Do you want to know more about Japanese bikes or American (and European) brand bikes built in Japan? While the bikes mentioned above and countless others including some very nice Bianchis are all great bikes you need to remember they are designed by US marketing companies to be sold in the US. The Japanese companies just built them a bit better and much cheaper than an American company could have done. SO the credit for ride quality and looks go to guys like Ben Lawee of Univega, Bill Graves and his team at Bianchi USA, the designers at Western States Importers (Centurion, Diamond Back) ect.

I think Japanese market steel bikes are more akin to something like this infamous Flying Pegion of China