Last Updated on October 28, 2023 by FAB Jim The Cyclist
Zeus is the only company that I know of that made bikes and almost all the parts. They made frames, brakes, derailleurs, pedals, cranks, seatposts… I think this really sets them apart from other bike companies in history. They seem to be rare in my area as I have seen very few of them for sale, but those I have seen are very nice. Zeus USA was in NY so I would guess there are more bikes in that area of the country.
The company was founded in 1926 in Spain by Nicholas de Arregui and started by making components and other small parts. During the 60s and 70s they are mostly known for their Criterium series components that were close copies of Campagnolo models at competitive prices. Some say they were cheap copies of the Campy components. They also had an Alfa line below Criterium.
They stepped away from copying Campagnolo when they introduced the Zeus 2000 groupset in the 70s. This group used titanium and lots of drillium to make them very light. It’s a very attractive looking group.
The bike models went from sport models all the way to professional level bikes. Top of the line models used Reynolds 531 tubing with Nervex lugs and all their best components. I believe their line was only road bikes.
It seems they went out of business during the 1990s, but the brand was bought by Orbea and they continue to use the name.
Models
Competition – top of the line road bike
Criterium – road bike
Cronos – road bike
Palamares – sport road bike
Premium – road bike
Professional – top of the line road bike
Super Cronos – top of the line road bike
Super Ser – professional road bike
Victoria – entry level road bike
Value
Given how rare they seem to be I expect all of them to hold a pretty good value. I haven’t seen many for sale so I can’t give a really accurate range for their value. My best guess is a really nice quality top of the line model would be valued around $1,000.
1969 Zeus Road bike unknown model
Here is some great literature I received from Paul Gobat of Whistle Stop Bike Shop:
Paul Gobat
Shop Steward
Whistle Stop Bike Shop
2 E Franklin Street
New Freedom, PA 17349
That Zeus 2000 still looks an awful lot like Campagnolo Record. Back in the day (50 years ago), Zeus was known as a Campy rip-off. They were said to ignore patent law. I don’t pretend to know the whole truth. Orbea is an interesting story in itself – a worker’s co-operative in a cooperative economy.