T-Mar

Well, it might be interesting to some of the other members, but I know EXACTLY what it looks like!


Thank-you very much for posting. Your 450SE allows me to extend this particular serial number format into 1987. Prior to your posting, we had no samples this modern.

Selling price is always hard to establish. If you want to sell it locally, it is heavily dependent on local market condiditions. Then of course, there is the cosmetic and mechanical condition of the bicycle, which is very hard to assess over the internet.

The bicycle is also designed for a small woman, so it's not the most biggest market. Generally, the widest market is reached through something like Ebay. For something more regional, there is always Craigslist. And of course, this forum has a sell/trade thread. These seem to be the most coomon venues.

Of course, the small size can also play into your advantage. If someone is looking for a used bicycle this small, they usually do not have too many options and you may get by with charging a premium. I wouldn't let a potential buyer haggle over thee price of a bicycle like this. The seller pretty much has the buyer over a barrel.

In the end, perhaps your best bet is to try contact Goodgracious via an e-mail or private message. It sounds like she may have purchased her 450SE second hand. Perhaps she will tell you how much she paid and what venue she purchased it through.

T-Mar

The database is now up to 50 entries. Thank-you to all of you who have contributed.

The initial post in this thread has now been updated to include a 3rd confirmed serial number format covering 1976 to 1978. We now have samples covering every year from 1971-1987 inclusive, except for 1975 and 1979. Hopefully, some samples will surface for the missing years and post 1987. There have been a couple of oddballs that don't fit the known formats, but haven't turned up in sufficient quantitiy to warrant their own category.

I still have not found any way to attach my matrix of Fuji models. Everything that I have tried has exceeded the attachment limit of 100K, except for text files, which scramble the columns. Anybody have any ideas?

Danddd

T-Mar, what format is your matrix in?

T-Mar

The original format is Excel (27kb) but this is not supported as an attachment. I converted it to MS Word, but that increased the size to 135 kb, which exceeds the limit. Conversions to jpeg and html were even worse and, as I said, text files scrambled the columns. Any suggestions would be appreciated, as members have requested the data. A matrix of model names versus production years seems to be the most reader friendly format, but it sure isn't friendly for posting!

BDS

T-Mar -

have you tried saving the matrix as a tab delimited (or comma delimited) text file? If you save it as such, others should be able to import the file in a spread sheet of their own, & it should flatten out nice and small so the attachment size limit isn't exceeded.

I have another idea that might work if that fails, so keep us posted.

BDS

Danddd

Can you convert it to a pdf file? I've done this before with excel files. I use a Mac and it's built in the 'Print' menu after you select print. If you have a problem with it, send it to me and I'll convert it.

T-Mar

Thxs for the suggestions gentlemen but neither worked. When I tried to upload the tab delimited text file, I got a message saying the file type is unsupported. The pdf was too large, at 199 kb.

BDS

T-Mar:

try this:
1. save as a tab delimited .txt file.
2. open the .txt file with a text editor (preferably Notepad, or JEdit, or something - not Word or Wordpad)
3. save as itself (you'll rewrite the file).
4. then try to attach it.

I'm trying the same thing here, so we'll quickly see if this hare-brained scheme will work.

BDS

EDIT: it looks like that worked - I think the key step is opening it with a straight text editor & resaving the file.
EDIT #2: I'm able to download the attached file, & open it with Excel. You'll need to walk through a short dialog determining some of the particulars with the spreadsheet, but this will get the file to all interested parties. Send me a pm if you run into any difficulties & I'll try to help out as best I can.

cinco

T-Mar, thanks bunches for taking it upon yourself to enlighten the masses; I'll take all the enlightenment I can get. Some time ago I came up with a Fuji Finest (suspectedly, at least) frame which looks to be identical to dtipton's from post #66. The serial number format doesn't conform to any you've yet figured out and as it was a bare frame I cannot help with component dates so I'll just throw this out and hope it does you some good.

SN: 7557580 (the "580" is stamped about a quarter-line lower than the rest. I can photograph if you'd like)
Yuko forged dropouts (with adjusters)
The nonspecific wreathed double butted cr-mo and "F Racing" decals we all know and love, and the red/white/blue bands, but no other surviving decals

I was told it was a '71 or '72 but the 75 in the serial, along with it being a 57cm frame (and those first four numbers being regerstered slightly differently than the rest of the serial number), gets me thinking...

I also have a couple incomplete Fuji MTBs from the '80s out in the garage. I'll get you serial numbers and partial date codes as soon as I get back from Veloswap tomorrow .

T-Mar

Yes, if you post a pic of the serial number, that would be great. The serial number doesn't follow any of the formats I've identified.

The 1976 version of the Finest still had the foil decals and chrome head lugs, stay ends and fork ends, so I would not rull out the possibility of it being a 1975 model.

Edit: Regarding the foil decals, they are not actually foil, though most people think they are. The frame was actually fully chromed under the paint and what you see is the chrome.

cinco

Here's the photo of the serial number on that Finest frame. The all-chrome frame is actually one of the reasons I snagged it . Would you happen to know what the color options would've been during that time period? I'd planned on doing it up in yellow with the original paint pattern and decals. Anyway, the other Fujis, as promised:

Suncrest SN: F1088687
FD date code OH
RD date code PE
Both derailleurs are Deore LX and there were no codes I could find on the brake levers, shifters, cartridge BB, or headset

Sand Blaster SN: F9082956
FD date code NF
RD date code NH
Brake date code NG
Crank date code ND
I'd say that's pretty definitively a late '89 to my way of thinking, though possibly a very early '90 model year.

Hope this helps, and sorry for adding yet another SN iteration to your work .

stevemasum

Hi T-Mar and all,

Well, to further confuse this issue...

I recently bought a well used Fuji Finest a few months ago. I've been trying to date the
bike but I'm having a lot of problems. Reading these posts has really got me wondering. The serial number is: 75B00213. So I'm thinking this should be a 1975 or 1976 model, right? Well my bike has the name: "Finest" decaled on the top tube. I thought during '75 and '76 the model was known as "The Finest". You might think that maybe "The" was scratched off? Well, I don't think so... on the left side of the top tube, "Finest" is so
close to the head tube that there is no way that "The" could fit. Also the frame has
three brake cable guides brazed along the top of the top tube and the shift lever
bosses brazed on the down tube. The last piece of mystery is the fork. The fork is fully
chromed, not just the several inches near the dropouts, but the entire fork. I can see
evidence of Fuji decals on the chrome portion of the fork. So despite the serial number
I'm thinking this is a 1978 or 1979 bike. The components are not helpful because they
are a hodge-podge of different makes and date codes. T-Mar, what do you think?


By the way, I'm the original owner of a 1981 Fuji Newest (serial # FA205516) with about 50 miles on it
but that's another story.

Steve M.

T-Mar

Thank-you for the suggestion but unfortunately it did not work. The columns are still scrambled. I am going to try running the chart in 2 halfs. Perhaps that will reduce the size sufficently.

Thxs for the extra S/Ns. The original color options were white and blue. After pondering the serial number on your Finest, the most logical explantion is simply that someone at the factory forgot to stamp the month indicator, as the serial number is short one character for the era. If there was letter after the 75 then the format would be correct. We know it is not from late 1975 (i.e. a 1976 model) as the frame was not offered in white for 1976.

If it were a 1971 or 1972 model then we would have to assume that there were two mistakes, a forgotten character (letter) and mistakenly stamping a number for a letter. While this is always a possibility, the previous case seems more likely.

BTW, I have the specs for the 1990 Sandblaster and it used Shimano 200GS. I don't have the 1989 specs, but if the components are other than 200GS that would seem to confirm a 1989 model.


Steve, thxs for posting. Let's tackle the easiest matter first. Based on the serial number, your Newest frame was manufactured in January 1982 and should be a 1982 model. Any possibility that this is correct?

Your Finest definitely follows the serial number format for a 1975 model. It's from early in the year, so it should be a 1975 model. However, you are right in stating that models of this period did not have brazed on shifter bosses or brake tunnels. The model decals also did state "The Finest", as you suggest. Fuji does appear to have deleted "The" from the model designations, sometimes in the late 1970s. I do not know the exact date but it was after 1977. We also know that it is pre-1980 as the model was the Finest MKII that year.

The serial number format definitely fits the 1975-1978 period (and maybe 1979, but I still don't have any dtata for that year)) period. So, one possibility is that someone at the factory stamped the wrong number for the second character. The second is that it is actually a 1975 that had braze-ons added, was repainted and had new decals applied.

The one thing that you mentioned that has me leaning towards the latter is the mention of a fully chromed fork. We know that the Finest was fully chromed through at least 1976. Fuji made a point of stating it in their 1976 catalog. Yet it is not mentioned in the specs for the 1977 Finest. Given that they previously played up this fact could lead one to assume that the 1977 was not fully chromed.

I'd be interested to know what the components are. We should at least be able to identify which ones are original spec for 1975, then see if the codes match. Also, it would be interesting to know if there are any signs of a repaint. Sometimes you can find overspray of the previous color inside the frame, in areas such as the top of the seat tube, bottom bracket shell and fork steering column. This is a bit of a chore, but it might prove something.

I'd also be interested in a pic of the bicycle. Thxs.

roccobike

I picked this up yesterday at a garage sale. (I really like those garage sale finds.) This is certainly an entry level bike, probably the lowest in the Fuji line-up, maybe one from the bottom. However, it has an interesting shifter set. It's a Suntour Accushift (index), 6 speed, stem set-up. It works great. The frame is chro-moly, NOT butted. It's not very lively, actually a sort of dead frame. I was somewhat excited with this find because it's a Fuji, the frame size is close to ideal for me and it has index shifting. But after riding it and weighing it (about 26lbs), I think I'm going to remove the shifters and rear dr, then flip it as a friction shifting bike.
Now for the numbers. Bad news, I could not find a date code on the front DR. It says Suntour and that's all.
The rear DR is code DG, or July 1987.
The frame code is F7097750. I know, that does not line up with the other 1987 frame code numbers.
Based on the rear DR code, I'm guessing this bike was an early 1988 model. There was a second code number, 0C 054. I have no idea what that code means. Although the frame code numbers do not line up with other 1987 frames, it does line up with my previous post for a 1993 Fuji Club with the first number being the year of manufacture. Perhaps Fuji used different code numbers for different levels of bikes? I'll leave further analysis to T-Mar.
PS, I used chalk to highlight the frame numbers.

cinco

White and blue, I suspected as much and thanks for the confirmation. Hopefully nobody will get their eyes too crossed if I go off that beaten path and do it in yellow as I'd planned.

The tentative 1971 or '72 date was provided by an ebay seller so.... I agree that a forgotten letter after the 75 seems more likely. From the viewpoint of today's computer-controlled perfection that scenerio strikes me as bizarre . But that's one of the reasons I enjoy handmade -and erroneously hand-stamped - frames. I greatly appreciate your thoughts on the matter.

My Sandblaster has a 200GS crank, but has Tourney derailleurs (FD-TY25 and RD-TY20) along with a nondescript cr-mo tubing sticker on the frame. It's manufacturing date is of no great concern to me (I'll eventually build it and give it to some neighborhood kid or something) but I hope I've helped shed some light on the late-'80s/early-'90s. When I run across others from outside your known ranges I'll send the info your way.

cinco

T-Mar,
Danddd just mentioned to me that his '72 Finest has Suntour dropouts, which made me realize that I'd neglected to tell you in my original post that my frame has Yuko forged dropouts. I wouldn't think they'd change from Suntour to something else by 1975, but I guess stranger things have happened. Does it make any difference, or am I getting all riled up for nothing?

balindamood

I picked a Fuji Discoverer(?) MTB off a trash heap last night. Date codes/components suggest 1991 (Shimao Exage/Deore/500LX with PX codes). Its a Tiawan build and the paint is so goo'ed on the serial number is barely ledgible. I'll send the number on later this week.

T-Mar

I have specs for a 1991 Fuji Discovery, but it lists 400LX as OEM. 500LX was spec'd on the 1991 Fuji Suncrest. However, the 1992 Discovery is listed with 500LX, so I suspect that is what you have, FYI, the original price was $569 US.

You had me confused at first with the PX codes. I'm thinking to myself, " There's no way the second letter would be an X'. Then I realized that you meant the X in the generic sense, that it represented all the various month code possibilities.

I hope your trip goes well. Looks like I'll be anxiously awaiting your returm, but not just for the Fuji info.

stevemasum

Thank you T-Mar for your analysis.

I could be wrong on the year of the Newest. The reason I'm remembering 1981 is because I have catalog #11 (which I will scan for you) and I remember debating over the specifications to decide on whether to buy the Newest or Finest MkII. The Newest I did buy looks and specs out to exactly what is shown in catalog #11. I think I still have the original bill of sale from the bike shop. I'll try to dig that up.

On my Finest, you think braze-ons were added later and the entire frame repainted? I guess that could be but it seems to be a lot of trouble for little gain. The funny thing about the serial number I forgot to mention earlier was that the "75" of the serial number is slightly larger and bolder than the other numbers.

I remember there was a time when many of the bike manufacturers were selling road bikes that had fully chromed forks with no paint while the remainder of the bike was painted. This seemed to be a styling trend that didn't last long. Do you happen to know the time period of when this trend was popular? Do you happen to know what the available color options were for the '78 and '79 Finests?

Thanks again for your help.

wmsiniowa

Hey T-Mar, I've been reading up and really appreciate what you have put together here. The reason I came across your thread is I recently picked up a Fuji Grand Tourer SE. SN FH012850. By your records thats the 12,850th frame made August 1980. Am I correct? I cannot find anything on this model. Can you help me out? I will take pics soon and forward for the database. Regards, -billS

T-Mar

I wouldn't go so far as to say that it does not line up with the other 1987 serial numbers. I only have one in my data base. Maybe this was the year they changed? And, if it is a 1988 model as you suggest, maybe it changed for the 1988 model year? We'll have to wait and hope that more data for 1987-1989 shows up.

Might the 054 be the frame size, ctt? It looks pretty small, though I don't know why they would go to the extra cost of prefacing it with a zero.

reagardless, thxs for posting.

roccobike

T-Mar, Good One! The seat tube is 54cm from the center of the BB to the top of the tube. I had guessed this was an early 1988 frame, and was the 54th frame of this model turned out by the frame manufacturer. But that's just a guess. This frame was made in Taiwan. The frame label states it was "Specially Designed For Fuji America".
BTW, I think you are right, maybe this was the year Fuji changed their serial number format. I guess we'll have to wait for more information from others. As always, thanks for your feedback.

JohnnyBee

In 1984 I purchased a Fuji Opus. This was the high end road bike at the time.
It came with Suntour Superbe Pro Group and tubulars. Nobody has mentioned this
Fuji model so far, but they did make it. I don't have a serial # because I traded
it to buy my 1983 Ross Mt Whitney.

Alas, all is not lost. I still have my 1985 Mt Fuji mountain bike. The first one
sold in Md at the time. I'll get the serial # and post it in a couple of days.




Cheers,
JohnnyBee

T-Mar

Yes, that is my interpretation. Fortunately, we have the 1980 specs coutesy of Dandd. They are attached to post #18 of this thread. It was 8th in a line-up of 10 road models.

T-Mar

Thxs, that would be appreciated. Too bad about your Opus. I have heard of the Opus III and Opus IV. Reportedly they were part of the Fuji Design/Signature Series, along with the Professional of that era. I've had one Professional turn up and it had a unique serial number format of only one letter and three numbers, implying a very small production capacity, hand built, to very high standards. I haven't listed it's format because with only one data set, it may be a abberation.