I was just looking for one of the older Fuji catalogs and am not able to pull up the Classic Fuji website. This is/was such a great site it would be a real shame to lose it. Does anyone know what might have happened?

Wow, I couldn't find it either. That would be a real loss. It was a terrific resource.

You might try the Wayback Machine (www.archive.org) to see if it has snapshots of the old site.

Wow, I was just looking at it last week. Now it just goes to a search engine. There is this one by a fellow BF Member: Vintage Fuji Archive

Good call. Archive.org fortunately does have it backed up, last snapshot 7/13/19. The web is a great resource, but sites are ephemeral - I just checked classicfuji late last week and now- bam. Gone. Maybe it's a glitch, maybe it's permanent...

I just checked it last week also! I hope this is some sort of hiccup.

If you're trying to date old Fuji, the original serial number decodes can still be found here; Fuji Serial Number Database

They also available here, Asian Serial Number Guide , along with dozens of other Asian bicycle companies and brands.

Thanks all! I did end up checking the internet archive for the catalog I wanted, but some of the pictures for the early catalogs don't show up.

I was looking at a claimed 1974 Fuji Special Road Racer (s10-s) and I wanted to see if that year had alloy or steel rims as the wheels weren't pictured very closely.

Well, I couldn't help it and picked up the bike. It came with the original belt leather seat, Primus frame pump, and the 1974 Fuji catalog and some other related literature! What a time capsule and I'm thrilled.

The Special Road Racer isn't a high end bike, but it appears to be everything a recreational rider could need in a single package, and the design was really well thought out. And it's a pretty green as well. Here are the obligatory pictures

If the '74 catalog isn't already available online, I can host it on my Flickr site or Old Classic Rendezvous Archive. I'll even scan it if you don't mind being without it for a few days.

Ha! I acquired the same bike, a green 1974 Fuji S10-S (with pump!) about 6 months ago. (Green is the color of April bicycles)

The rims on mine are 27" steel Rigida Super Chrome. I have no doubt they were original to this bike.


That said, when Bicycling! reviewed the 1974 Fuji S10-S, the specs listed UKAI alloy wheels, so perhaps 1974 was a transition year for rims, especially if we learn 1975 rims for S10-S were UKAI alloy.

Road Test/Bike Review (1974) Fuji Special Road Racer S10-S

Or perhaps, Fuji wanted to influence braking or other ride characteristics for the road test model. Cynical me.


Unfortunately, I don't have the catalog as I was also depending on the site remaining active.

So I checked the 1974 catalog and the alloy UKAI rims are indeed the originally specified equipment. The bike I picked up has them as well.



Perhaps the original owner of your bike liked the smooth ride of steel rims?

There were quite a few changes year to year it seems, so maybe yours was a borderline 73 or 75 edition. Who know, I sure don't. But it is a pretty bike!

Well now, this is embarrassing. I just checked my bike again, and this time I checked both wheels.
Only the front wheel is a steel Rigida. The rear wheel is UKAI alloy.
Tells you how much time I've spent on it since pulling it out of the box.

Oh well. And here I thought this story was all locked down.
Now I have to fight the urge to find an original front.
Or maybe I'll just sell it and go looking for the blue 1975 S10-S that I really wanted.

Thank you to all who have stepped up with Fuji fixes while getting to the bottom of this! It's what makes Bike Forums a community.

If anyone might know about the status of that site, it would be [MENTION=55382]ScottRyder[/MENTION].

If anyone can supply the files, I'll host the site on my servers. I don't have the knowledge to add to the site's content, but I can give update access to folks that do.

Can't have it! Neener-neener-neener!!!



Not much is still original though... Frame, fork, bars, stem, brakes and saddle ( )...

Cool. And I even had that same Pletscher rack and Zefal pump too!

Well, that sux. Hope it’s just a glitch/temporary.

Does anyone have the content archived?

I'm not really in a position to offer an archive yet on The Headbadge since the replacement site is still in development (mainly as I'm waiting for spare play money to get the plugin that'll run the Paramount / Carlton Registries), but when I do get around to it, I'd be glad to give the catalogs a permanent home and relieve any temporary location of the hosting expense.

Has anyone reached out to the site owner by doing a WHOIS on the URL? EDIT: It has private registration. Expired on the 18th. The hosting may still be active.

-Kurt

Velobase has some of the catalogs scanned.

I'm a little late joining this thread.

Yes, unfortunately the creator and owner of ClassicFuji.com, Bill Reavis passed away in April. After a few emails went unanswered I did some research and saw that he had died somewhat unexpectedly. He was a good friend and mentor to me and a huge influence in my early Fuji days.

The good news is that I talked to him about taking over the site at some point. We (William Bevington and I) have all the content in our care. So I can safely say it will be back at some point. I'm not a web guy so I'm relying on others in my Fuji group to help it move forward.

Keep the faith everyone!

Scott

ps. If anyone needs some questions answered about what was on the site relating to a Fuji they have please let me know. I may not get back to you quick but it will happen!!

This is sad news about Bill Reavis but good news about the site. The classic fuji website was one of the best sites I've seen with all of its cross references. I'm building up an early 70s Fuji Finest and I learned a lot from the classic Fuji site when deciding how to rebuild it.

On a different note, I've long enjoyed your website as well.

Thanks Neal!

Scott

ClassicFuji.com is the reason I have all 3 of my Fujis, the website is the main reason my bicycle hobby started in the first place. It's so cool to see the old Japanese bikes you picked up off craigslist in their original, showroom fresh state. I never knew who the creator was until now, although it is very sad how I found out. On the bright side I'm very happy that the sight will be going back up! I'm grateful that ClassicFuji.com will continue to aid me in my Fuji builds and help me to know more about my future Fujis. Thank you ScottRyder.

Ditto, I used the website as a resource when I bought my Finest II.

[MENTION=55382]ScottRyder[/MENTION] I recently picked up your Japanese Steel book. Very nice. Some really nice stuff in there!