mississippimud

Thanks ! I have another one , not a Strawberry , in the works from 1980 only a couple of hundred made , it should be finished in a couple of weeks ..here's a sneek peek 😉

merziac

I know I've seen that first signature letter before but don't remember who, gonna spitball Peter Johnson just for fun.
@mississippimud

Havelaar

love it

Lbxpdx

My 85 Schwinn Voyageur SP. I just picked up a Blackburn front rack, but I haven’t installed it yet.

misctrader

1985 Voyageur with 700c rims and 38c tires. Want to install a triple up front to get a lower gears.


Wa

fvernon

Built this '79 Centurion Pro Tour up over the summer after picking it up on my way home from Eroica California (here about to head to the farmer's market):



Definitely not all original (I think only the Dia-Compe braze on centerpulls & qr brake levers are original still). A little bit sluggish at slow speeds/while accelerating but once it's cruising it really wants to just keep going. Built for fun long rides & light tours. Maybe a brevet. The grocery bags are hiding the front end--I really like the Velo Orange randonneuring bars & decaleur paired with my old Jim Blackburn front rack. It normally wears a Swift Industries randonneuring bag, which is excellent:


I've also got a 1977 Romic X-100 (pretty sure it's an X-100) touring frameset that's headed to the shop for some restoration; it's got a tighter geometry with lower fork rake than the Centurion, so it may see a similar build treatment but get used on more spirited tours and rides.

cooperryder

That's a great looking Centurion.
I have a fondness for the Centurions especially the ones with chrome lugs.

goodwrench84

Crowd source advice desired on two vintage touring bikes, recently purchased Fuji touring series III and updating it with a flat bar and other updates and I really like it and rides nice but another touring bike just came on the market near me that’s a Raleigh touring 14 that looks worn scraped up from the pictures but all there and with both racks. From what I have read, the Raleigh is also a Japanese built frame and I am wondering what our members think if the Raleigh is a much nicer or higher end vehicle than the Fuji? My spouse is not too happy lately with my bike fetish and I always get the question “how many bikes do you have”? To borrow a quote from a fellow member goes something like this. “To many bikes is how many you have plus 1” Thanks for your thoughts.

thumpism 

This bike should have had a triple originally. I sold a few of them back then.

DQRider 

I've probably posted this here before, but these are recent photos taken in the last couple weeks. I can't say enough about the quality of the frameset and original Deore drivetrain on this bike. Converting to 650b has given it long-ride comfort like I've never experienced before. Of course, it is painted white; it's like riding on a cloud!








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dbhouston 

My new-to-me 1984 Centurion ProTour 15. It came to me in September in poor condition with badly deteriorated paint, and someone had made a half-ass start at scraping it off. So, "aircraft remover" and Evaporust plus lots of time and, man, I'm pleased with this thing. I've never restored or owned a touring bike before, but it certainly has me thinking longer, slower trips would be pleasant.

himespau 

Was it fully chromed under that paint? Wow.

dbhouston 

It was, and I knew that going in. I was surprised at how well it came out, though.

Cycle Tourist

I wouldn't be able to resist getting the Raleigh especially if it needed to be saved. Many of us get that identical question from our wives or partners. It's a cross we must bare.
Not a fan of flat bars but it's totally a matter of preference. I wouldn't think the Raleigh is any better than your Fuji though. Besides "better" is subjective. My old rebuilt entry level Univega was supposed to be totally eclipsed by a Trek top end touring bike but I never liked it nearly as much and regretted selling the Uni. I've come close to recreating it with an old Miyata 610.

TLaurent 

I bought this 1975 Fuji America as a frame/fork when I was frustrated with the Italian race bike projects that all need more work than assembly. Thanks to the forum, I found the catalog and was able to source 90% of the parts to match. I’m currently building up a period correct wheel set and have since added hammered copper fenders. It’s a comfy ride that I take to the Farmer’s market on Saturdays and ride home with the panniers filled with fresh veggies. Go ahead and make fun of that seatpost clamp. I’m still breaking in the saddle and make adjustments during the ride.

polymorphself 

Girlfriend with her recently acquired ‘83 720.

VintageRide

1985 Norco Magnum GT - definitely a sport tourer and more for riding around town, the Rene Herse Barlow Pass 700C x 38 tires go a long way to making it quite comfortable. There were some rather unusable 28mm Panaracers on it that had a raised centre section making it feel rather unsteady. I could most likely squeeze some 45mm fenders in there but in all probability just going to leave it as is. Changed the original Nitto B135 42 cm handlebars and Nitto 90 cm stem for some 48 cm Nitto Noodles attached to a 60 cm Nitto Technomic stem. Changed out the Pro Vis II quill pedals for MKS Sylvan Touring and will be adding a front canti rack, honey Brooks B 17 and similar coloured faux leather handlebar tape. Lastly some Origin8 " Classic " brake levers. I find the Dia Compes the Norco came with very difficult to apply any meaningful stopping power from the hoods.

I would have liked to purchase the original V.O. Rando handlebars in 50cm but they no longer produce them so hopefully a used one will show up one day, the Noodles are good but not quite as practical in my case, not cheap though so will certain;y keep them. The bike was never ridden all that much so it is in very nice condition overall. I really like the Suntour XC 3 pulley rear derailleur and the Suzue sealed bearing hubs are still very smooth.

The bike and components have been polished further , to the point I almost do not want to ride it - especially with the drivetrain having little wear. I really like the Shimano Bio Pace triple crankset with the polished arms as well as the Suntour shifters.

gthomson

VintageRide that is just stunning! Looks like you got a near perfect frame and your upgrades make it look like it just rolled out of the store. Assuming it came with caliper brakes and you replaced with the cantilever brakes?

Well, I was excited to post a picture of my touring bike that I modified recently and took for a nice ride but don't think I can follow up from your act.

80's something Sakai Select with Shimano 600 Arabesque components.

beicster 

If you have any updated shots with the copper fenders, I would like to see them.

Roger M

I've posted a picture of this bike here before, but not with any overnight gear. I did an overnight trip on Orcas Island in July. I changed it from a compact double to the half-step thing you see here. I haven't quite figured out how to be efficient yet with this gearing, but it is nice to have lower(and more) gear range.

polymorphself 

Awesome, any more photos from the overnighter? What was the weight you carried? Did you feel low riders would’ve been more efficient or irrelevant?

Roger M

There's a short write-up in the 'where'd you ride' sticky. Page 830, post number 20740( im terrible with sharing links here). I have a lowrider rack, but no small panniers yet. I like those swift Jr Ranger units that you have, just waiting to find a good deal on a pair..

I don't know how well this bike will behave with that much of a front load. That box on there now holds a lot of stuff, and with more than a few pounds in it, slow speed handling needs a firm grip.

I do need to invest in lightweight camping equipment.

polymorphself 

Good point about your rando bag holding a lot, its a big one.

Gear worked out for me in that my girlfriend is a huge camper, hiker and backpacker. After we met I started accumulating gear to facilitate trips with her, and so bought everything with an eye toward backpacking, which translates to packing a bike nicely. My tent, sleeping pad and sleeping bag purchases are the ones I most appreciate. I went all in on them and can say it made all the difference in my outdoor adventures.

merziac

I would encourage you to get the low riders sorted out.

Jim likely designed them into these as he did many of his, it may tolerate the big box better with them in play, I don't think he was a fan of the bar bag as he felt very strongly about using the fork to carry the load and keeping its flex/suspension properties in play as best it could be done, which he did.

Here are very good examples of his design, notice how far up the fork the racks attach, leaving plenty to still dampen the ride and provide stability that I can attest to having ridden these loaded on rough roads and gravel at speed, the upper hanger/mount also provide excellent support while also still allowing plenty of flex and float as well.

Amazing and rock solid, especially the faster you are going.

merziac

Here's the 411 from Jim, and more if you hadn't seen it.

https://www.bikeforums.net/22984372-post23.html