First Vintage Bike! - 1989 Miyata 1400
10-09-20, 09:17 AM
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First Vintage Bike! - 1989 Miyata 1400
I'd been looking at vintage steel bikes, just to see what the fuss was about, and I wanted to try out a bike with downtube shifters just for the novelty of it. Anyway, this popped on on the local Craigslist last night and I snatched it up. I think everything is original except the seat and tubes/tires. There's no rust, and everything looks remarkably clean. I took a short ride around the neighborhood last night when I got home, and I'm planning on a longer ride Sunday. So far I'm really impressed at how quiet and smooth everything is.
I've only just started hitting the paint with polish and wax to remove some fine scratches and hazing, so for now I'll just post the pics from the CL ad.
I've only just started hitting the paint with polish and wax to remove some fine scratches and hazing, so for now I'll just post the pics from the CL ad.
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10-09-20, 09:36 AM
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Very nice find !
10-09-20, 12:37 PM
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Wow that looks like it is just out of the show room, how many automobiles from 1989 are in that condition? 
Enjoy, that should ride great!
Enjoy, that should ride great!
10-09-20, 01:25 PM
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Beautiful and all business, once you remove the reflectors, brackets, seat...
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10-09-20, 01:40 PM
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nice find, Miyata and Shimano tri color - very nice and I agree with the clubman loose the awful "comfort" saddle 
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10-09-20, 02:02 PM
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I'm really surprised that the reflectors and such are still on the bike after all this time - there are even little rubber plugs in the bolts that hold the brakes to the frame; I don't know that I've ever seen those before.
And the saddle! - I don't know whose "comfort" it was designed for, but with that much gel, even the short ride around the block I took last night felt like I was balancing my butt on a beach ball! Thankfully I have a lot of "take-off" seats lying around, but I'm open to suggestions for modern seats that would look appropriate. Is a 1989 bike too new for a Brooks B17?
And the saddle! - I don't know whose "comfort" it was designed for, but with that much gel, even the short ride around the block I took last night felt like I was balancing my butt on a beach ball! Thankfully I have a lot of "take-off" seats lying around, but I'm open to suggestions for modern seats that would look appropriate. Is a 1989 bike too new for a Brooks B17?
10-09-20, 02:04 PM
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Nice find!!! Looks like it was never ridden!! Hope you got a good deal on it!
10-09-20, 02:10 PM
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I'm embarrassed to admit that at $340, I have no idea whether or not I got a good deal. All the pricing information I could find was several years old and obviously doesn't take into account "pandemic pricing." But the bike checked all of my boxes, it's clean and ready to ride, and $340 isn't "second mortgage on the house" money in any case, so I jumped on it.
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10-09-20, 02:12 PM
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I'm really surprised that the reflectors and such are still on the bike after all this time - there are even little rubber plugs in the bolts that hold the brakes to the frame; I don't know that I've ever seen those before.
And the saddle! - I don't know whose "comfort" it was designed for, but with that much gel, even the short ride around the block I took last night felt like I was balancing my butt on a beach ball! Thankfully I have a lot of "take-off" seats lying around, but I'm open to suggestions for modern seats that would look appropriate. Is a 1989 bike too new for a Brooks B17?
And the saddle! - I don't know whose "comfort" it was designed for, but with that much gel, even the short ride around the block I took last night felt like I was balancing my butt on a beach ball! Thankfully I have a lot of "take-off" seats lying around, but I'm open to suggestions for modern seats that would look appropriate. Is a 1989 bike too new for a Brooks B17?
B-17’s or similar are used on bikes of any vintage. You mention that you have lots of take-off seats, but I’d highly recommend a Gilles Berthoud saddle. Love my two Aravis.
https://www.renehersecycles.com/prod...nents/saddles/
10-09-20, 02:16 PM
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I'm embarrassed to admit that at $340, I have no idea whether or not I got a good deal. All the pricing information I could find was several years old and obviously doesn't take into account "pandemic pricing." But the bike checked all of my boxes, it's clean and ready to ride, and $340 isn't "second mortgage on the house" money in any case, so I jumped on it.
10-09-20, 02:16 PM
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That is a great find at an amazingly good price, IMHO.
B-17’s or similar are used on bikes of any vintage. You mention that you have lots of take-off seats, but I’d highly recommend a Gilles Berthoud saddle. Love my two Aravis.
https://www.renehersecycles.com/prod...nents/saddles/
B-17’s or similar are used on bikes of any vintage. You mention that you have lots of take-off seats, but I’d highly recommend a Gilles Berthoud saddle. Love my two Aravis.
https://www.renehersecycles.com/prod...nents/saddles/
10-09-20, 02:24 PM
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In that condition it's a bargoon. They'd ask for double that in my region.
10-09-20, 02:33 PM
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Here’s a better description of GB saddles:
https://www.renehersecycles.com/whic...s-best-for-me/
They use thicker leather than any Brooks in my experience (multiple examples of older Team Pro, B17’s with Pro-thick leather, Swift). The Aravis/Aspin has the best features of those three Brooks, with improvements over all of them. Note the lower positions of the screw attachments so that you’re not sitting on them, unlike the rivets of a Team Pro, and the screw attachment itself is a great improvement.
Now back to drooling over your great “new” bike!
https://www.renehersecycles.com/whic...s-best-for-me/
They use thicker leather than any Brooks in my experience (multiple examples of older Team Pro, B17’s with Pro-thick leather, Swift). The Aravis/Aspin has the best features of those three Brooks, with improvements over all of them. Note the lower positions of the screw attachments so that you’re not sitting on them, unlike the rivets of a Team Pro, and the screw attachment itself is a great improvement.
Now back to drooling over your great “new” bike!
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10-09-20, 03:47 PM
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the original saddle would have been a turbo. the original pedals would have been 600 tricolor also. Everything else looks right, eveny has the biopace I bought one new and rode it until the one problem this bike has showed up. That is cracks around the holes in the top tube for the aero cable routing. So just check that out occasionally
greast bike, rides and handles great....miss mine
greast bike, rides and handles great....miss mine
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Life is too short not to ride the best bike you have, as much as you can
(looking for Torpado Super light frame/fork or for Raleigh International frame fork 58cm)
Life is too short not to ride the best bike you have, as much as you can
(looking for Torpado Super light frame/fork or for Raleigh International frame fork 58cm)
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10-09-20, 10:02 PM
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That is a beauty. TriColor is a very pleasant way to try out downtube shifting and that was a good price for a bike that nice.
edit: oh yea, a Turbo should be tried out. A Concor or one of the clones would also be worth trying.
edit: oh yea, a Turbo should be tried out. A Concor or one of the clones would also be worth trying.
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I don't do: disks, tubeless, e-shifting, or bead head nymphs.
I don't do: disks, tubeless, e-shifting, or bead head nymphs.
