Ask around about fake vintage Campagnolo and you will hear plenty of stories. The reference sources this site relies on (Disraeli Gears, Velobase, the Velo-Retro Campagnolo timeline) document very little in the way of outright counterfeit 1970s and 1980s Campagnolo components. What they do document, in detail, is how the genuine parts changed from year to year. That record is your best tool, because the problems you are most likely to meet on eBay are genuine parts that are misidentified, mixed from different years, refinished, or described as "NOS" when they have been fitted and used.
"Super Record" that is partly Nuovo Record
This is the claim most worth checking, because the two groups share so much. Disraeli Gears points out that the Super Record rear derailleur uses the same knuckles and alloy as the Nuovo Record and a geometrically identical parallelogram. The real differences are the titanium pivot bolts, the black anodizing and a reshaped pulley cage. Since parts swap, a derailleur can be assembled from both. And since anodizing can be done at any time, colour alone proves nothing. Check these together:
- Pivot bolts. Titanium is normal, but Campagnolo fitted aluminium bolts on 1978–79 derailleurs because of a titanium shortage, so read the bolts against the date stamp.
- The b-knuckle stamp. Super Record ran from 'PATENT-73' to 'PAT.84', then 'PAT.11' in 1985, then no date.
- The inner parallelogram plate. On Disraeli Gears' dated examples, a 1977 Super Record and a 1981 Nuovo Record are both engraved 'BREV. INT. CAMPAGNOLO', while 1978 and 1980 Super Records carry a stylised 'SUPERECORD'. The last derailleurs of both groups have a plain plate.
- The cage. The 1978 revision brought a script logo and a different pulley cage, so a cage that doesn't match the stamp date is a clue that parts have been swapped.
Brakes need the same care. Velobase describes early Super Record calipers as matching the Nuovo Record 2040 except for aluminium shoe holders, and those swap in minutes. Judge a Super Record brake set on everything together: the drilled levers (shown in the 1974 catalog), the arm markings, and for 1985-on calipers, the triangular arm section and script logo.
Campagnolo's own lookalikes
Some confusion is built in, because Campagnolo's lower-tier lines borrowed Record styling. According to the Velo-Retro timeline, the Gran Sport front derailleur of the late 1970s had a Record-style plain cage stamped with the globe logo. Gran Sport brakes are engraved "Gran Sport", and Gran Sport cranks have flat-bottomed fluting. Velobase also lists a Rally rear derailleur built with a Nuovo Record parallelogram. Read the engraving on every part rather than trusting the overall look. The cranks have a separate trap: the back of a genuine Record Strada arm shows the length, "Strada" and a date code, so ask for that photo before you accept a "Super Record crankset" label on a 1049/A.
Stickers, decals and boxes
Campagnolo itself handed out window and frame stickers as promotional items (the 1982 catalog lists them), so a Campagnolo sticker on a frame, wheel or box tells you nothing about the parts. The same goes for packaging. An empty period box can end up around any part, so a box only supports a listing when its label matches the part inside exactly. Campagnolo hub boxes, for example, were labelled with the spoke count.
Refinished and polished parts
Nuovo Record aluminium was given a satin lustre, not a mirror shine. Disraeli Gears passes on the story that Tullio Campagnolo had the parts tumbled to get it. A mirror-bright Nuovo Record part has usually been polished since, and polishing softens or wipes out the shallow marks that date the part: patent stamps, "Brev." lettering and crank date codes. Refinished parts work fine. The issue is only whether the listing says "refinished". Ask for photos in daylight. Crisp stamps with soft edges around them are a polishing tell.
"Complete original group"
A group bought new should date to within a year or two across its parts. The Velo-Retro timeline gives the codes:
- Rear derailleur b-knuckle stamps track the year of manufacture.
- Crank arms carry a diamond (1970s) or circle (early 1980s) with the last digit of the year, then square two-character codes from 1981.
- Hub locknuts are often stamped with the year.
- The 1978 safety changes (curved quick-release levers, domed brake cams, plastic-tipped shoe guides, a lip on the front derailleur) split pre- and post-1978 parts at a glance.
Allow some spread, because Campagnolo parts often reached riders before or after the catalog that showed them. A '74 derailleur, an '81 crank and post-1978 brakes is a bike that has been worked on. That's fine, as long as the listing doesn't describe it as an untouched original group. Our dating guide has the full code tables.
What "NOS" should mean
Sheldon Brown's glossary defines NOS (new old stock) as classic parts that were never sold or put into use. Storage wear such as light scuffs or a dusty box is consistent with that. Installation marks are not:
- Crank arms: marks in the square taper or on the pedal threads, or wear on the chainring teeth.
- Derailleurs: a bright ring where the mounting bolt bore against a dropout, or a crushed-strand impression under the cable clamp.
- Brakes: worn or glazed shoes, or a cable-clamp mark.
- Hubs: wrench marks on cones and locknuts, or quick-release serration marks on the locknut faces.
- Down-tube levers: clamp scratches.
"Never ridden", "take-off" and "shop wear" are different claims from NOS, and honest sellers say which one they mean. For the mechanical side of judging used parts, see our inspection checklist.
The rule that saves the most trouble
Ask for the stamps before you bid. A seller who knows the part will photograph the b-knuckle, the back of the crank arm and the brake arms without fuss. If the stamps don't match the title, bid on what the stamps say, or move on. For which group to target in the first place, start with our guide to buying vintage Campagnolo on eBay.
