Originally Posted by
oldbobcat
Nice '69. A buddy of mine, a runner who wanted to ride on off days, had one just like it that he bought used around 1975. By the way, it is easily distinguishable from a Mk. V by the brazed on boss for the rear center pull brake.
You can't mistake a '69 for a Mk. V. '69s have semi-wrap stays, top tube cable stops, sloping crown forks, and lugs without window cutouts. 1977+ Mark V's have conventional stay caps, require cable clips, have flat-crown forks, and Bocama 83 lugs with triangular cutouts.
Mk. II and Mk. III's, on the other hand, are virtually identical, down to their mink/silver paint schemes. If it weren't for the limited-run stickers on the Mk. II's, you'd have a very hard time telling them apart. The Mk IV's stick out, as they're either mink blue/silver or silver/black (1975 only). Only the Mk. V continued the mink blue color, and the fastblack seatstay cluster and sloping crown (not to mention chrome ends) render the two variants easy to spot.
-Kurt