speedymaru

Hello, this is my first post here. I just picked up a Nishiki Olympic bike today at a sale for $20. I love the classic look of it, and want to get it back into shape. The paint is decent and I don’t want to change it because it has the older look. However, it’s missing parts. It’s missing both wheels, and the gear set that goes on the rear wheel. Other than that, I’m not sure. I don’t know much about bikes. Obviously you can’t tell me much without a picture, so I’ll try to upload one tomorrow.


So the question for now: what wheels and gears do I need for the bike? And, what are good things to do for it? (Like greasing stuff up, etc)

Thanks!

microcord

Congratulations on the purchase, but first check the frame as best you can to check that it's undamaged. Little dents don't matter, but check that it's symmetrical and that the paint isn't oddly rippled anywhere. (Also, can you loosen the seatpost and stem from the frame, and move them up and down?)

The dimension of the front hub hasn't changed for many years. You could use a front wheel that's new or forty years old.

As for the rear, the "OLD" ("over locknut dimension", or "over locknut distance") has changed. See this and this. I think your bike is from the 80s, so I'd guess it's 126 mm; but guesswork isn't good enough. If you post a photo, the many people here who are much more knowledgable than me may know the year and the OLD.

Perhaps it's better to know what size hub you need before thinking about gears. But also you might ask yourself where you want to ride the bike, how many teeth there are on the chainwheels, how ready you are to grind up hills in a high gear, etc. (I'm rather ancient and I like the hills west of Tokyo, so I want a small chainwheel and a big cog at the back. If I were much younger or lived in Amsterdam, this wouldn't be an issue.)

microcord

. . . and if it doesn't have wheels and if, as you say, you don't know much about bikes, better check that the size of the frame is about right before investing time and money in it. Arguably, the length of your inseam and the length of the frame's seat tube aren't the two most important figures, but they're fine for this kind of frame. This page explains. If you can't measure your inseam, then your height will do. Seat tube can be "C-C" or "C-T", but say which. (And a sticker on the frame might specify the size; if it does so legibly, just report what it says.)

ryansu

If you have a bike co-op near you they can be an excellent and cheap source of parts, you may also want to search for Nishiki catalogs like this one for 87 to get an idea of what your bike should look like and also the specs in the back will tell you what it had on it originally. You don't have to replicate that but its a good place to start. Also RJ the bike guy on You tube and Sheldon Brown on the web have lots of great info about working on bikes. Good luck with your bike OP.

speedymaru

Thank you all for the help. Where is a good place to locate the wheels I need? And how do I know what gears I need? I believe I do have a bike co-op near me.

ryansu

Get up to 10 posts by comments on various threads then post pics of the bike, it most likely had 27" wheels stock which you can source at a bike co-op, Velomine online or Amazon but pictures will help determine what the year and model is.

speedymaru

Oh okay, thank you. So is there any other specs of the wheels that I need to look for?

ryansu

Well again this is working blind and making assumptions but your bike mostly likely has rear hub spacing of 126 mm - you can measure the distance between the rear drop outs to determine if that is true. And the majority of replacement 27" wheels have the size rear hub like these Weinmann's from Amazon. I look for alloy rims as they are both lighter than steel and give better wet braking, Stainless steel spokes and quick release axle skewers are nice too. YMMV. If you have a co-op near you then you can probably find a 27" wheelset for considerable less than $120, you'll want to check used wheels from broken spokes, how smooth the hubs spin and how true the rim is i.e. does it spin straight or is there a wobble. Lots of videos/info on youtube/web about re packing hubs and the tools needed to do so. Once you can post picks and get help ID'ing the year of the bike you can figure out if it had a 5 or 6 speed freewheel.

T-Mar

I wouldn't assume that this frame has a 126mm OLD. In fact, based on the model name (Olympic as opposed to Olympic 12), there's a very good probability that it is the 1973-1977 version that was spec'd with a 5 speed freewheel, 120mm OLD hubs and 27" rims. In 1978 the Olympic was upgraded to 12 speed and officially became the Olympic 12, which was the model name used through at least 1987 and the Olympic variants disappeared from the USA shortly thereafter. So, provided the given model name is accurate, the odds favour a 120mm hub with 27" rims.

While photos would be nice, they are not necessary. We can determine the era and possibly the exact year of manufacture from the serial number. Knowing that, we should be able to determine the OEM wheel specs.

Hobbiano 

As mentioned by others above, you really should determine the frame size to see if it will fit you before investing time and money into it.
If you measure "B" as shown in the diagram below, and give us your height, we can give you an opinion on weather it is close to your size or not.

John E

As T-Mar mentioned, the serial number (probably on the bottom bracket) would be very helpful, as would exact wording of the decals.

Any steel frame with a 120mm OLD can very easily be widened to accommodate a 126mm OLD axle and a standard 6-speed freewheel.

All of my 1970 and earlier bikes were originally 120mm. I widened the UO-8 to 123mm to accommodate an "ultra" (laterally closely-spaced cogs) 6-speed freewheel and the 1959 Capo to 126mm to accommodate a 6-speed "standard" (same lateral cog spacing as a 5-speed) freewheel. I can drop in a 7-speed if I spread the triangle another couple of mm, which is easily done.

You can also substitute 700C (622mm outer rim diameter) wheels for the original 27" (630mm) wheels, assuming you have long enough brake slots to drop your brake pads 4mm. The benefits are increased mudguard or large tire clearance and greater selection of tires.

speedymaru

Finally found the serial number. It is KS252687

John E

My American Eagle [Nishiki] Semi-Pro [Competition], sold in March 1971 and probably made in late 1970, had serial number 78091, so I am guessing you have an early 1970s Olympic. The early ones were heavy, with cottered steel cranks and steel rims. By the time the Olympic had morphed into the Olympic 12, it was a lighter, more agile machine.

T-Mar

Based on the serial number it's circa 1973-1974 and would definitely have originally had a rear wheel with 120mm OLD.

Classtime 

Welcome to the club Speedy. I recommend your first step is to take your bike to the co-op and see if they can set you up with the missing parts. It will be satisfying to get it running. However, the dollars required might exceed the price of some other "sale" bike that is complete. Have fun.