Made another Craigslist sale very late last night. Because I wasn't
going to be home till midnight, the buyer decided to wait even though he
had to drive back up to San Francisco -- wow! But I did give a discount
from my listed price.
I had
bought this bicycle years ago thinking that my mother might be able to
ride it. But maybe "skinny" wheels were kind of scary for someone who
doesn't ride the bicycles much. It never really got ridden.
But it was a solid ride, and had the most-updated parts out of all my bikes.
It also had braze-ons for both rear and front racks, and would make a great commuter bike.
2001 Terry Classic
2001 Terry Classic
2001 Terry Classic
2001 Terry Classic - Terry Liberator Ti-Race saddle
2001 Terry Classic - Shimano Tiagra triple crankset
2001 Terry Classic - Shimano Deore rear derailleur
2001 Terry Classic - Shimano Deore trigger shifters
After two and half years of absence on this blog, I'm back.
Having been (relatively) successful in fighting off the itch to play with bicycles during the last couple of years, here I am again.
My sister thought her bicycle in New York had been stolen (which actually turned up later), but it was enough reason for me to look for a new bike to play with.
Coincidentally, this bike was posted on Washington D.C. (that's where I'm at now) Craigslist for a couple of days without having been sold. After a quick Google search on the bike, I contacted the seller and bought it for $70. It sounded like the seller were the original owners of the bike who had put this away in their garage a long time ago and it had sat there for decades.
The bike doesn't seem to have been ridden much -- the tires were original and its treads seem to have very little wear. But it doesn't seem to have been stored very carefully, judging from the scuffs on the frame and rust on chain and other steel parts.
My selection of tools are very limited here, but I did my best to clean and tune up the bike.
Tires were replaced (the front wheel is an obscure 547mm size) and I bought Cane Creek gum hoods for the brake levers. Shift cables were replaced as well as the front brake cable and housing. Oh, and the brake pads and chain were replaced, too. Otherwise all parts are original.
1987 Fuji 450 SE - Drive side
1987 Fuji 450 SE - Front view
1987 Fuji 450 SE - Suntour Accushift Alpha 3000 downtube shifters -- supposedly not compatible with other Accushift systems
I am not sure why I keep running into so many Univegas, but I acquired this bike back in December 2011 from Goodwill for $56.10. I was originally planning to either give it to a friend or flip it for a profit, but it was in such a good condition that I decided to keep it. It appears to be an upper-entry/low-mid level bike, but it looks well-built and the ride feels especially solid. There are minimal signs of wear/use, despite most of its part being original. The only thing not original in the current form are the handlebar, brakes, bar tape, pedals and the bags. It originally came with a flat bar and flat bar brake levers. but I replaced them with a drop bar and Dia Compe brake levers taken off of a Centurion Elite 12 (plus pedals).
From my readings of forums, the serial number on the frame suggests that the frame was actually manufactured in 1982 (by Miyata?), but the Suntour aRX components point it to the 1983 model. It appears that the '82 model was equipped with Shimano 600 Arabesque components, so the aRX seems like a step down. The rear dropouts look stamped, not forged, but has a derailleur hanger, which I haven't seen before. The frame material is double butted Tange Champion, so it's definitely not a gas pipe bike. I'm guessing the fork is a hi-tensile steel. The 27" rims also look like Araya 20A rims, which are double-walled with eyelets, and they're laced onto Sunshine (Sansin) Gyromaster hubs that use cartridge bearings. However, given a decent selection of rims and hubs, the spokes are not stainless steel. Overall, the bike is a healthy mix of decent and entry level stuff.
I read on Disraeli Gears that the aRX never shifted as well as the older models, but personally I think it does just fine One major drawback I do see is the steel cage because it seems to be pretty soft and I can see it going out of alignment. Maybe it feels alright just because it hasn't been used much.
I'm planning to keep all the original parts since they're relatively unworn. I do plan on changing the bar wrap with cotton ones (the current ones are those that my friend was going to throw away). I'm also going to add a rear rack so that I can use the bike for short commutes. Since the bike is a bit small, it feels a little cramped when my hands are on the drops. So I may experiment with a different length stem sometime in the future.
Specs then pictures:
Frame: Tange Champion Chrome Molybdenum Double Butted tubes; 49cm center-to-center; fully-lugged; stamped rear dropouts
Fork: Unknown; single eyeleted dropouts
Headset: Unknown chrome steel
Crank: SR Super Custom; "Univega Cotterless" dust caps; 52-42t chainrings
Shifters: Suntour Symmetric friction
Derailleurs: Suntour ARx GT
Pedals: SR SP-100BL; CyclePro toe clips
Chain: Sedis
Seatpost: SR 26.8mm
Saddle: Selle Italia(?); Univega Logo inscribed
Stem: SR Custom
Handlebar: SR Custom
Brakes: Dia Compe G
Brake Levers: Dia Compe non-aero; Dia Compe gum hoods
Hubs: Sunshine Gyromaster; 6-speed Suntour Perfect 14-28t freewheel
Rims: Araya 27 x 1, double-walled, eyeleted, presta valve
Tires: 27 x 1 1/4 Performance GT-k rear; 27 x 1 Forte (Performance) GT2-K front
1983 Univega Sportour - Drive side (3/21/12)
1983 Univega Sportour - Front view; Schwinn Voyageur handlebar bag (3/21/12)
1983 Univega Sportour - Dia-Compe brake lever w/ original gum hood (3/21/12)
1983 Univega Sportour - SR Custom stem; Schwinn Voyageur handlebar bag attachment (3/21/12)
1983 Univega Sportour - Cockpit (3/21/12)
1983 Univega Sportour - Front view; Schwinn Voyageur handlebar bag (3/21/12)
