Originally Posted by
clubman
Now you've got me twisted up. I bought my frame from a bike shop where I watched the mechanic strip the XTII drivetrain for another bike so I know the components were 87. I have the Fisher colour match stem and bulge bar and I've been collecting the parts, most of which I have.
I have the 17 1/4" distance on the rear chainstay, it also appears to be a 17" frame. The seatstays connect below the cmap but I do have a mudguard braze-on below the brake bridge.
The serial number is K8AO183 and makes little sense to me as there was some kind of crossover point. [MENTION=20650]T-Mar[/MENTION]?
My 2-cents before T-Mar answers your question. All bikes that begin with a K that I have seen have the two features you show, seat stay below the clamp, and barrel type rear carrier braze-ons. I have seen a K7P which suggests the change from a 12 month-letter code to a fortnight. KP7 was made late July to early August and yours is a January 1988 built bike making it a 1988 model year for which XT (m730) was standard not XTII (m732).
added: I wander if Toyo still made the "K" bikes