mooseinmass

Hi, friend had an old '85 Fuji Del Rey lying around for 10+ years, light use, that needed an overhaul. After suffering a bent steel derailleur hanger + dropouts on another bike I want to get some mastery of maintenance and figured this would be a great chance!!

Unfortunately didn't get great overall pics before tearing down, but here's a few....frame and components look to be in nice shape, I think the green is really going to shine after some love!!



I also found the original catalog, seems to be all original except I seem to have a Suntour Arx derailleur set on mine instead



Things I'm planning to update:

Cables, housing, freewheel, brake pads, brake levers, tires, tubes, handlebar wrap, chain. New grease + bearings in hubs, bb, and headset.

For the freewheel, likely planning to just go with a random six-speed Shimano freewheel since there isn't indexed shifting

Things I think I may want to swap -
Wheels - Seem okay but hubs are pretty grimy and would need to get trued. They're aluminum, are these low quality enough I should just upgrade these to another set of 27" wheels?
QR says SunShine





Brakes - Are these Dia Compes any good? Worth upgrading?



This was def a mid-level bike back in the day. Willing to put some money into the bike but not trying to turn it into a race horse thanks

sd5782 

The component list on that as new seems well thought out and matched. Don’t be too quick to dump that 30T freewheel. They are nice and you can’t buy ones now with that gear spacing and the 30 tooth cog. That bike is tasteful. Good luck.

cb400bill

I think that yours is an Oak Green 1984.

Murray Missile 

I completely rebuilt an '86 Del Rey last year. I wouldn't do much "upgrading". They are very nice riding bikes just the way they came from the factory. Give everything a thorough cleaning, put Jagwire cables and, Koolstop pads on it with a saddle, bar tape, pedals and tires ( highly recommend Panaracers) of your choice and ride, ride, ride.

Mine has the Suntour LePree components but nothing wrong with ARX. I've had them on a couple bikes, they ain't sexy but are rock solid. As to your hubs, I keep every set of Sunshine hubs I get my hands on. Don't let the hokey name fool you, they made good stuff. Unless they have excessive wear, just rebuild yours, they'll be fine.

These were nice mid range bikes, put it back in proper tune and enjoy it. If you want to upgrade from the ARX skip over LePree to Suntour Cyclone. The LePree work just as well but "Cyclone" sounds cooler. Cyclone may be easier to find to than LePree too.

PugRider

Seems like you have a good plan of attack, and the bike appears to be in very good shape, which is half the battle. With regard to wheels, if it was me, I would repack the wheel bearings, true them up if needed, and see how I liked them before switching them out, unless you had a wheelset ready to go that you really wanted to throw on there. Good luck, keep us posted!

Ironfish653

I'd probably go ahead and swap out the freewheel to a 'modern' Shimano HG freewheel. Even though you have friction shifting, the ramped teeth on an SIS freewheel, along with a modern 8-sp chain (KMC Z-series plays well with mix-n-match drivetrains) really improves the shift feel and performance.

I always like good brakes, so if this bike is going to see regular use, dual-pivot calipers are worth the money. DiaCompe BRS-100/101s don't look out of place on a vintage bike, especially in silver;. Tektro 539/559s are less expensive, and somewhat easier to find, but more modern looking.

mooseinmass

Thanks, I hadn't appreciated that before. I do think refurbishing this freewheel seems like a bigger task than I feel comfortable going for at the moment, it's definitely pretty mucked up internally. It seems even for most 7 speed cassettes it'll top out at 28T. I was thinking of getting something like this? Link

Thanks, helpful on what kind of chain to go for!! Yeah, I think a modern freewheel would be nice. On brakes, unfortunately both of these seem tougher to find right now. I might put it on a list of things to upgrade down the line and at least get some good pads meanwhile

mooseinmass

Thanks all around everyone! You've convinced me to try to keep this pretty close to stock, replacing expendables and maybe just picking a nicer saddle. I'm generally not a fan of the gum brake lever covers but that catalog pic of the bike in it's original 84' catalogue does look nice...

Gonna go with gumwall tires if anywhere has anything good in stock...

fettsvenska 

I agree with Murray Missile. I think that you are best off using every part of that bike that is still usable. One thing to consider is that while this is definitely a nice bike that is worth refurbishing and riding, it is not a valuable bike so if you start upgrading parts, you may not be improving the value. Just the consumables like tires, brake pads, bar wrap, cables, etc. all start to add up pretty quickly and you can find yourself in the hole.

Clang

I like those gold anodized rims. If they need truing, get a #2 spoke wrench (~$8) and watch a video on how to use it. It's a very valuable skill!

Other things like those single-pivot brakes should work well enough with new pads and proper adjustment that they shouldn't warrant upgrading. As others have suggested, try what you have before worrying about buying new.

bikemig 

It's rare to see that much consensus here which tells you something. Change as little as possible in terms of the parts, overhaul the bike and replace the consumables is the best course of action. The 14-28 shimano freewheel you listed is a good one if you decide to change out the freewheel. You might want to try dripping some oil down into the freewheel guts (spin it and you'll see the areas where oil can get in front and back) to see if that cleans it up. Everything likely is in fine shape and rebuildable.

That is a worthy project and a great color.

cbrstar

That's a really nice looking bike. I've never come across quad butted tubing before and it sounds really interesting. I would replace the brake hoods luckily they are making replacements for them again. There's probably better places to buy these but I came across these on a BMX retailer of all things Road Bicycle Stuff - Porkchop BMX The brakes are decent for their age but I would replace the pads just in case they have gotten hard. I would also make sure to buy the proper tool if you are going to be doing anything with the freewheel or take it to a bike shop to be removed.

Murray Missile 

BTDT!

Murray Missile 

Here's mine before:



During:


.....and after:

Ironfish653

It's not Fuji, but here's my '76 Bridgestone rebuild:This was about $170 worth of parts; tires and tubes were the biggest single item at $50; going with gumwalls will probably be closer to $75, for Paselas, but they're really good tires. The original freewheel was frozen up from years of sitting, so I replaced it with a 6-sp with that 32t bailout gear.
Cane Creek hoods fit those DiaCompe/Winemann levers everyone had in the 70s, after you take off the turkey levers.
I took off the center pull calipers because all the adjusters, hangers and hardware were rusrty and corroded; replacing all the jewelry would have cost more than those closeout fixie BRS-101s
Other than the bar wrap and saddle, the rest of the bike is the original parts, just cleaned, polished or otherwise refinished.

The Golden Boy 

I can only echo what everyone else has said. It's a great color. As it came from the factory- it was a solid, but really good, midline bike with great parts.

The DiaCompe G500s were quality side pulls for 1984- the Suntour Power Shifters are great, Sunshine/Sanshin hubs are quality, ARX is solidly midline- they'll shift excellent-

New chain, cables, housing and brake pads. Grease the hubs, BB and headset. Panaracer Paselas in 1 1/4". I'd keep dripping some oil/TriFlow into the freewheel and get the gunk out.

If you like the bike and you get that 'upgrade' fever... As mentioned- most any amount of money you throw at this- you're still not improving the sale value of the bike, and there's not a lot of "performance" improvement- but you can drop a little weight here and there and some prettier parts. I have a Trek 400 Elance. It's the 2nd from entry level Trek for 1986. I think I've hung a good $1500 in parts off that bike. Probably more. It's my prettiest bike, and it rides wonderfully, and I feel good riding it. I understand and have ignored everything about going upside down value wise- so I'm probably not the person to talk to about this sort of thing.

Cyclone stuff is always good- and either a Cyclone GT or Cyclone MII GT derailleur set would go nice on here- especially with that crank. It looks "cyclone-y".
If the reach is good- Suntour Superbe brakes and levers are beautiful. Then the Suntour Sprint ratcheting shifters. Or maybe the Simplex Retrofriction shifters.
I'd throw a rack on the back.

Again, nothing really beyond a little prettier and a couple of ounces.

Enjoy!!!

mooseinmass

Thanks everyone, love the overhauls people are sharing. Just ordered the essentials and excited to get everything together--was very tough to find Paselas but managed it. Even picked up the gum brake lever covers despite my original dislike of them

Going to try getting the freewheel cleaned up/oiled and hopefully it's a keeper.

Definitely appreciate this isn't ever going to be the fast, high-end vintage!! I've got a 88' Trek 520 with some modern flare/weight savings on the side; this one is going to be solely a period-correct looker

fettsvenska 

One thing that I've done that has worked for me but you have to be sort of careful is I've taken a bike like this that needs cleaning over to the self-serve car wash and used the high pressure washer on it. The risk that you run is that you can get water into places that you don't intend, which might not be such a good thing. However, if you're giving the whole thing an overhaul anyway, you might be able to get everything dried out.

Murray Missile 

WD-40. The main things I use WD-40 for are removing adhesive residue and moisture. BITD of points and condensers got many a wet ignition system to fire by hosing it down with WD-40. I read once that "WD" stood for "water dusplacement". True or not it works well for that.

The Golden Boy 

Water Displacement, formula 40.

Murray Missile 

"dusplacement" .... What can I say? Big fingers, small phone.

Pompiere

Here's another Fuji before & after for inspiration:
I bought the bike from my local shop when they had a "refurb an old road bike" clinic. I had to work the day of the clinic, but they still had a few bikes in the back to choose from. I recognized the S12-S LTD as a good frame, plus it came with Sun Tour bar-end shifters and most of the original components. I got it road worthy and put some test miles on to make sure it was going to be worth a major rehab. I worked on it over the winter of 2019-2020. Covid shipping delays gave plenty of time for the paint to cure before decals and final assembly. I am quite pleased with how it turned out. It isn't a race bike, but it is comfortable for a long day in the saddle. Like many others, I chose Pasela tires, 27x1 inch. The wire beads stay put, even on the old straight sided Ukai rims.


Fuji S12-S LTD, as found in the back of the LBS.

1981 Fuji S12-S LTD (before) Decals are homemade over a bad respray. Ready for test ride.


1981 Fuji S12-S LTD, awaiting new tires and brake hoods, but otherwise finished.

The Golden Boy 

I didn't even notice!

I was just throwing in that it was the 40th attempt at creating a water displacement formula.

https://wd40company.com/our-company/our-history/

hihik

I’m also doing a first ever project - https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vintage/1227969-first-build-wip-motobecane-super-mirage-83-a.html

Your bike is a beaut! Good luck with it!

mooseinmass

Finally back with a completed restoration. New cables, housing, chain, brakes, brooks handlebar tape, some fat páselas for biking in the city. Rides very smooth and managed to save the freewheel and shifters with some cleaning and reassembly

the gold rims really pop with the color scheme, it’s an elegant bike