AdventureManCO 

I perused an old thread here talking about Japanese lugs, some cool info in that. Anyone know if there were any Japanese bikes that used Nervex or similar lugs? I've got a thing for old Japanese road bikes, and I've got a thing for fancy lugs...and well...I suppose I'd have an extra thing for fancy lugs ON old Japanese road bikes!

Thanks for any thoughts/words/pictures!

jetboy 

some 3rensho had crazy lugs. modeulo

DIMcyclist

My Toei has Nervex lugs; my Atlantis has Prugnat lugs...

A fair number of Japanese randos were also made with Alex Singer-type lugs, but I'd imagine you could order nicer lugs with any bespoke frame- Toei, Alps, Friend, Ebisu... I know the Grand Bois Concorde had Nervex lugs as an option. Hopefully someone will post a Cherubim as they tend to have beautiful lug-work as well (let's hear it for the Konno family!!).

Really elaborate lugs tend to be less common on competition frames like Nagasawas, Kalavinkas or Zunows, or Keirin bikes since their primary focus is on racing. That said, masters like Watanabe built all kinds of frames; I've seen touring bikes by Level & Zunow made with very nice lugs.

AdventureManCO 

Thank you both for your thoughts! Reading through some information about Alex Singer really touched me. Sounds like a wonderful addition to 20th century cycling history. As I get more and more familiar with various obscure Japanese brands, I have a desire to keep my eyes open to see what I can find. What started me on this journey was a Miyata 710 that was given to me, and was rekindled in this old Zebrakenko I just came across. No doubt the workmanship on these bikes is done to a stunningly consistent level of excellence.

merziac

Paging @pcb

cyclotoine

There were some Nishikis in the late 1970s/Early 1980s that used an imitation nervex lug. Neat but immediately apparent as an imitation and not the real thing. There were some high end Nishikis build on contract by others but most were made by Kawamura. The higher end ones could be quite nice.

DIMcyclist

You might want to check out Nagasawa since, as a frame builder, he actually apprenticed under Ugo De Rosa. By all accounts, he's an extreme perfectionist and expects no less from his own apprentices.

nlerner

A friend has a Fuji Pro with Nervex lugs.

T-Mar

Many of those Japanese brands may actually use Japanese clones of the Nervex Professional lugset, such as the Eisho Seisakusho 800 series.

DIMcyclist

Hm. That's fascinating- and runs parallel to something I've noticed as a pro designer. In occasionally recreating various Japanese logos, I've found that certain typefaces don't *quite* match up either; they're ever so slightly different- just different enough to avoid paying usage royalties under international copyright law.

I found this to be especially true with Katakura Silk, btw. They must have had a real artist in their in-house graphics division: they're well-executed graphics (& quite pretty), but almost impossible to re-create since the fonts used must have been- like the cloned lugs you mentioned- locally made copies of the originals.

Also-

https://vintagecrank.com/

Look in the 'Japanese bicycle advertisements' gallery; some cool stuff there, pertinent to your post.

wrk101

I'm a sucker for chrome, wrap around stays, and long points. This 1975+/- Sekai Professional has all three!

[IMG]1976 Sekai Professional by wrk101, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1976 Sekai Professional by wrk101, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1976 Sekai Professional by wrk101, on Flickr[/IMG]

wrk101

1973 +/- Volkscycle 100, I don't have a better picture unfortunately. Full first generation Dura Ace.

[IMG]fullsizeoutput_bce by wrk101, on Flickr[/IMG]

79pmooney

Do you know they were Nervex, not copies? I raced a '76 Pro and liked the lugs enough that I had the Mooney built with Nervex but I recall hearing and always believed the Fuji lugs were nicely done copies.

Ben

79pmooney

Bah, double post