition in 1974. It had exactly the same appearance as the one in the photo: red/white with chrome on the fork and stays. It also had a Stronglite crank, and came new with a Campy Gran Turismo rear derailleur, or as I called it – a Grand Gizmo, since it didn’t work. Nearly all of the Gran Tursimo’s were replaced by the bike shops, either before delivery, or shortly after the customer tried to shift it. They were constructed with Columbus double butted tubing and had a welded seam in the bottom of the bottom bracket. The top model, the Record, had a seamless b/b.

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