Super Mondia Monday Blues

I have shown a couple early Swiss-made Allegro bikes in the past, but Mondia may be the best known Swiss manufacturer of bikes for the period between the 1960s and 1980s. Mondia began producing bicycles in 1933, though the company that manufactured them dates far earlier, to 1918 to be exact. The company manufactured a range of specialty bikes for cyclocross and racing (the Super, the Criterium and the Criterium Prestige), and touring (the Special). This "Mondia Production Details Timeline" is a very informative list of what to look for when attempting to date a Mondia. Using that as my guide I am going to say this dark blue bike dates to a few years between 1975 and 1977. The brake cable guides brazed onto the top tube appear to be at the 5:00 position, suggesting that 1977 is the recent this bike could have been manufactured, since the guides moved to the 12:00 position in 1978. As you can see, this Mondia is extra super, being decked out with Campagnolo components and topped off with a highly patina'd Brooks saddle.

Another one seen at the Velo in Claremont.

Blue: A color, a mood or emotion, a genre of music. Tune in each Monday for another installment of the Blues, with a cycling twist.