Recently bought an M10s frame and then got paranoid that I had bought a Chinago despite the assurances of a substantial seller, checking his receipt and the original purchase price and the asking price being what one would expect to pay for a genuine Colnago. The lack of serial numbers on Colnago's does not help matters either. Thought I would post the results of my investigations in the hope that they may prove helpful to other prospective Colnago purchasers. M10 - check that the braze-on is riveted properly and not using a clamp-on. The little club logo behind the saddle on late model M10's can have a slight tilt to it. Check the weight and geometry. Fake Colnago's are lighter by as much as 150 - 200 gm than the real thing. If you can get a look inside the tubing, you should see a ribbing effect, not a smooth finish. Check the paintwork closely. Late model Colnago's which do not show the naked carbon have a very high quality paintwork (done in Italy) which the Chinese have not yet managed to copy too well. You should also be aware that the pics of Colnago's that are used on the Chinago websites are pics of genuine bikes taken from the Colnago site and are no help in identifying a fake. Ultimately, the ride will tell. If it is a smooth, solid, responsive ride, which encourages you to fly up and down hills with absolute confidence, you have a Colnago. Apparently fake Colnago's have a twitchy, harsh ride that tends to judder at higher speeds, especially over rough surfaces.
