Originally Posted by
Coyote99
I recently bought what is labelled as a Nishiki but haven't been able to identify it. The markings on the bike don't seem to match conventional serial numbers as they are DS 61 and 252129. I think I have been able to identify the derailleur as a SunTour Honor 1100 made in 1976 onwards. The shifters and derailleurs all have SunTour on them. The headset has KA60 on it and there are markings that say Japan. There is a sticker that says Made In Taiwan. Anyone have a guess?
Nishiki - Album on Imgur
Thanks!
Welcome to the forums. The subject bicycle should be a 1987 Nishiki Rally manufactured by Dodsun of Taiwan in December 1986. I'm ruling out 1976 based on the two tone fade paint and top tube cable tunnels, which are consistent with 1986 but not 1976. The vast majority of Nishiki were manufactured by a handful of contract manufacturers but there were numerous contractors involved with "help" orders and I believe that the S/N format post includes a disclaimer to this effect.
The bicycle itself is not consistent with a USA market Nishiki Rally but we often find differences depending on the intended market and owners changes, which often happen with 30 year old bicycles. The bottom line is that I have no reason to believe it is not a 1987 Nishiki Rally, though it does not appear to be the USA market version. In 1987, the Rally was the bottom of the line model in the USA market and your bicycle is consistent with entry level for the era, despite discrepancies with the USA market version.