70-80's Japanese Asuka - anyone heard of this?
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70-80's Japanese Asuka - anyone heard of this?
Hi all,
I recently picked up and did some work on an old bike I bought. I couldn't find ANY google results or other information on the badging/brand. All it says on the frame is the manufacturer sticker, "Asuka", and "Made in Japan".
Below is the before (left)/after pic from when I bought it and how it is now.
Anything anyone knows about this bike would be great to hear!

Thanks,
Adam
I recently picked up and did some work on an old bike I bought. I couldn't find ANY google results or other information on the badging/brand. All it says on the frame is the manufacturer sticker, "Asuka", and "Made in Japan".
Below is the before (left)/after pic from when I bought it and how it is now.
Anything anyone knows about this bike would be great to hear!

Thanks,
Adam
Last edited by slickware; 09-09-10 at 07:53 AM.
#2
Thrifty Bill
Are you sure it is not Azuki? Mostly bottom end bikes brought in during the boom in the 1970s. Nice job rehabbing and upgrading it!
Brands that don't show up on google = private label/store brands sold during the bike boom.
Brands that don't show up on google = private label/store brands sold during the bike boom.
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That's the label, so I'm pretty sure

It's written (in decal) on the downtube also, and a similar shield emblem shows up on each of the forks. There appears to be a model number etched into the bottom bracket, but that returned no results either.
I think it turned out pretty good as well, thanks! It's my first time ever doing more work than a light dérailleur adjustment. I even spread the rear dropouts and put 700c wheels on it (I hate riding 27"s)
I'd really like to bullhorn the handlebars or at least get some lighter/more comfortable ones, but I don't have a set of calipers at the moment and I'm not sure what diameters I can buy, or if I can just replace the whole quill stem with a larger diameter one.
#4
Thrifty Bill
Looks like a private label bike then. There were thousands if not millions of brands during the 1970s, when every gas station, department store, tire shop, or whatever, sold their "own" brand of bikes. Plus lots of bike shops had their own brands too.
Given the features in the before picture, it looks like an entry level bike from that era. You did a nice job upgrading it for sure.
Given the features in the before picture, it looks like an entry level bike from that era. You did a nice job upgrading it for sure.