Bikes of the Bunch | Passoni Titanio Puro

December 19, 2012

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of going for a ride with the owner of Passoni, Matteo Cassina. Matteo and his family are taking a trip around the globe to visit the different markets, meet with customers, and see what the world has to offer.

Matteo and I went for a leisurely Beach Road ride and he told me more about the history of Passoni. Matteo himself isn’t originally from the cycling industry however. He recently decided to throw away his career in corporate finance and follow his heart by buying into the Passoni family company a short while ago.

Now, before the critics chime in and comment on any imperfections with Matteo’s bike, please keep this in mind. I asked to photograph this bike after our ride (which took a lot of convincing), and it’s been most of the way around the world without a proper wash or tidy up. This is not showbike and it only had a quick wipe-down with babywipes (thus the horrible residue on that beautiful titanium frame).

What’s a bike like this worth? This isn’t a production model but a Passoni titanium frame with a similar spec would run about $13,000 AUD. Add the obligatory lightweights, then you’re quickly approaching the price of a new Hyundai. What a beauty.

: Cinelli RAM handlebars (made for Passoni)

: Passoni’s trademark symbol is subtly placed in varios areas of the frame

: Beautifully smooth welds and finish

: Clavicula Crankset and Stronglight chainrings

: A bike that oozes pure class which combines a conservative design with hints of contemporary shapes and details

: Matteo Cassina, co-owner of Passoni

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Ben

Man… that is class! Love it
Ed

classy bike but not a fan of the colour of the cranks, stem, bars and forks. also the seat clamp looks to be round the worng way.
- Jim
  
  I, on the other hand, am a massive fan of that bike. Love earthy and subtle colours. Something that isn’t done anywhere near enough with road bikes IMO.
  - Jim
    
    I should have said – that bike’s COLOUR scheme :)
- The Potato Man
  
  There are some good reasons to have it turned that way. Less chance for grit to get stuck in the seat tube cut out, and a more consistent loading around the cut out might reduce stress somewhat.
- eatmorelard
  
  If I was going to spend that much on a bike, at least get a Ti seat post clamp to match! Beautiful bike otherwise. For some reason, the colour scheme makes the crank arms look really short?
- Guest
  
  There is reason for the seat clamp facing this way……
  - Ucarchia
    
    I run the seat clamp in the some direction for two reasons, it releaves the stress from the theads and it does stay cleaner
  - Ucarchia
    
    I run the seat clamp in the some direction for two reasons, it releaves the stress from the theads and it does stay cleaner
Michal

Thanks for sharing. It’s not “LOUD”. Very attractive bike. Love fine touches like matching colour on the crank, stem, bars, tip of the saddle and fork; matching seatpost “ornament” with rear brake “bar” , skewer levers and badge. Little italian flag and Passoni badge in front tops it. Pure class matched with Record components. Did Matteo get fitted for it? 51tooth compact front chainring?? How heavy is this bike???
timmy

I think this is the most unadulterated and pure representation of a bike that i’ve seen for some time. All elements seem to have been thoughtfully included and it is unique in its subtlety and muted tones. Thank you for sharing it with us.

On another note, i think i’d like to travel the globe with my bike also. Probably leave the family at home though for this one.
Chris

Wow – very, very nice ride.
Chris

Wow – very, very nice ride.
http://www.facebook.com/pmark1bike pmark1bike

Well that’s the best bike of the bunch so far! Absolutely beautiful, Italian bike and group set is a nice match. BTW Hyundai isnt the cheapest car around any more. :-)
Todd!

Great looking bike. I have always been quite a fan of Titanium bikes and the Passoni brand. The beautiful bike that Glen from Bespoke owns rates up there as one of the nicest I have ever seen. This bike is sensational also. The small detail repeated from the head tube badge through to the seat post, skewers and brake bridge… looks great.

My only two questions are… can we get the front Veloflex logo lined up with the valve…?

Most importantly – when going “Raw” titanium, why smooth over the welds? Isn’t this affecting the integrity of the welds? I was told by the people when I investigated the purchase of my first hand built bike that in traditional frame building circles covering over the welds are seen to allude to a frame builder masking poor craftsmanship.
- Steel
  
  Can second your anecdotal advice that grinding welds is poor form from an engineering perspective. What I was told: When a weld cools, the surface smooths over, closing over any microcracks. When you grind the weld back, it exposes the microcracks underneath which creates stress raisers. This isn’t a problem from a yield or ultimate tensile strength point of view (your frame is still just as strong), but with fatigue cycling (repetitive movement of the joints back and forth), it reduces the durability of the frame.
  
  On the other hand, it looks so cool.
  - jules
    
    this is very nitpicky (who, me?) but from my memory of materials engineering, crack propagation isn’t fatigue failure. but i’ve drunk an awful lot of alcohol since i studied it so i could be wrong.
    
    on the other hand, i’m much more confident in saying how that bike rocks.
    - The Potato Man
      
      Sort of, but they are related. Crack propagation is a result of cyclic loading, just like fatigue, but it is a different mechanism. Surface imperfections can act a stress risers which then turn into cracks and are “scissored” open with each cycle.
      
      A great “real” everyday bike.
- http://www.cyclingTipsBlog.com cyclingTips
  
  When I asked Matteo he told me the reason why they smooth over the welds. I can’t remember exactly so I’ll ask him and get back to you. I believe the purpose had something to do with creating the “feel” of the ride, but I could be mistaken.
- Craig
  
  These welds are still TIG’ed but alot more filler is laid down and then filed back to produce the fillet brazed look. Provided the weld has sufficient penetration and the proper TIG/Titanium welding protocols followed there would be no reason for these welds to fail.
  In fact they may even be stronger because there is more filler/area covered but also a bit heavier.
  For me though this meathod of joining Ti tubes does nothing for me. As far as I’m concerned there is nothing more beautiful than well TIG’ed joins on Ti frames like Moots and Baums etc.
  I will say that its nice to see a Ti frame without paint on it for once!
  - Andrew
    
    I have worked in the chemical industry and off shore with very high pressure equipment. The welding guys who do this work are complete craftsman and would never grind/ wire brush back a weld. The flow of the weld run is art to them and a signature. In the case of a bike we are never going to see any where near the stresses so taking the weld back is for aesthetics. I for one have no issue at all seeing fine welding
    - Craig
      
      Andrew I can assure you that the welds on this frame are filed and sanded back after laying down a bunch of filler rod during welding.
      - Craig
        
        Oh, and thats coming from a qualified Tig welder and Ti enthusiast.
- Echidna_sg
  
  Veloflex logo is glaring now you mention it… as is the height of the headset/spacer stack… on a custom bike built for a “family” member, surely this is a touch odd?
  - Sean Doyle
    
    I’d suggest Matteo is quite tall and to get the frame to come up to his bars would have removed some of the aesthetics. As it is it already looks slightly odd shaped with it’s tall head tube.
Steel

Is titanium something I just won’t get until I ride it? I don’t understand why on all these Ti bikes you’ve got a million carbon bits like cranks,wheels, seat posts, forks etc… Why not build the whole thing out of carbon.
- JM
  
  And then you’d have yourself another carbon clone, pressed by the minute in a Taiwanese mega factory! Great bikes, but you aren’t going to get a call for a Bikes From the Bunch interview anytime soon.
- Nick
  
  Did you *SEE* that frame?
  
  It’s true that it would have been cheaper and easier to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel with Solver Maxi Wash ceiling paint, though.
- Alan
  
  I have two titanium bikes, one off-the-rack, one custom made. After a few Audax rides, I got what titanium is all about.
JM

Love the Passoni and 2 votes for Matteo’s cool vest.
http://twitter.com/thesadpigoink tsp.

Love. Those cables would look seriously at home on my cento uno.
- jules
  
  does anyone know what brand the outers are?
  - Timo
    
    Nokon.
shoot goal

Check out the finish of the welds -seriously beautiful work.

Clean lines, simplicity, want!
Anonymous

Pure bike porn!!! Thanks for sharing!
Anonymous

Very nice. I like the gentle swoop of the bars. And everything else, really.
Anonymous

Just noticed the custom touch to the saddle (SLR?) Nice.
http://twitter.com/rgmerk Robert Merkel

Lovely bike.
I notice that the crank has scuff marks from where his shoe rubs against it. I have the same issue. How common is this, and does it matter (costmetics aside)?
- Notso Swift
  
  The top coat on Carbon is purely cosmetic, however, you can let other stuff in once you get through that
Notso Swift

Painting a Clavicula- that is not something you see every day
Notso Swift

Painting a Clavicula- that is not something you see every day
Hardo

You know what I love about this bike…. the branding doesn’t destroy the lines of the bike. Any text used fits beautifully into it’s sleek surroundings, subtly drawing you in and stroking your eyes. Stickers aren’t just slapped on as large as possible in amongst a slew of horrible obtuse line graphics, screaming at you to notice it…. rather than just the signature on the machine it’s trying to advertise. Most custom bike builders have a good grasp of the concept of ”less is more”. Baum pulls it off particularly well, within their strikingly bold, but beautiful colour schemes.

Some mass manufacturers have a lot to learn about the subtle art of branding.
Lexington

I dont like bikes like this, they are too old, bit like my wife haha
- KathC
  
  Lexington you have a really different name, i like it though but i guess everyone can have there own opionins but if its irrelevant theres no point in saying anything.
  - Hardo
    
    I feel like I’ve accidentally logged into a parallel universe… are any of you two from the post apocalyptic 21.12.12 future?
- JohnnySins
  
  Couldn’t agree more Lex out with the old in the with new ( My wife out, my new GF in ;) )
Theo De Roza

I’ve had the honour and opportunity to see, feel and get my legs over Matteo’s bike when he was in Singapore. Utterly impressed with it!
Hrosak

#12, other then the third Baum which was left out.

Bikes of the Bunch | Passoni Titanio Puro

December 19, 2012

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