DISRAELI GEARS
In a derailleur world dominated by Shimano, in which companies as mighty as SRAM and Campagnolo struggle to make an impact, where a plethora of US CNC boutiques have tried and failed to survive, it is heartening to come across Tiso. Established in 1979 by Luciano Tiso as a CNC shop ‘servicing some of the biggest names in the Italian cycle industry’, Tiso is based in Caselserugo near Padua. In 2004 I suspect that its main business is manufacturing small parts like sealed bearing pulley wheels, but it resolutely kept manufacturing derailleurs for many, many, years.
I don’t have accurate dates, but I suspect that Tiso’s original model was the angular Venda 601 model that took its design cues from the US designs of the mid 1990s (see Paul and Precision Billet). I think this model may have appeared in the late 1990s.
At Eurobike in 2002 Tiso launched their Sereo 130 and Altore 366 models - which are virtually identical to each other but compatible with Campagnolo and Shimano systems respectively. These were much more curvaceous designs - demonstrating how the subtlety of CNC technology had progressed in a decade. This range was extended in 2005 to include a Triathlon specific Tri 300 model (which I suspect was a cynically rebadged Altore 366) and, possibly later, a new Venda 601 (an Altore 366 with a long cage) and mid-length cage versions of the Sereo 130 and Altore 366. The Tri 300 model disappeared fairly quickly - certainly by 2012 - but the others may still have been in production in 2013. They are not shown in the 2014 catalogue. These derailleurs were beautifully made, extremely light, weirdly named (what do those names and numbers mean?) and charmingly irrelevant.
At Eurobike in 2010 Tiso showed designs for a 11 or 12 speed wireless electronic derailleur system. Delivery was promised for 2011. The look at this time was edgy and futuristic.
By December 2012 a working prototype had appeared and it’s operation was featured in a rather strange promotional video on YouTube. The video promised a Tiso 12 speed cassette (although the system promised compatibility with 10 and 11 speed Campagnolo and Shimano cassettes) and what was referred to as ‘wireless or BlueTooth’ capability, which seems resolutely vague. The group included the cassette, front and rear derailleurs, levers and a central control box. By this time the rear derailleur had become a bloated, rounded, object - somewhat reminiscent of the over-fed look of the Airbus A380. I have never seen a production version of this system and, sadly, it seems to have disappeared without trace.
Or perhaps not... there is a rumour, which refuses to die, that elements of the Tiso wireless derailleur were adopted by FSA and incorporated into the FSA K-Force WE.
see also Japanese Patent # S58-67587 - SunTour 1981
see also Japanese Patent # S58-67587 - SunTour 1981
see also La Bicicletta Guida 99 - Componenti 1999
see also La Bicicletta Guida 99 - Componenti 1999
Tiso - instructions 2005
Tiso - instructions 2005
see also Taiwanese Patent # I410354/201121842 - FSA 2009
see also Taiwanese Patent # I410354/201121842 - FSA 2009
see also Taiwanese Patent # I391294/201136802 - FSA 2010
see also Taiwanese Patent # I391294/201136802 - FSA 2010
Tiso - leaflet 2010
Tiso - leaflet 2010
Tiso - sticker 2010
Tiso - sticker 2010
see also Italian Patent # 2012 A000325 - Tiso
see also Italian Patent # 2012 A000325 - Tiso
see also Italian Patent # 2012 A000326 - Tiso
see also Italian Patent # 2012 A000326 - Tiso
see also Italian Patent # 2012 A000348 - Tiso
see also Italian Patent # 2012 A000348 - Tiso
see also Italian Patent # 2012 A000349 - Tiso
see also Italian Patent # 2012 A000349 - Tiso
Tiso - Wireless 12 Speed Groupset 2012
Tiso - Wireless 12 Speed Groupset 2012
see also International Patent # 2015/068125 A1 - Tiso 2013
see also International Patent # 2015/068125 A1 - Tiso 2013
see also Taiwanese Patent # I518001/201520126 - FSA 2013
see also Taiwanese Patent # I518001/201520126 - FSA 2013
see also Albabici - web site 2015
see also Albabici - web site 2015
see also Taiwanese Patent # I611973/201838863 - FSA 2017
see also Taiwanese Patent # I611973/201838863 - FSA 2017
see also Taiwanese Patent # I611979/201900501 - FSA 2017
see also Taiwanese Patent # I611979/201900501 - FSA 2017
see also Albabici - web site 2018
see also Albabici - web site 2018
see also Albabici - web site 2019
see also Albabici - web site 2019
