Murray Missile 

This is probably one of those posts that isn't going to go where I intended but WTH? Let's see what happens, shall we?

I know we already have a "cheapest and worst quality" thread but I know there are other deviants like me out there that enjoy them, bike boom era especially, and I wanted to present them in a somewhat more positive context. Many of us got our first taste of "real" bikes on one of these and they were the bread and butter that paid the bills for a lot of the bike manufacturers and bike shops BITD and allowed them to market the high end stuff we all appreciate. If for no other reason they deserve at least SOME appreciation. SO, if you have a bike or bikes in your fleet fitting that description you enjoy for whatever reason please share them here. That includes some of the components and accessories of the day that many here wouldn't be caught dead with today:So come on, let's see 'em! What do you currently have that you only ride after dark so the cool kids won't see what you're on?

I'll kick it off with my mid to late 70's Cherry by Nissan. This one has it all, well almost all. HiTen frame, chrome steel rims, stem shifters, a monstrosity of a saddle..........That saddle is a trip, the seat bag is actually part of the saddle. Interesting but uncomfortable as Hell so "sadly" it will be replaced. The bike is heavy, not Schwinn Varsity heavy but, heavy just the same. It will be the future recipient of one set of Wald shorty fenders and a Union generator set. It sorely needs a Pletscher rear rack as well.


1979 Soma Prestige, while it is a Kuwahara built bike it is a HiTen frame and has foam grips. Other than that it's actually pretty decent, one of my most comfortable riding road bikes and my introduction to barcons which I've come to really appreciate.


And "Big Bird", my 45 Lb. 1974 Schwinn Varsity Deluxe. EVERYONE should have a Varsinental in the fleet to take out and ride occasionally. It's a GREAT workout and a very humbling experience. It will also make you truly appreciate your lightweight bikes. I keep the Bird around partly for those reasons but he's also a very smooth ride and most importantly I've tried to sell him 3 times with not so much as a tire kick LOL. I'm kind of glad though, for a casual cruise on flat ground he's hard to beat and he's a great conversation starter.


There you have it, I have "bared my high tensile soul". Who else has the guts?

juvela

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one o' me fave dork items from the boom not included in the above inventory is the safety flag

can recall watching a short film from near to nineteen seventy about a a boy scout group which goes on an organized tour

each member was supplied with a yellow schwinn continental for the event which was fitted with a day-glo orange safety flag

quite a sight to see a group of twenty or more riders all dressed identically and riding the same model of bike in the same colour with these safety flags fluttering in the breeze

can anyone else recall seeing this film?

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52telecaster

My brother had a Beacon bike that was at best a sort of grand prix knockoff. I'd buy one in my size if I could find one. It was a great high school bike.

juvela

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Beacon was an agent for several french marques during the boom era

recall Jeunet, Mericer and maybe Follis

would expect a Beacon badged product line to come from one of their french badge makers

we had lots of them in Northern California as Beacon maintained a branch office in Oakland California at the time


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Murray Missile 

My high school bike was a '71 Raleigh Grand Prix, if I could find one my size in red and reasonably priced I'd grab it but they always seem to be '72 or newer with the block font on the down tube and priced like they're a Competiton or International.

daverup 

I've got a couple that at least partially qualify.
First, my 78ish Raleigh GP Mixte. No longer has steel wheels.


My 83 Le Tour isn't heavy, but qualifies in other categories,

bikemig 

I still haven't sold this late 70s Peugeot UO 10. I think it might be too nice a bike for this category though since it has alloy parts. It does have a hi tensile steel frame. I like the UO 10s a lot as I did my first bike tour on one.

Murray Missile 

A HiTen frame is a key qualifier. I'd put it in the same category as my Soma Prestige. Like the color.

Pompiere

This one had almost everything on the list. My first ten-speed was a Kabuki, so when one came into my nearby thrift shop I didn't think twice about buying it. Kabukis were made by casting aluminum "lugs" around the ends of the tubes. They made different models with various types of tubing. Mine is a Super Speed, with Hi-tensile steel tubes. They also had models with chrome-moly and stainless steel. The Super Speed was their entry level bike, so it had mostly steel components. Over time, it has received the cast off parts from my other bikes as they got upgrades. Here in the Great Black Swamp, the biggest hills are the highway overpasses, so the weight is not an issue, but it is 4-5 pounds less. The ride is not great, but good tires helped a lot. I thought I rode it more often, but Garmin says it was only 3 times last summer.


1975 Kabuki Super Speed

The Golden Boy 

One of the things I love about this forum is there are people that unabashedly love lower end and obsolete stuff.

Murray Missile 

Yes, we do.

juvela

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IIRC T-Mar hath writ that this frame construction method is something developed by Bridgestone

have seen C. Itoh badged machines which used it from the early nineteen seventies
their house colour is a sickly pale yellow pearl

do you know if the Kabuki marque is something belonging to a distributor?


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RustyJames 

No pics but I like stem shifters, kickstands and dynamos. Absolutely nothing wrong with practicality. (See Love of English 3-speed thread…)

iab

Gaspipe Umberto Dei. Has a real ugly weld across the BB shell. Threading the BB was an adventure.

Umberto Dei 01 by iabisdb, on Flickr

dddd

I think that my Motiv Defiant meets the requirements, and was a good-running bike the year that I rode it.

Motivs were I believe a brand sold at Costco, and there were actually a couple of higher-tier Motivs than this Defiant model.


1975 Varsity, slightly upgraded (clipless pedals, longer alloy stem, leather saddle, 6s Uniglide freewheel and Campag C9 chain). Rides great, really!


Steyr Clubman upgraded with 700c alloy wheels, modern saddle and seatpost, ...still rocking a 5s (albeit custom-built, UG, 13-24t) freewheel:



1979 Peugeot UO9 Super Sport (with alloy wheels, JPR seatpost, Wrights leather saddle and 6s Suntour freewheel).

top506

And the whole sortid tale:

My completely nothing special Italian bike boom gaspipe nostaglia build.

Top

bwilli88 

SouthernPoint Hybrid, my 29rBMX. from Japan

Maxwell Hybrid now my All-Road, from Japan

Brigestone Prestino step thru hybrid. From Japan

My other Brigestone Prestino with SRAM Automatix rear hub turning 635 ERTO wheels. From Japan

73 Raleigh Supercourse double dingle speed. From a scrap heap

BFisher 

My '72-ish Humber - Brazing gaps and all, it's a nice riding bike.


1951 Raleigh Sports - This bike is NICE. Really nice. Beautifully made and rides wonderfully.


'71 UO-8 - This might be the nicest riding gas pipe bike I've ever had.

markk900

I feel compelled to put up our totally bone stock (except tires and seat) Peugeot since it seems people love their gaspipe bikes well enough to almost always upgrade them with allow components such as wheels and cranks...... so here's one that wasn't (though to be honest after the picture we upgraded the wheels and derailleurs to make the bike reliably rideable)....

juvela

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"cannot understand why people insist upon lugging about these heavy propstands..."


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Pompiere

In the 1970s, there was a surge in demand for Japanese products, so Bridgestone introduced the Kabuki brand to emphasize they were a Japanese company. C. Itoh was the marketing company that imported Bridgestone bikes to the US. Depending on where they were sold, you had either Kabuki or C. Itoh badging. There is a lot more to the story, but that is the gist.

markk900

I did say "totally stock"....that came in the original box all the way from France. Hard to get on ebay these days so we kept it.....

Ironfish653

Pompiere I will see your Kabuki, and raise you a (JDM) 1976 Bridgestone Super Light
​​​​​​ Purchased in Okinawa, refurbished in 2015; still in about 90% of it's original spec, other than the shifters, saddle and brake calipers.
It's all aluminum, including the frame, 1-piece crank, Araya wheels and V-GT Luxe drivetrain, and still manages to be only the second heaviest thing in this picture. Smooth riding beastie, though as only a bike with 630 wheels and half -meter long chain stays can be.

dweenk 

When a kickstand will do.

RustyJames 

Loving the double fluting on the crank arm!

Those lugs are interesting. 🤔