Wait, are you implying that kids in nice neighborhoods are "cool" kids and "ghetto" kids are just "ghetto kids? or did you mean "rich" kids and "poor" kids? on a lighter note I guess everything could be labeled "ghetto" in the ghetto

yes leigh, my burgundy one's SN is 80 12 55068. sometime i will get a decent picture of it.

That is one beautiful Apollo.
Here is my 1980 Gran Sport bought at Calgary cycle for $385. It had the Shimano 600 grouppo some of which has been replaced. I had a chance to buy an Apollo with teardrop aero tubing and the Dura ace grouppo for the same price but it was a bright pink colour and my fragile sense of masculinity at the time wouldn't allow me to ride that particular shade. I sure wish I had bought that bike.
I bought a modern carbon fibre bike 2 years ago but still ride the Apollo in the rain and on the wind trainer. I am always impressed with how tight it still feels after 27 years. I intend on making it into a fixed gear one of these days.


https://flickr.com/photos/11425472@N05/2106618648/

https://flickr.com/photos/11425472@N05/2106632262/

Nice tdot! That is one with the older style logo. The later ones (including my 1981) had the serif font. It looks like it has been well kept. Nice upgrade (maybe I am starting a crank war here) to Stronglight 93 crankset...

That bike looks very well kept.
I think it would be a shame to make it into a fixie.

I am wondering if Fender1 is confusing a '70s Gran Sport with another model. There was another "Gran" model in the mid-1970s which I sold. We didn't sell a lot of them compared to the Sekine so my memory is less distinct about them. I believe the model name was Gran Tour. It also had chrome stays and fork ends and it came in silver or mink blue (same color as the Raleigh Pro). The frame was hi-tensile steel. It had a Sugino Maxy crank, Dia-Compe center-pull brakes and SunTour V derailleurs. It was priced slightly higher than the Sekine SHC but less than the SHS.

BTW, I recall the Deeley house brand as being DeeLite, as opposed to DeeleyLite.

you'r totally right t-mar, DeeLite. I still see the odd one around here.

i knew i had a picture of my Gran Sport :



flip flop rear, 16t fixed 16t free

I've got an Apollo Prestige set up as a fixed. I bought the frameset and it was missing most of the decals. It's got forged kuwahara dropouts and fork ends. I was wondering if you guys knew anything about what type of tubing it is made out of.

most of the ones, gran sport, are tange #5. i'm not sure what the tubes are on the prestige but leigh30 will know his girlfriend has one. I don't think it was Tange prestige though, maybe #2.

It will depend on whether it is a Prestige or a Prestige XL. Pretty much all the Prestiges I've seen (including the one that my girlfriend used to have) were some kind of a high tensile steel. Interestingly enough though, they are fairly light for a lower grade tubing, at least in comparison to some of the other "bike boom" roadies I've dealt with. The Prestige XLs had the forged drops and better chromoly tubesets, most likely Tange 5 main triangle with straight gauge stays. They most definitely did not sport Tange Prestige, which was the top of the line Tange tubing...

Any way of distinguishing an XL?

It's got the stock fork on it as well. Is the fork hi-ten or also chro-mo?

Nice.
I like the chrome fork crown.

My Triathlon is made with butted Kuwahara 4130 Chromoly tubing. Which is nothing special.
But you guys are right about it being light. This bike weighs only ounces less than my Marinoni.

The fork is hi-tensile, as are the stays.

The later Apollos like yours seem to have had their own tubing decals, whereas the earlier ones in the same place in the model lineup, used Tange tubes. Whether or not the tubing actually was Kuwahara's own is something I can't answer.
Furthermore, it is interesting that the better Apollos of the late '70s / early '80s used Kuwahara dropouts even though the tubing was Tange.

Damn, I was hoping for a better answer. I guess it's time for a new fork then.

Thanks for the info guys!

Hey Guys, brand new to the forum. I don't really consider myself a vintage bike guy (raced MTB for 3 years in my teens, and now when I do ride it's only BMX, and a real funny mix of flatland, trials, and dirt)

Anyways I was helping a friend move his mother, and she knew I was into bikes, so she gave me her ex-husband's old road bike. She said it was quite good when they bought brand new back in the day. I could tell quality wise it was above the department store junk so I kept it, but I didn't think much about it at first and it hung in my garage untouched for 2 years. Well after my wife bugging me to get a road or hybrid bike to ride with her (she rides a Trek 1000c and a GT MTB) I said fine, I don't like road riding all that much, so I'll just clean up that old bike in the garage. (new cork grip, tires, etc).

But after riding it more and more, I actually love it, and I got curious about it. What model is it, when was it made. I'm not familiar with the Apollo name. I have 3 LBS in my city and none carry Apollo. Googling brought me here.

What I do know:
Made in Japan by Kuwahara, from the 80's (possibly 1980) Steel framed, looks like it was sold at Calgary Cycle.

Ok enough blah blah, lots of pics time. Any info on it would be great.








Serial Number 80 02 47940








mis-matched wheels

I'm pretty sure it's a Prestige model.
The year is definitely 1980, going by the serial number (first two numbers are the year of manufacture).
The Rigida rim (can't tell from your photos if it's front or rear) is a replacement.
I am surprised that it is missing all the decals.

Over the years, I have stumbled upon quite a few Apollo bicycles, from entry level to pretty decent. The most memorable of the group was an Apollo GT touring bike(gray with a blue head tube). Most of the bikes are either Sport 10 or Sport 12 models, probably the company's entry level offering. I do have an Apollo Custom Sport, a triple butted chrome moly offering but is sits as a frame set waiting for who knows what.

Thanks for the info. I just noticed that ricohman who started this thread is also from Saskatchewan. Well from the sounds of it, a lot of Apollo's are in Western Canada. But judging by the screen name, I'd guess he's also into photography. (Or he repairs photo copiers for a living )

I shoot with a Canon 30D, (but I took all the photos above with a cheap Kodak P&S)

my brand new apollo! really, its still brand new, i was the first one to ride it, was in an old guys basement

I'm new to the vintage forum. I just recently rescued an Apollo Deelite (sp?) from our local recycle center. Am just in the process of restoring it. I'll have photos to share tonight.

84 Imperial. Its made of Tange 2. Its an Okay bike, but it just doesn't feel as good as I wish it did. At least it looks good!

I picked up an old Apollo "Gran Sport" (I think) today. The bicycle has seen a lot of the planet, touching soil in China, Japan, other parts of Asia, Europe, Canada and the US. The fellow who owned the bicycle, purchased it new and rode it for many years. Now, at 84 years of age, his arthritis prevents him from enjoying the two wheeled love of his life.

Apollo_GS_57_Full_Side_1..jpg