Originally Posted by
madpogue
Picked up this '85 Colorado FREE on CL. Serial prefix code G1285. I'll let the purists, pundits and hair-splitters decide whether it's a true "mixte". It does have a third set of stays, and the "top" tube is in line with the middle set of stays, and those stays and the "top" tube meet at the seat tube. So it's not just a step-through...
Given that the frame was manufactured in December 1985, it would be a 1986 model. There is a specific name for this style of frame but it escapes me at the moment.
Originally Posted by
madpogue
Update - the Expedition is a December '87, evidently made by Fairly:
Presuming this is the Fymm.... format from the "Asian Serial Number" thread.
No full-on shots, but this is the badging. Haven't had time to research what "Designed by Norco" indicates. Also a faint remnant of a "Made in Taiwan" sticker at the bottom of the seat tube. Label remnant just above that, but nothing left but the silver background, so I don't know if it's a frame material label, or a dealer sticker.
Bike is mostly stripped. Tioga BB, Tange Japan headset, Shimano FD-Z204 front der, code KK (Nov '86). Has some very cheap looking (i.e. dept store) Chang Star canti brake arms, but no cables or levers (no bar/stem even). It does have a Dia-Compe brake cable stop with release lever on the headset, which makes me wonder if that's what brand of brakes it originally had.
I think even the wheelset has been swapped. Araya single-wall rims, Joytech hubs, Shimano 6-speed freewheel. But the rear axle is 130mm, and the frame is most definitely a 126-er.
The serial number format is consistent with Fairly. Again, it's from late enough in 1987 that it would be a 1988 model.
Norco was the Canadian importer/distributor for Nishiki bicycles in the 1980s. The original Canadian distributor was Shields but Norco purchased the Canadian license sometime during 1978-1980. The license holder in each country designed/spec'd the bicycles to suit their own market. Consequently specifications and/or model names for Nishiki bicycles often vary from country to country.
The Expedition was an entry level ATB and some would argue that it was closer to a city bicycle. While I don't have 1988 specs. I do have 1989. That year's frame was hi-tensile steel with a CrMo seat tube. Specifying only the seat tube in CrMo was a fairly common practice. It allowed the manufacturer to place a CrMo tubing decal on the seat tube, leading many prospective buyers to assume that the entire frame was CrMo. The faded decal may be the tubing decal or the LBS decal.
The Chang Star brakes are likely OEM, as these were spec on the 1989 Expedition. The hanger may be an addition by the previous owner, as the 1989 had the stop built into the stem.
The wheelset is typical for the era and level of bicycle. If it has a triple crankset like the 1989 version, I'd expect a 130mm rear hub, as opposed to a 126mm. It wouldn't be the first time that an assembler forced a wheel into place, rather than send a frame back for proper cold-setting.