New - Bianchi Via Nirone 7 Veloce

Lance9109

Hello all.

Brand new to Bike Radar and road bikes. Have just bought a Bianchi Nirone 7, Campag Veloce for my first bike. Decision based on a brief ride but have to admit also largely about the brand, heritage, looks and reputed quality of the components! Hopefully not a bad first choice of steed? Can't wait to get out on it in warmer drier weather (building fitness on turbo trainer for now).

Look forward to chatting with you all!

smidsy

Nice indeed. I do have a soft spot for Bianchi.

Welcome and don't be afraid to ask questions (beginners section can be very helpful).

Lance9109

Thanks - been checking it out already. Lots of useful stuff, just a case of trying to remember it all!

declan1

Great bike! I love Bianchis'. They're just, well, awesome.

tim_wand

Fantastic choice all round for the right reasons.

Bianchi has great heritage/ Palmares (Race wins. (only Peugeot probably have more) and it should be law that "Italian" bikes wear Campag.

Bianchis should also always be Celeste by law.

Now get an exspresso machine and start wearing lycra thats at least 3 sizes too small.

pride4ever

Reparto Corse, that would look lovely next to my Bottecchia Duello.

Lance9109

Hey, thanks to all those who have commented - enjoyed it? Gives further reassurance I have not made a 'wrong' choice and also gives a good temperature check on the level of banter to expect on here!

There seems to be those who like the whole "Italian" thing and those who don't - 'marmite' I suspect?

Just off for an espresso....if I can manage to move my legs in these size 28 shorts!

Yellow Peril

Great bike. Bianchi is such an iconic brand and they look wonderful in celeste. You'll never have to justify your choice of bike. If anyone ever asks what you ride all you'll have to do is point and they'll instantly STFU.

smidsy

Trust me when I say 'you have no idea of the level of banter yet'!!!!! ;-)

smoggysteve

Great choice. Now start saving up for some new wheels. Trust me you will find out why.

markyone

Nice bike, i like bianchi and of course campag enjoy.

Lance9109

@Smoggysteve - OK mate. I am new to road bikes - whilst I know you can seriously upgrade wheels (suppose like any other components) what is the particular problem with these wheels? Will they be good enough while I am beginning or is there anything in particular to watch for? Thanks mate. Incidentally got the bike from Dresden - Bike24 - v good service and much cheaper than could source in the UK.

smoggysteve

The wheels will be fine as you are starting out. It's just the reparto corse wheels supplied are heavy, and the hubs are not very good. If all the parts on bianchi bikes, they are the obvious flaw. Higher up the range you get fulcrums and campagnolo bora amongst some other makes . But lower down the wheels leave a lot to be desired. A few years ago I swapped out the stock wheels on my via nirone for some shimano rs-30. I know, shimano on a bianchi!!!!! But they were given free and made a massive difference.

Lance9109

Cheers Steve - v helpful. As a beginner think I'll work with them but put some money aside for new wheels as a first upgrade. Are Fulcrums generally a good wheel throughout their range? Know wheels are a bit like what you can afford on the bike itself but they (Fulcrum) seem to start at a reasonable price.

smoggysteve

Depends how much you are willing to spend. Fulcrums have a good rep across the range. Plenty of other makes out there to choose from mind.

nathan75

Coming to this chat late in the day.i have a via Nirone and upgraded the wheels to custom built mavic open pro rims with hope pro3 hubs. It's been a great bike and has really benefited from the wheel upgrade. They retail about £300/set, one thing you have to be aware of is that anything worth more than this is waisted as the bike can't carry it, great bike but like everything has it's limitations. Love my bike and now it has a stable mate as the garage also accommodates a Storck for the summer
Enjoy your Bianchi this summer...

thiscocks

nathan75 wrote:

Coming to this chat late in the day.i have a via Nirone and upgraded the wheels to custom built mavic open pro rims with hope pro3 hubs. It's been a great bike and has really benefited from the wheel upgrade. They retail about £300/set, one thing you have to be aware of is that anything worth more than this is waisted as the bike can't carry it, great bike but like everything has it's limitations.

So your saying there is no point spending more than 300 on wheels for this frame? What rubbish. You will notice a difference on any good wheel set no matter what frame you have. Campag zonda / eurus wheel set would be great for this bianchi. Saying that I have no experience if the current wheels on it which look pretty nice anyway.

smoggysteve

If anything, the via nirone frame is up there with some if the best Alu frames. It's the finishing kit that drags the cost down. If you change some of the the basic FSA items and wheels, it can be a top performer for sportives. Bianchi are notorious for this. Brilliant frame, rest needs a look at. It's only really the wheels and groupsets that improve as you go up the range.

RideOnTime

nice one...

vala

nice bike!
I purchased a Bianchi Via Nirone as my first road bike early this month and have upgraded the wheels to Pacenti SL23/Hope Pro3. Definitely a difference compared to the standard reparto corse wheels.

Wobblehead

Yellow Peril wrote:

Great bike. Bianchi is such an iconic brand and they look wonderful in celeste. You'll never have to justify your choice of bike. If anyone ever asks what you ride all you'll have to do is point and they'll instantly STFU.

This, absolutely

Love mine, would post a pic but last time I did someone took the p1ss out of my wheels

Lance9109

Thanks for the additional comments and advice all - much appreciated. Now been riding for a few months and have got some miles under my belt - averaging about 120 miles per week and easily managed a 58 miler last Sunday. I'm never going to be a racer (the ride above took me just over 3 hours) but the Bianchi allows me to get a good pace going and don't feel like I am totally shaming myself in comparison to most of the other riders around when I'm out and about? Helps my mate who's training for triathlon/iron man goes with me.

Was looking at the Campag Zonda wheels - my climbing is getting so much better but curious as to whether a little less weight/better wheels would help more again. Or could it just be the urge to spend more hard earned and flash the bike up a bit?

Interestingly I haven't seen any other Bianchis around either although I know they're quite popular - maybe if we get more summer weather? Can't believe it took me so long to get into cycling - golf now comes a firm second best. Roll on some more sun! 8)

Calpol

Lance9109 wrote:

Thanks for the additional comments and advice all - much appreciated. Now been riding for a few months and have got some miles under my belt - averaging about 120 miles per week and easily managed a 58 miler last Sunday. I'm never going to be a racer (the ride above took me just over 3 hours) but the Bianchi allows me to get a good pace going and don't feel like I am totally shaming myself in comparison to most of the other riders 8)

Between 18 and 19mph average. Hardly too shabby. Maybe you could be a racer.

RideOnTime

gaining quite a following...

vvilko

Hopefully I'll be getting the same bike with a "cycle to work" scheme that I've persuaded my company to apply for. Really hope it pays off, because the bike is just jaw droppingly stunning...

Lance9109

Can only talk from personal experience Vvilko but absolutely love mine and never doubted my choice of first bike. Always come home grinning like the Cheshire Cat!

Hope you get to enjoy!

Lance9109

@Calpol. Sorry mate but misled you a bit there. :oops: Was about 3 hours 15 so worked it out at around 16mph? Not brilliant but gives me a good work out and as a beginner I enjoy it anyway. At 43 I think any prospect of racing days could be behind me?!!