Classic & Vintage - Miyata 210

Hey guys,
I just bought a miyata 210 from the 80's
serial number H537162
10 spd with 1024 high tensile steel tubbing
Can anyone tell me anything about Miyata's as well as this model.
Im fairly new to cycling got about a yr on the saddle.
I picked it up for 20 bucks and its a wonderful bike so far...just cleaned it up and she rides smooth and pretty fast...gears just slip a bit tho(any ideas what I can do to fix this as well?)
Thanks

Hello Radicaldreamer and welcome to Classic and Vintage Bike Forums.

Sounds like you made a great purchase of a Miyata 210 for $20. There is plenty of information and discussion regarding Miyata's touring bikes that has come up here and the best way to access it is to use the search tool. If you still have unanswered questions, then we're here to help.

If you can post pictures of your Miyata, it also helps.

Entry level, sports model, circa 1980/1981. Second from the bottom of the line. Miyata is Japan's oldest bicycle manufacturer and were very popular in the USA during the 1980s. During this period they were arguably the best mass production manufacturer of bicycles. The bicycles are excellent value at their respective price points due to excellent design, manufacturing and assembly practices. Miyata's philosphy of producing the best bicycles, led them to establish their own tubing facility, the only manufacturer to do so.

Since you're relatively new, the term slipping could be slipping (i.e slips out of gear, down to the next smallest gog) or skipping (i.e chain jumps off cog, but remains on the same cog).

Slipping usually happens because the screw that holds the shift lever needs a slight tightening. This puts pressure on a friction plate that counteracts the return spring in the rear derailleur. If you tighten it too much it will be hard to shift, so it will probably require some trial and error to get the right balance.

Skipping can occuir for a number of reasons. including a tight link in the chain. If you raise the rear wheel and pedal slowly, you should notice a kink in the chain. It is most noticeable when using the smallest cog on the back, as this is when the link has to pivot the most. If you notice a tight link, apply some light oil, grab the adjacent links and flex the chain sideways, numerous times. This will generally loosens the link.

Skipping can also happen with a worn chain and/or cog. Often people tended to ride their bicycles primarily in one gear. The chain and cog would wear, to point that shifting to infrequently used (i.e. unworn) cog would causing skipping. Installation of a new chain would solve the problem of skipping on the unworn cogs but would result in skipping on the heavily used cog. With a heavily worn chain and/or cogs, the solution is replacement of the chain and/or freewheel.

There are some other possible problems, but given the age, these are the most common.

Hey,
Thanks a ton for the info. I've been already scouring ebay and craigslist for another miyata...I dont know what It is about this brand but im liking it alot so far.

I have a Miyata 210 also, but I think mine's a year or two newer than yours because mine has a triple on the front and it Triple Butted Chrome-Moly. It's my distance bike. When I got it (over a year ago, for substantially more than $20 - but still at a fair price), I had chain skip issues too. I got a new chain, which helped some, but it was still not right. Since I've changed the freewheel (which didn't look especially worn to me), it's been fine.

Not saying this is your problem, but it's worth checking. My symptoms were - when riding on the smaller ring, and/or larger cogs, any uneven application of pressure was apt to result in a horrible sound and the crank turning a portion of a rotation with no resistance. I dreaded climbing hills until I was able to get this resolved.