Originally Posted by
TugaDude
...The newer one, however, had stainless steel forks. Said so on the sticker on the downtube. Technart was the term Bridgestone used for the SS tubing. The sticker said main triangle and forks were Technart. You could tell they were SS, sounded different when you pinged them...
Technart had nothing to do with the stainless steel tubing. It referred to the process of casting the lugs around the tubes. Even the entry level models with carbon steel and hi-tensile tubes had Technart frames. If the sticker said the forks were Technart, it simply meant that the crown was cast around the forks and has no bearing on the fork blade material. Personally, I've never seen a Submariner with stainless steel forks (or stays). Even the literature I have on the Submariner-12 indicates the fork as "Technart Single Tube, Hi-Tensile C.P. ends." I suggest you test your forks with a magnet.
Originally Posted by
TugaDude
This is the '79, which I think is the same year as the OP's. 12 speeds on this one, my '75 was 10. Had one of those beautiful golden-colored freewheels, the two largest cogs were skiptooth. Very unique. The 12 speed had a "typical" 6 speed freewheel.
This bicycle is not the same as the OP's. Besides 6 cogs versus 5, the brakes are sidepull versus the center-pull on the OP's. Your pics are poor but I don't think the crankeset is the same either.
As for the year of the OP's bicycle, the crankset is Aug 1977, which is late enough in the year that the bicycle itself is probably a 1978 model. However, the stem, which is well above it's insertion mark, looks like there may be an 80 marked on it. This may be a date code, but could also be the extension length. Regardless, the stem is at an unsafe height and should be lowered to the insertion mark, prior to sale. If not lowered and the stem pops out on the new owner, the OP could be held liable.