Pemetic2006

Do what Velocivixen recommended. Pretty sure it's a 1987. Very nice.

Sue_WA

Excellent information, Thank-you!

Velocivixen

@Sue_WA - Hi there and I forgot to say, "Welcome"! We like close up photos, so we can admire other's treasures. Would you consider posting some close ups of your bike? Particularly nice are the drive train (right) side of the bike. We love to geek out and ask questions. Have you had a chance to ride it much?

Sue_WA

And also a Thank-you to Tom (t-mar) who sent me a pm. I can't reply to those yet. As a newbie I have to get up to 50 posts. That is very useful information and interesting too!

Sue_WA

Thanks Velocivixen! I have not. This is/was my brothers bike that he was working on. But I intend to finish it myself. I will take more photos and post.

Velocivixen

@Sue_WA - good for you! I hope it's your size and look forward to seeing more of it. If any questions arise in your rebuild, the folks here are very generous with their knowledge.

EspenE

My Nishiki International 1984 in Tuscany Italy October this year participating in L'Eroica.

And this is a picture of the clean bike before the race

3alarmer 

T-Mar

Interesting International. The S/N indicates 1978 build but it appears to have 27" (?) wheels and the literature calls for 700C. Could you please verify. TIA.

wrk101

FWIW, I have the same International. Same color, same crank, same seat post. Only difference is mine came with bar end shifters. As I recall, it also came with 27 inch wheels. Most of it has moved on, although I still have the frame set and seat post. I'll dig it out and check the serial number on mine.

wrk101

Some not so great pics of my International. KH 09589. Aero brake levers were added by prior owner.

Non-drive side when picked up; on the work stand, and a few close ups including serial number.

T-Mar

The serial number from 1987 and so is the downtube logo, but there is no Modulus in the 1987 catalogue so I'm assuming it was a late model year introduction.

Chosemerveilleu

Hello Folks,

I don't recall if I've posted anything about my Olympic 12. It was in our basement when we purchased our house. This is what it looked like as of this summer;
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-A...08_155634.jpeg
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-I...08_155026.jpeg
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-z...08_155138.jpeg
"C68J G0286"
Right now its apart, about to go to the painter for a coat of paint. I'm turning it onto a 650b 1x11 commuter. We'll see how it turns out.

T-Mar

Not sure about the C68J but it was manufactured by Giantr in February 1986. Thxs for posting. Your post count says this is your first post, so welcome to the forums!

Hummer

Hello Chosemerveilleu,

Welcome to the forums. Your Olympic is the 1986 model year. For that year there was no "Olympic 12" it was just plain Olympic.

The numbers that you have shown from the bottom bracket are: first about the size of the BB shell, 68mm, and the second is the frame manufacturer's date code, as explained by TMar.

The frame serial number should be further around the BB as seen in this previous post:

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...l#post12474660

Good luck with the conversion.

curbtender

74? Competition KS297---

Parabolous

Sorry for infiltrating this thread! I found this Olympic 12 on the local CL but I'm unsure of the year and the owner doesn't know either. I thought the cranks might be Silstar which could mean early 80's but I'm not sure the more I look at it. Could anyone help out? Thanks!

vintage Nishiki road bike (56cm)

Hummer

@Parabolous

The serial number can be decoded for the year of frame manufacture. Probably starts with "KB" or KC".

The decals and layout look to be 1982 model year.

Parabolous

Do you happen to know if the '12' in the Olympic name meant it had 12 gears or if it was simply a model name?

T-Mar

In this case, the 12 in the model name is indicative of the number of gears. The Olympic 12 was introduced in 1978, replacing the previous 10 speed Olympic. It lasted though 1987 and in 1988 reverted to the Olympic model name when it was upgraded to 14 speed Shimano Exage.

I agree that the bicycle would appear to be circa 1982, as it used chrome fork blade tips from 1978 to 1981, at least in the USA.

Doug911c

Am I correct that a SN starting with KI was manufactured in 1979? It looks almost older since it is basic without bottle holder baze-ons or gear cable guides. I will try to upload a picture. Also an interesting detail is two hearts that are brazed on the bottom of the downtube. What I would like to get an idea of is the model name if someone has an idea. The full serial number is KI 05347. Thanks.

T-Mar

Yes, a KI-code indicates 1979 Kawamura manufacture. This was just about the time that Nishiki was starting to trickle bottle bosses and other brazed-on fittings from high end to mid range. Consequently, any of the entry level models and even some of the mid-range models could still be sporting clamps for things like shift levers and/or cables.

BTW, welcome to the forums, though a bit belated. Somehow, I missed your first post.

Doug911c

Thank you for the welcome and the reply. I have updated my post if you could perhaps reply? I managed to upload a picture, but still trying to add a second picture to show the brazed-on heart. Thanks again.

T-Mar

That's interesting. I was trying to add a 2nd image to another post and it wouldn't let me do it either. Even when I tried a separate post, it wasn't co-operating.

Regarding identification, the serial number does not include a model indicator. We'll need a photo of the full bicycle/frameset (taken from the drive side) and if not assembled pics of the major components would be a big help as most frame designs were used on multiple models. Given that it's Kawamura built, it's probably at least upper entry level, as Giant was building most of the lower entry level models during this period. Those hearts sound like the stops used for locating the shifter and/or cable clamps.

Doug911c

I just got lucky by finding a picture of the frame prior to me getting hold of it. The name looks like OLYMPIC ROYAL (with either an E or 2 at the end, not sure). The name does not sound bottom-end of teh range, but maybe it is There were no components on the frame when I got it. As you can see I am restoring it but plan to use components I have, basically Shimano 600 for the most part.

Those hearts are very neat, I wish they were more visible elsewhere on the frame! It makes sense that they are stops, the lower must be for gear cable guides.