localtalent

'Light' is not a term to describe the bike. I could certainly put more modern components on it, but it's a) classic and b) came complete so I didn't hafta buy none of that stuff. From what I understand from the guy I bought it from (the second owner), it's a custom frame that was built for someone from National Geographic who toured Japan on it. I suppose I'd describe it as 'confident', if that makes any sense - it feels very stable. The tubular front gives a nice ride. Still need some service on it, I think - I can sometimes detect a slight knock in the bottom bracket, although I don't feel it when I pull on the crank arms with the bike stationary. I believe the hubs need some fresh grease as well, I slow down a little faster than expected when coasting.

Mostly D-A EX, with the exception of the seatpost (Suntour Superbe) and the headset (600). Rear wheel is a Mavic MA2, front is an Araya Gold. Bars are Nitto, I believe. Saddle is a Turbo. Came with some SR pedals but the bearings need replacement, so I put a set of Sakaes that I had on there for now.

unworthy1

a true classic, and in a classic SanRensho color, too. If the PO was touring with it, he must have carried a credit card: no rack or fender eyelets here. Looks like yours (as well as mine) is built from Ishiwata 022, not the lightest tubeset in Ishiwata's range, but very strong and makes for a really solid ride. I don't see anything obvious that says "custom build", seems like the usual Cyclone Export...which is to say a really, really nice bike! Check after that knock (loose pedals can do that) and get it eliminated before any serious damage occurs, if it's a loose crankarm it can get chewed up by the spindle faster than you want.

localtalent

Yeah, I have to figure out what's doing it. How can you tell it's 022?

The custom thing came from both the PO's description and the unusual serial # - it starts with a C.

edit: interesting, a website on my google search just now said a 'c' serial denotes a JDM model.

unworthy1

the decal with the elephant is same as mine, and mine's 022...just an educated guess, could be 019 but since you say it's kinda heavy...022 is heavier and Yoshi did use it a lot.
is JDM Japanese Domestic Market, or something else?

freeagent1970

very nice...one of these is on my want list but in the midwest ive never seen one in person.

unworthy1

Yellow Jersey in Madison, WI was one of the major importers of 3Renshos, maybe THE major importer...so I would think there'd be more of 'em in the Midwest than anywhere else.

DARTHVADER

the fork looks to be pretty short rake. that's why it feels confident or stable. looks real nice.

unworthy1

there's more to that fork than just the "pretty short rake": the fork crown is one of Yoshi Konno's innovations. The crown is forward-canted placing the forkblades ahead of the centerline, which reduces the amount of curve need to achieve the same amount of rake you'd see in a "traditional" fork.

YoKev

Beautiful bike!

That color is pretty close to my Woodrup. Beautiful

ozneddy

nice bike,after seeing it I,m starting to wonder if MY 3rensho is the real deal or a copy !(mine dont have 3rensho in top of seat stays) if someone know,s plz tell me !

unworthy1

I'd need more, and better, pics to hazard a guess (esp. of the seat cluster and fork) but at a quick glance I'd guess "No"...based on what I can barely make out of the forkcrown and scalloped (are they?) seat stay caps. Also strange that everything is clamp-on, including the TT cable guides, except for one water bottle set and the chainstay stop. AND it has vertical dropouts...Could still be a perfectly nice bike, anyway, but a slightly weird set of frame options. The color looks "right" for a 3Rensho, but is the pink scratched off on the stay showing some blue underneath?

CV-6 

Not all 3Rensho had that feature.

ilikebikes

I really, truly, love your bike