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OldRoads.com
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| "Eagle" brand derailure - saw one today on that old Ross I was telling you about (or was it the Fuji?). Anyway, it was a stylish LOOKING derailure. I don't remember seeing them anywhere before. Has anybody ever heard of them? Are they worth saving/rescueing? Mike Stone |
| Walter is correct, unless both of us are wrong. |
| I seem to remember them on depatment store bikes in the 1970s. However, noone would consider THOSE to be classy. I've never seen better quality agle shifters. I associate Eagle with lower line Shimano but could be wrong. |
| This exact one is mentioned in Berto's book "Dancing Chain" |
| Help!, I used to own an Elswick 'Avenger Convincible' when I was a kid. Most unusual bicycle with duplex down and seat tubes and 'floating' sprung -loaded crank to keep sprockets in line. Anyone else evr heard of it? as I've described it to a friend whose disbelief is absolute! By the way I chose this bike which seemed to be prewar as a birthday gift in the early 60's, over a new bike...it seemed so esoteric! A pcture would be nice if anyone has one! Thanks if you can help Jon |
| I looked at an old Raleigh 10 speed. I thought maybe it was an early 80's or late 70's. It has a serial number stamped on the back-side of the seat down-tube (GK400103). It also has cranks with cotter pins???that seems old... I tried to look up the serial number in the Raleigh database - but found no such numbers like that up to about 1966....that's as far as it went. Does anybody have any idea? |
| This was the basic, cheap, bread and butter ten speed for teenagers. The lower end model, nothing special. A good bike in it's day but it doesn't have the 531 tubing and if you apply yourself you can find the better bikes out there. I take the parts off these like the crank set for projects. The serial numbers won't help because nobody has that chart on the web not really for these years anyway. |
| I found a Retro Raleigh site....but still no luck in figuring out that serial number. Even into the 80's the number made no sense. Maybe it's a lower-end bike - and there is not much info available. |
| Thank you for your reply. I appreciate the information. That bike is the kind of thing I'm looking for...but a higher-end bike...something old (I especially like the lightweights) that isn't too expensive. I will keep looking - I hardly ever find anything close to home...that Raleigh Grand Prix was about the closest I have found so far. Maybe with some more diligent looking - and some networking - I will find one. Again, Thanks! |
| I have a Fuji Dynamic 10 for sale I am the original owner and the bike is in excellent condition. I have traveled throughout with it and have recently retired it from my fleet. It is a 1975 with all of the original manual. bll of sale and has a 25" frame. If interested I am asking $150 dollars and would deliver in Northern/Central Massachusetts. Shipping to elsewhere would be additional. |
| I watched all of the Giro De Italia and Tour De France recently and have a question that has been bothering me ever since. How do the mechanics change a rear wheel with no more apparent effort than if they were changing a front wheel? I find it a tedious job even on my bikes that have the braze-on post. Is it the hardware or just plain experience and talent? |
| Lots of experience and cooperation from the cyclist (e.g., shifting into the small-small lowest-tension gearing combination, releasing the brake, and acting as a shop stand). They may also take advantage of that little chain-hanging peg near the bottom of the right seat stay, and they all have either vertical dropouts or horizontals with position-adjusting screws. The way I would proceed is: 1) hang the chain on the peg; 2) open the QR with the left hand; 3) push the axle forward and/or downward with the thumbs, while pulling the derailleur body back with the right hand; 4) exchange wheels, and then reverse the procedure. |
| If you try to use the seat stay peg you will never be able to do quickly. None of the pro's bikes have such useless nonsense! The small cog is needed, as is a lot of experience as mentioned earlier. Please also remember that the pros ride on tyres that are generally no wider than the rim the are installed on, thereby making brake clearance a breeze |
| Anyone have experience with the Suntour Le Pree DRs? I saw these on an old Nishiki (and I think they were only available on Nishikis) ... any commnets on quality and where they fit in the Suntour line? thanks |
| Like most Suntour derailleurs the LePree functioned very well. It was not one of their top of the liners. Below, obviously, Superbe as well as Sprit. I believe it predates the Cyclones but probably a little bit below that too. Definitely above the Honor. I'm working strictly off of 20+ year old memory and if someone with more authoritative info wants to correct me by all means chime in. |
| THE LEPREE SEEMS TO COME AFTER THE ORIGINAL CYCLONE IN THE EARLY EIGHTIES AND IS PROBABLY BELOW IT AND POSSIBLY SIMILAR IN LEVEL TO THE VX AND VGT. I HAD A NISHIKI PRESTIQUE THAT HAD LEPREE ON IT. EUGENE SLOANE CALLED THE VGT THE FIRST AFFORDABLE LIGHTWEIGHT LONG CAGE DERAILER THAT SET THE STANDARD. ITS A SHAME THAT SUNTOUR HAD TO CHANGE DESIGNS AND NAMES IN THE 80's. |
| The 1985 League Fuji, the entry level 'racer', has SunTour LePree DR front and back. This surprised me as I thought that line to be a Nishiki exclusive per 'Sunset for SunTour'. The next level up, the Club Fuji, has Cyclone equipment, I belienve. I can't comment on quality as I do not have enough experience with comparing grupos. Paul Brodek of Fuji has been kind enough to key in a fair amount of information on the 1985 Fuji products and puts the quality in the area of the Shimano Tiagra/105. www.firstflightbikes.com/suntour.htm lists it as mid-priced along with Cyclone. The author of Sunset for SunTour mentions it, but 1985 is one year for which he does not do a run down of the pecking order. |
| There is a used bike seller in the neighborhood with a bunch of old bikes in front of his house for sale. Among other very common machines, he has a white Ross 10-speed and an old Fuji ten speed. These might not be particularly collectible in the true sense of the word, but some people have a passion for them. Is anybody interested? I could probably talk him into selling them cheap. Mike Stone |
| Time warp, anyone? eBay item #1174691322 Interestingly, in almost 30 years, the price has gone from $260 to $720 (so far). I have not checked the history of the consumer price index recently, but I think this represents a stagnant (inflation-adjusted) price over the years. I will be very interested to see the final selling price on this item. Seeing the picture of the frame with its original wrapping paper took me back to my days of assembling and repairing Peugeots at Bikecology/Supergo. |
| Nice find, wow! Did the version with the Super SLJ alloy derailleurs come later? This bike was excellent value for the dollar in it's day. Our bike shop really had nothing comparable at that price point, just a nicely finished Fuji but frankly not in the same league as a rider even if it was perhaps prettier. |
| I'm looking for a set of decals for a schwinn paramount, 1990.. Robby |
| I'd contact Waterford (www.waterfordbicycles.com?),or CycleArt (www.CycleArt.com). |
| Does any know the nishiki roadmaster, or the fuji league. both seem from the late 70's early 80's. The fuji has suntour le pree derailers, sugino cranks, and dia compe g brakes with valulite quad butted tubing. The nishiki has shimano 600 crank with altus drailers and brakes. My guess is both are mid priced. |
| Were mid-priced is more like it. You couldn't give them away now. |
| Are you crazy man! Those are nice bikes! Thje Fuji especially. Their top of the line was $1200 in 1978. I think you've got some nice bikes and hope you enjoy them! |
| You're joking, right? No bikes, at least none that I know of were $1,200 in 1978, and certainly not these. I remember the finest (no pun intended) Fujis available at our local bicycle shop in that era were around, maybe $300+. I don't remember the componentry, but the items mentioned in the intial post were not top-of-the-line then, or now. |
| If I recall correctly, mid-to-high-end road bicycles (e.g. Schwinn Paramount, Raleigh Pro, Bianchi Specialissima, Masi Gran Criterium, etc.) sold for around $350 in 1970, and prices escalated rapidly during the ensuing bike boom. (Bargain-hunters opted for the $260 Peugeot PX-10 or Nishiki Road Compe instead.) In the mid 1970s, the Colnagos, Cinellis, etc. were still under the $1K mark. Japanese bikes, even the good ones, were consistently priced lower than their European counterparts. As I learned through personal experience, during the early 1970s, Japanese component engineering (SunTour derailleurs, DiaCompe brakes, even Sugino cranks) was still way ahead of Japanese frame engineering, although the best late-1970s Japanese frames were world-class. |
| There are some nice Japanese bikes out there, but only the most unusual have collector's value. As John noted above, the far more collector-worthy PX-10 strugles to maintain its original value when the price is adjusted for inflation. I also don't recall $1200 Fujis in '78. I think some top-end bikes were pushing that range, however, as the very expensive Super Record stuff became more popular about then. |
| My first "real" bike was a Motobecane. A Nomade, at or near the bottom of the line but far superior to what I was riding and, to be blunt, better than the Varsinentals that my friends rode. Paid somewher between 225-275$ for it in I think 1978. Spent 75$ or less for alloy rims, bars and bar-end shifters and had a solid bike for around 300$ Around 1979-80 a dealer began introducing Treks and tried to talk me off my Moto and on to one. Don't remember the model but I do the asking price: 540$. My mother had a fit and I never bought it. By then I was hanging out with some serious riders and the "1000$ bike" was something you said in a hushed and reverential tone of voice. Unless you were my friend that had a top line Viscount that was every bit as light and sold for around 500$ 1000$ seemed to be the standard at least into the mid-80s. Yes you could spend more by then but there was no real need to and 500$ still bought a real nice road bike. As a reference I bought a brand new Cannondale (yeah, yeah, yeah) frameset for 250$ in '86. A 600EX gruppo cost a little bit less than that (Shimano getting ready to switch to SIS) and with LBS made wheels I was rolling on a then quite light 21.5-22lb bike for appox 600$. Those days are gone forever as I see Bicycling mag review bikes and claim this or that is a "great deal" for "only" 1000$. Oh well. |
| My first "real" bike was a Motobecane. A Nomade, at or near the bottom of the line but far superior to what I was riding and, to be blunt, better than the Varsinentals that my friends rode. Paid somewher between 225-275$ for it in I think 1978. Spent 75$ or less for alloy rims, bars and bar-end shifters and had a solid bike for around 300$ Around 1979-80 a dealer began introducing Treks and tried to talk me off my Moto and on to one. Don't remember the model but I do the asking price: 540$. My mother had a fit and I never bought it. By then I was hanging out with some serious riders and the "1000$ bike" was something you said in a hushed and reverential tone of voice. Unless you were my friend that had a top line Viscount that was every bit as light and sold for around 500$ 1000$ seemed to be the standard at least into the mid-80s. Yes you could spend more by then but there was no real need to and 500$ still bought a real nice road bike. As a reference I bought a brand new Cannondale (yeah, yeah, yeah) frameset for 250$ in '86. A 600EX gruppo cost a little bit less than that (Shimano getting ready to switch to SIS) and with LBS made wheels I was rolling on a then quite light 21.5-22lb bike for appox 600$. Those days are gone forever as I see Bicycling mag review bikes and claim this or that is a "great deal" for "only" 1000$. Oh well. |
| My post above about prices should be down here and in only 1 copy. Wrong keys---Sorry. |
| FROM EUGENES SLOANES "THE ALL NEW COMPLETE BOOK OF BICYCLING", PARAMOUNT TOURING $885, RACER $900, RALEIGH PRO $898, WINSDOR PRO $646, GIOS TORINO SUPER RECORD STRADA $1,095, AUSTRO DAIMLER ULTIMA 1,600 AND KLEIN "SUPER LIGHT" $1,998. THE HIGHEST JAPANESE IS THE SOMA SUPERBE AT $800< MOST OF THE MID PRICED BIKES ARE IN THE RANGE OF $200-300 SUCH AS THE NISHIKI INTERNATIONAL $299 AND THE FUJI ROAYALE $229. |
| Thanks for the much-needed data point, Jimbo. What year is your Sloane's? Because of the bike boom and because of general runaway inflation between 1975 to 1980, bicycle prices escalated pretty fast during portions of the 1970s. Also, were those were list prices, from which "street" discounts were readily available? |
| I paid $150 for my Nishiki International in 1975. My Dad was furious that I had spent that much money. As I stated in earlier posting, the most expensive bike on the floor, or at least the one accorded the place of honor was surprisingly not a Paramount (the store was a Schwinn dealer) but some sort of hot Fuji in pinkish metal-flake and chrome. May have had Campy or possibly French stuff. I believe that it was in the high $300's, but could be way off base. The next new bike I bought was a 1st generation Trek mountain bike from REI in 1986 on sale for $279. |
| THAT WAS FROM THE 3rd EDITION 1980. THE 1srt EDITION OF THE BOOK IN 1970 HAS A PX-10 FOR $160! ALSO THE PARAMOUNT GOES FOR $245, A CHINELLI FOR $255 AND A FREJUS FOR $215! THESE ARE THE BOOK PRICES, PROBABLY FORM CATALOGS. THE 2nd EDITION DOESNT LIST ANY PRICES. THE PARAMOUNT PRICE INCREASED OVER 3X IN TEN YEARS! |
| I have the 78- Fuji cat. $1200 |
| See my posting for the SunTour LePree thread. My League Fuji is a Sonic Blue 1985 model. Linda Wunderlich on the iBOB list mentions that it is in the 1986 owner's manual for her Fuji. It is an entry level 'racing' bike behind the Club Fuji, Team Fuji Opus III and Professional. Per a gentleman I can't trace down at the moment, Fuji says it is 'an "Advanced Recreational Rider" from back in 1986. It was their bike for the "budget minded novice racer or advanced recreational rider."' Paul Brodek of Fuji was kind enough to key in the following re the 1985 catalog: Frame: Fuji VALite 1789, quad butted; two bottle mounts, pump peg, chainhook, dt shifter bosses Fork: VALite tubing Hbar/Stem: Nitto Olympiade B114 alloy bars/Nitto Young alloy stem Brakes: DiaCompe GS 400N sidupulls w/DiaCompe 144G levers Crank: Sugino RT 42/52 forged alloy Ders/Shifters: SunTour LePree Freewheel: SunTour Mighty-6 13-26 6spd Chain: DID Lanner Pedals: MKS Sylvan Road alloy; clips/straps Rims: Ukai alloy 700x25c Hubs: SunTour LePree small flange alloy Spokes: Wing Star 14g Tires: SCCR 700x25c w/presta tubes Saddle: Feather "Silver" FFV-85 Seatpost: Sugino SP-KC alloy microadjust Color: Sonic Blue, Jet Silver Weight: 23.4lbs There were 13 lucky adult road bikes in the Fuji line in '85. There were 3 entry level bikes (with brake extension levers), the Regis, Allegro and Sagres (from bottom to top). Then 2 recreational, better spec'd bikes, the Espree and del Rey. Moving into more enthusiast-oriented models, there were 3 touring bikes (3 touring bikes!!!), the Touring Series III, IV & V. Then the performance-oriented race bikes, starting with the League, then the Club, Team, Opus III and Professional. So, starting from the bottom and ignoring the touring models, the League was 6th from the bottom, or 5th from the top. Another way to look at it would be as the first real race bike in the line. With SunTour's road lineup of Superbe Pro/Superbe/Cyclone/LePree, you could also say that in today's market it would be somewhere around Shimano 105/Tiagro spec level. That would make it between $900 to $1,300 in today's market. |
| 23-24" frame, red, in real nice condition. 10-speed, shifters on gooseneck, center-pull brakes with suicide levers, aluminum bars, gooseneck, rims, hubs, chromo frame, 3-piece TA cranks, leather Brooks B15 saddle. Comes with the original owners manual showing purchase date in August of ' 74. Original except bar tape, now has padding on bars. Ready to ride! Best offer/ I paid $120.00, would like to get most of that back. |
| Original violet bike (doesn't appear to ever had decals or silk screening)w/ 26" tires,no fenders,"Sprint" equipment,violet chainguard,Typhoon pedals,drop bars w/ violet tape-Offers or Sting Ray trades?? |
| I am confused. To me, your posting of "July '66" imples that the date code matches the Schwinn table, and that therefore the frame is a Schwinn. However, by 1963, the Varsity had changed from 26" to 27" wheels. |
| I have a vintage Colnago World Championship frame, and from what I can best tell, it may be an '83. Is there some database or authority on Colnagos that I can get more info at? Thanks! |
| Check this out for a quick summary. http://sheldonbrown.com/vrbn-a-f.html#colnago Classic Rendezvous at cyclesdeoro.com can help as well. |
| Thanks for the link - it was one of my first places that I went. However, it really only gives general info. I'm trying to find some way to tie down the year or model of the frame, either by color, serial #, or whatever. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks! |
| Hey guys! Does any one have an old Concord (Freedom 10) 23''frame they would like to sell. If so I might be interested. I saw a neat Concord the other day and I almost bought it. It was an old three speed cruiser, but I have too many cruisers anyway so I didn't buy it. Has any one ever seen a Concord crusier before? (model: New Yorker) |
| Hi. Yes I do. I picked it up earlier last summer. The paint is pretty nice, but it is just a bare frame. Email me if interested. It's yours free, just pay shipping costs. Kevin |
| Thanks, I e-mailed you and I hope to hear back from you soon. |
| I think it's pretty neat looking. I guess this might be what Sheldon Brown describes as a "Clubman" on his English bike site. 1950 sounds like a logical year, derailleurs on the scene but not yet dominating the scene. I enjoy looking at it. Is it strange to feel nostalgic for a time period you never witnessed in a country you've never been to? When I rode motorcycles I liked the way the older stuff looked too though I must admit I rode modern sportbikes. I'd kind of like to build a "modern" clubman with a 7 or 9 speed hub and lightweight frame/rims. If I ever did I honestly don't know what I'd do with it as it'd be easily out performed by any derailleur bike I own but I like the idea. |
| I'm in the process of building up a bike like this now. I'm going the other direction in that I'm going with a fixed gear. I'm using a pre-Raleigh Dunelt frame which lets me use a modern BB/crankset since it is BSC standard threads. The rest of the components are alloy as well and I've picked up some Bluemel fenders to boot. I don't want to preach to the choir but if you haven't tried riding a fixed gear bike you really must. It will change how you ride forever. Soapbox off... |
| I may be mistaken,but I beleive the bke is a 1950 Record Ace |
| Warren actually you are preaching to the choir as I converted an old LeTour awhile ago. That's ok it's a sermon worth hearing more than once and I need to spend more time on that LeTour. I emailed the Raleigh seller. No frame decals but claims the bike weighs 24#. I'd imagine that makes it 1 of the better frames. Tempting......Nah wife is way past toleration. |
| Talking about nostalgia for a time and and place long ago and never visited, think about Civil War recreationists. I’ll bet the hardcore participants have a few grand worth of vintage firearms and “repop” uniforms. That stuff definitely ain’t for me, but I’m not knocking it. Hundreds of them on a field marching and blasting away…looks like fun actually. Me, I’m just happy riding an old bike. But..it would be cool to own an 1853 Colt .44 Navy Revolver if anyone has one cheap. |
| I'm suprised there is not more interest in this bike. It looks original and complete, which cannot be bad for a fifty year old machine from a famous if maybe not glamourous manufacturer. Then again the opening bid looks like a determined effort. I shall watch with interest. |
| Well it sold for 81$. IMO someone got a neat piece of history for pretty reasonable $. I hope it gets restored. |
| Hi I recently bought a mid 80's peugeot frame. Its made with columbus slx tubing but the previous owner had chamfered the bottom bracket face to accept a Mavic BB. I found a BB to fit but Im not sure what crankset is compatible with the BB. Anyone know? thanks Mike |
| There are only three significant sizing/compatibility issues: 1) spacing between the spindle's bearing surfaces; 2) spindle overall length; 3) spindle taper size. I would suggest trying a Stronglight, Nervar, or TA crankset, but you can probably find an old Sugino that will work, as well. |
| The first Mavic B/B were all sealed units and had no fixed cups, hence the chamfering which allowed for perfect chain alignment. If you now have a Mavic B/B, this makes points 1 and 2 of John's comment above irrelevant. I have what I believe was the first Mavic SSC B/B to be delivered to Canada in 1982 and it is still installed on the same bike. It is a fantastic B/B even after close to 20 years of use. I have Mavic cranks on it but I believe you can install any Campagnolo compatible parts. John's Stronglight suggestion would suit the bicycle well. |