Images | Frameset Features | Geometry | Build and Pricing
It's a well-publicized secret that before the current incarnation of Pegoretti Cicli, the company, Dario was a hired-gun framebuilder producing bikes that would bear someone else's name. In the eighties and early nineties, this was common practice. Larger bicycle companies who sponsored pro teams often did not possess the ability or will to produce the custom frames demanded by their sponsored riders. The examples of this are numerous and some are more well-known than others. In the US, Ben Serotta produced the now-legendary Huffy bikes ridden by the 7-11 team. In Italy, it was Dario Pegoretti who produced bikes for several pro teams, probably the most famous of which was some of the Pinarello models for the Banesto squad, including those ridden by 5-time tour winner Miquel Indurain.
During the later years of Indurain's career, aluminum became the material of choice for high-end pro frames. The availability of larger diameter tubes meant that frames could be built stiff and strong enough for powerful pro riders. The relatively low density of aluminum also meant these frames were far lighter than their steel counterparts of the time. Up until that point, Dario had largely focused his efforts on brazed steel bicycles, but quickly came to embrace not only welding as the art form of choice for tube joining, but also aluminum as a viable material for commercially available frames.
The most current incarnation of the aluminum Pegoretti is the Love #3. For lack of a better description, it's basically an aluminum rendering of the Marcelo. The Columbus XLR8 main tubes and stays are custom drawn to Dario's specifications, which include his signature super oversized chainstays and large diameter main tubes. While we love the attention to detail on all of Dario's frames and the sheer magnificence of his welds, in any material, what really gets our blood pumping when we look at the Love #3 is its sense of pure, raw functionality. This is a bare-knuckled, no-frills race machine. It's the same set of emotions that drove us to make the Gaulzetti Corsa - a desire for a bike that's a purpose-built tool for hard riding and racing. As beautiful as this bike is, you don't dare hang it on your wall for viewing - you ride the crap out of it. Get it dirty, get it scuffed, get it wet and ride it hard. That's the name of the game for the Love #3.
Despite the predilection for hard riding and abuse, the Love #3, like the Marcelo, is a smooth and comfortable ride by any standard. Most people we know who've spent any serious time on a Love #3 report that the sensations they get are closer to those of a fine steel bike as opposed to most aluminum bikes they've ridden. That's because the Love #3 is built more like a steel bike. The tubes are kept relatively thick-walled as Dario is more concerned with the ride quality and longevity of his frames than he is with shaving off grams. We don't know how much a Love #3 weighs, but it's substantially less than a similarly sized steel bike. If you want a Pegoretti for racing and if weight is a concern, Love #3 might be the ticket, because you can easily build up a bike to below the UCI weight limit.
The Love #3 features a unique, two-bolt removeable derailleur hanger bolted to its oversized, hooded alloy dropouts. It uses an Italian threaded bottom bracket, a 30.0 seatpost and a standard 1 1/8" headset. We supply the Love #3 with an Enve Composites 2.0 fork in the rake prescribed by Dario.
LOVE #3 FRAMESET FEATURES
- - Oversized Columbus XLR8 Aluminum Tubeset
- - Machined aluminum dropouts with removeable derailleur hanger
- - Handmade in Italy
- - Constant diameter oversized seat stays
- - 19mm, oversized chain stays
- - Italian threaded bottom bracket
- - Enve Composites 2.0 fork
- - Limited Lifetime Warranty
PURCHASE AND PRICING
Each Pegoretti is sold as a frameset or complete bicycle package. Below you will find a detailed list each Pegoretti we have in stock. Because of the exceptionally high demand, relatively low production numbers and lengthy lead-times on Pegoretti frames, we will sell only those bikes we have in stock - we will not accept pre-orders or custom requests.
As always, feel free to CONTACT US if you would like to discuss the details of any of our products or if you would like to place an order off-line.
Below you will find a list of the Love #3 framesets we currently have in stock:
