I have a 1983 Trek "400 Series" bike I bought used in 1999. It is a lugged steel frame and fork and the tubing sticker says; Tange Mangaloy 2001 Double Butted Tubes. It is a metalflake silver grey color and the paint is original. It has a Trek headbadge and the word "Trek" is cast into the tops of the seatstays where they are brazed to the seat tube lug.

Mine had obviously been heavily modified by the original owner as it had 105 DP brakes, a replacement crank, Shimano 7-speed barcon shifters and a peculiar 6-speed Shimano cassette hub. There are no downtube shifter bosses and the cable stops are a band-on adapter that allows the barcons to be used. Therefore, I have no idea how it was factory equipped.

Does anyone have an '83 Trek catalog that would have the original specs? I'd appreciate knowing just how this bike was originally set up.

This is the most comprehensive website on vintage Treks, including scans of brochures. You can confirm the frame manufacture date with the serial numbers listed on the site.

EDIT: Here's the direct link to the '83 400 brochure page.

Great info. That's my bike, except for the color. I had found the Vintage Trek web site which is how I knew the model year (from my bikes serial number) but I didn't realize they had all of the past catalogs posted.

Thanks for the lead.

How well does the indexing work with a six speed cassette and seven speed shifters?

It didn't. The original owner used it in friction mode because, as he put it, "It doesn't index very well." Duh.

My first change was to get a new rear wheel and fit a Shimano 7-speed freewheel. All of the sudden, the indexing was perfect.

As I mentioned in my first posting, there was almost nothing original on the bike when I got it except the frame and fork so I had no quams about changes, upgrades and general improvements. Currently it has a mix of parts-box components and has inherited a lot of hand-me-downs from other bikes. It's my rain/beater bike complete with fenders and a rack but still a nice ride.

Have you posted a picture of the bike yet?

I don't have a digital camera (still living in the age of film) so I can't post but my frame and fork look like the '83 Trek catalog illustration except they are a silver metalflake grey and the seat tube "Trek" decal panel is now gone. The toptube factory decal is still there so the bike wasn't repainted and the grey color was one of the two options that year.

One difference between my bike and the catalog specs/picture is mine has downtube water bottle braze-ons. The catalog doesn't list them in the braze-on summary and the illustration doesn't show them. Mine are obviously factory, not later additions, so all I can figure is that Trek changed the specs after the catalog went to press.