JacobLee 

Many of you might have seen this bike a month or so ago in my Estate Sale Bid Box Massacre thread, but I figure this Bruce Gordon Hikari deserves its own thread without one of my silly titles. There seems to be very little info on these, and there seemed to be a lot of interest in this bike, so I figure this would be a good way to document the machine while I go through it. Also, I'll probably have a hundred dumb questions, and this seems like the best way to reach any potential experts. Thanks in advance, everyone!

As found (No, I didn't pay that much. I paid a little less than 1/3 of that):



The only info I could find was this scan of the first page of an article in Bicycle Guide from 1989: https://bulgier.net/pics/bike/Articl...989%20Jan-Feb/ I wish I had page two! I also wish the bike came with a lugged fork, as pictured, but the article explains that it would come with a unicrown. Oh well. I used to teach high school in Petaluma, where Bruce Gordon did most of his work. I own a couple of Soulcraft frames that were built there, as well, which were made by Sean Walling. He worked for Bruce Gordon, before working for Ross Schafer, before working for himself. I've read that he bent and brazed many of the BG racks, so maybe these blue beauties were made by him. The frame of this Hikari, however, was not. It was made in Japan!

Here are the stampings in the bottom bracket shell. Maybe someone can decipher them?




So stay tuned! I'll be posting way too many pictures and asking way too many questions, but maybe in the end there will be some info on these bikes if anyone is curious. And sorry for any redundancy; I know a lot of people have already provided info, but the OCD in me needed for it to be clearly titled.

Thanks!

Dylansbob 

I'm sure someone more knowledgable will be along shortly, but that stamping format is the same as my 92 "Made in Japan" Novara Team which I think I've read was made by Toyo.

JacobLee 

Like the tires? Must be another one of those Japanese conglomerates that makes everything, and makes it all very well.

JacobLee 

A few more frame pics:






A little crusty in the bb shell. This’ll need a relaxing soak in my special Evapo-Rust bathtub.

thook

even at $795, still would'a been a total snag! i'd have paid that.....if i actually had that kind of money

great score! color me green....

JacobLee 

Thanks! I think the last time I paid more than $300 for a bike was about twenty years ago. I don’t think I could do it anymore.

JacobLee 

Well, it’s no secret who made the fork:



That says Tange 9B, hard to photograph.

T-Mar, the master of asian serial numbers, had this to say: While I don't know who built the frame, both the serial number and fork date code indicate 1989. The same serial number format has turned up on some of the high end Centurion models from the very late 1980s/

So, there’s another clue.

T-Mar

I'm fairly certain it's not Toyo. Based on bicycles known to be manufactured by Toyo (such as GT Avalanche which bear Toyo stickers), the Toyo serial number format in the very late 1980s era was Tyxxx.

Edit: Here are some photos of a 1988 GT Avalanche, orignally posted by member Santuri32. It has the Toyo sticker and the serial number, though a bit hard to read, appears to be T8198.

JacobLee 

Evapo-Rust, take me away…



I think I’ll dunk the top and down tubes overnight. Besides the crusty bb shell, there were lots of little rust spots around the head lugs and one of the bottom water bottle bosses. I was able to remove lots of little paint bubbles with my fingernail. Seems like sweaty rider syndrome. This treatment worked pretty well on my Basso, but I’ll need to find a better touch up paint for this one. Luckily, this color is quite popular in the nail polish aisle.

Catnap 

These bikes were made by Panasonic to Bruce Gordon's design. They are intended as light tourers / gravel bikes. I just sold a 56cm one for $400 that was set up as a cyclocross bike.

T-Mar

Again, I would question that Panasonic/National/Matsu****a is the source. The serial number format on the OP's bicycle is not the format seen on Panasonic bicycles of the era. Nor is it the format seen on bicycles that they contract manufactured for Western States Imports (Centurion) or Schwinn in the 1980s. Maybe Gordon had multiple sources for the Hikari but the OP's bicycle would not appear from Panasonic.

Catnap 

I retract my assertion on Panasonic; I thought that's what Mr. Gordon had said in some posts in the past, but I just re-checked them and I seem to have made it up. He did say it was "made in Japan" but that was it.

JacobLee 

Yeah, I read through all of those posts, and he doesn’t say much about them. He probably didn’t think they were very exciting.

Do you have any pics of the one you sold?

Catnap 

yes; here they are: (note re: background - not my shop)

JacobLee 

Wow, Onza cantilevers!

JacobLee 

Well, no origin for the frame unlocked yet. Not sure what I’d do with that information other than feel satisfied for having uncovered it.

And speaking of satisfying, Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear! Rawr!

obrentharris 

I was discussing this thread with a friend who knew Bruce better than I. He recalls Bruce telling him that these frames were built by the same Japanese builder who built for Ritchey. I believe that would have been Toyo. 3rd hand information so take it with a grain of salt. The serial number does not seem to match Toyo's format; Perhaps @T-Mar would have some insight?
Brent

JacobLee 

He's weighed-in a couple of times, and serial number data doesn't seem to offer anything conclusive. 3rd hand info might be the best we can do.

JacobLee 

Well, my touch-up paint looks good... from here!



I'm starting to think that I'd rather look at spots of bare metal with a clear coat, maybe, than spots of nail polish that never quite match. I'll live, though.

The biggest question for this rehab is what to do about the wheels. Front (3x) is in good shape, but rear (4x) is worn through the sidewall.



I can't imagine there's any sense tracking down a single wall, anodized Araya for the sake of originality (anybody got one?), so maybe a black Velocity Dyad or A23 or something? Do you keep it 4 cross? I've never really thought about building light touring wheels, so if anybody has any suggestions, I'd appreciate it!

T-Mar

It does not appear to be Toyo, See post #8 of this thread. It does match the format seen on some of the high grade Centurion from this era but I have been unable to trace the manufacturer, yet.

JacobLee 

Slow progress, but progress. I dropped by an LBS today to have a freewheel removed, and looked up to see an old wheelset with these anodized Araya rims hanging from the ceiling. For the price of a (good, strong, double-wall, etc) new rim, I got a decent replacement, some Suzue hubs, some inner tubes, and tires. And I consider any money wasted at the LBS to be money wasted well!



Actually, looking at the picture, it's a stretch to claim that they match at all. Maybe I'll have to replace the front as well. Maybe not.

Found a UN-71 in the bin in a 122 length, and used that instead of the original UN-53. How much weight did I save with the hollow axle? This much:



Yes, the bike is one 6mm wrench lighter now.

Pressed the XT headset back in with the logo oriented so it can be read from both sides. These don't really look good any way you place them, though.

amillhench

What size tire could these fit? I seem to recall Bruce always went big with clearance.

JacobLee 

Funny you should ask, because I was just cramming a bunch of big, oddball tires in this frame to find out. I don't think whichever as-of-yet undiscovered Japanese framebuilder had quite the same passion for tire clearance as the Petaluma folks, but it's not bad. Here are pics of a 40c Vittoria Randonneur in the front, and a 35c Panaracer T-Serv in the back. The 40 measures 41, and the 35 measures 32.



So 38's would probably work, but 35's would probably be better with fenders.



I didn't check the dish on this wheel yet, but the space is a little wider on this side.

merziac

What a fantastic color on this.

JacobLee 

After much fiddling and ferrying I think I can claim the Hikari ready to rumble.



There's still a list of details I'd like to sort out eventually, but those will happen. When I come across the correct XT rear mech, it'll be a happy day.



And of course those red Ritchey pads on the back need to go, but I just don't feel like buying another set of KoolStops, or another tube for the front after the new one failed after 24 hours (thin spots near the valve stem).



Some blue bottle cages sure would look good, but at least these match each other. Some of my worst paint touch-ups were over the nicks on the chainstay, so I got some ESIgrips silicone tape and wrapped it. It was fun to use, and looks pretty clean.



Weighs about 28 lbs as you see it, and feels very stable, as I guess it should. Feels surprisingly different just with the racks removed, and I could see wanting to have those off most of the time. Of course, the racks also have these cool fender strut mounts, so when I get fenders on it, it'll be a whole process to undo. We'll see.



I rode it a bit with the original bar and stem, but I'm just not that flexible. The 56 frame does suite me though, especially if I have to hop off after trying to ride up a steep little trail in too tall a gear. Just the right amount of clearance!



I also tried some loaded test rides which went very well. This thing is going to take me on my first overnighter, something I've been meaning to do for about 35 years, and just never got around to! I think I'll throw on a more familiar seat before that, though. The Avocet looks the part, but I don't trust it.