The Abeni brothers opened Europa Cycles in Sydney Australia in 1973 and they're still going strong.
Over the years they've sold a lot of different brands including bikes under their own name.
I bought my example for not a lot of money as a present to myself around 6 months ago. It was in a neglected state but I knew it had potential.
People who know more than me about bikes have told me the frame is a Technotrat frame from around the late 80's or early 90's. They were made in Italy, I'm unsure what tubing but a couple of mates think it may be Columbus.
When I first bought it it had been tarted up to look good for photos but was a bit tatty.
I stripped it down and replaced the original Shimano 105 7 speed groupset (with downtube shifters) with a later 105 8 speed groupset with combined brakes/shifters.
The wheels on it were Mavic Aksiums, these were eventually replaced with a set of Fulcrum Racing Zeros with Continental GP5000's- a massive improvement.
It's my favourite bike to ride. With 39/53 on the front and 11-28 on the back the gearing has plenty of options, the Vetta seat is comfy for a few hours and at 10.3kg and with the modern Fulcrum wheels it's light and responsive.
Plus I love the original colour scheme, even with it's "patina". I had plans to repaint but I think original paint tells a story.
