1jdrriver

Hi all! My name is Jeff and I'm new here. I'm also very new to today's bicycle world. I haven't rode a bike regularly since about 1978, when I got my driver's license. I recently picked up a Univega SupraSport for FREE! My boss' girlfriend got it at an estate sale, didn't have anywhere to keep it so he gave it to me, when I asked about it!

So, this is my first attempt to find out :

1. How old is it?
2. Where is the serial number?
3. What other things can I do, or look for to find out exactly what I have?

It does appear to be all original. Alloy wheels (27") alloy everything. It has a sticker that says Chrome moly, double butt welded, something something. I'll get mre details and possible some pix, if I can figure out how to post them here,

Thank You Very Much!

I'm looking forward to talking with you all, and beginning my cycling experiences.

Thanks again,


Jeff Cornes
Fremont, Ohio

T-Mar

The Supra Sport was an entry level model. Serial number should be on the underside of the botom bracket shell (i.e. the portion of the frame that the cranks pss through) and it will tell us the year and manufacturer. Most Univega turn out to be manufactured by Miyata, who were arguably the best of the Japanese, mass volume manufacturers.

Make sure the overall picture is taken form the drive side and include detail pictures of the major components and tubing decal. To post pictures with your reply, click on the "Go Advanced" button, then "Manage Attchments", which will access a file downloading screen.

NJgreyhead

Congrats on your Supra Sport. That's a nice score.

T-Mar is the man around here, so all due respect, but my 1984 Supra Sport appears to be more than an entry level model. It is labeled triple-butted chro-moly. Can't imagine too many entry-level models were t-b c-m. Downtube shifters, too, not stem shifters (altho maybe stem shifters came on later cheaper bikes, dunno).

I also like that the freewheel is 14-32t. Gives it the range I like for the occasional hill.

Enjoy your new ride.

likebike23

+1 I had a supra sport, and it was a nice bike. It had double butted cro-mo lugged frame, full suntour ARX group (clamp on DT shifters), Arraya alloy wheelset (27"), alloy SR stem, 14-32 suntour 6 speed cluster, and Dia Comp brakes. The bad: it had steel bars and seatpost, bolt on rear wheel, steel chainrings, turkey wing levers. Not a bike I'd call high end, but not entry level either. It was a solid mid level bike worthy of upgrades due to the nice Miyata built frame.


DSC01732 by miniandmo, on Flickr

likebike23

To the OP, enjoy your bike. You've got a legit bike for an unbeatable price. While it's true that this model is on the lower end of their line, it is still quality. I always viewed entry level as Columbia, Huffy, Royce Union, Free Spirit, etc. Univega put out some nice bikes at good prices, and are a repected brand to those in the know. Provided it fits you and you feel comfortable on it, putting up to $150 into it to make it tip top would not be foolish.

anixi

Congrats on a great snag! As for upgrades, you would be best served by replacing any steel bits such as handlebars, rear nutted wheel, crankset, etc. I would also either remove the turkey levers, or, (best thing) upgrade the brake levers with something nice like the Suntour Superbe (if you can find them for reasonable $$). I would also replace the tires and get some lighter, higher performance, even flat-protection, tires that will have an upper inflation pressure of at least 115psi.

DiegoFrogs

Bicycles like this are great platforms for experimentation. The frame is nice enough and compatible with most modern standards to make experimentation quite easy.

If your bicycle has to have steel bits to save on cost, you certainly got them where they make the least impact.

T-Mar

As pointed out by wrk101, a lot of mid and upper range features had trickled down to entry level by the mid-1980s, while mid-range bicycles now boasted features that had found only on high end models a decade before.

While your frame uses triple butted CrMo, if you review the label, I think you'll find it states "frame tubes". That means you've got CrMo only in the three main tubes, with the forks and stays being a cheaper material. Manufacturers were wise on how to bait customers on the important issues but economize in areas where the uneducated customer did not look. By the mid-1980s, complete hi-tensile frames were quite rare in name brand bicycles and were primarily the realm of department store bicycles in the sub $150 price range. Bicycles with partial CrMo tubing had cracked the $200 barrier.

The bottom line is that the Univega Supra Sport fell at a price point and had features that were considered entry level in the mid-1980s. As a general rule of thumb, you could probably state that all the Univega Sport series bicycles were entry level for their particular year.

anixi

OTOH, steel parts are heavy, can be easily upgraded and fairly cheaply, which is a great way to lighten up a bike without breaking the bank. Used alloy parts are cheap at the local co-op, if you have one, or on the Bay.

NJgreyhead

Lots of good info here, so thanks for that. However, some inaccuracies too.
Handlebars and chainrings are steel on my '84 USS, yes, but seatpost and cranks are alloy, and the fork is mangalight.

T-Mar

I don't see the inaccurcies. Mangalight is a a cheaper/lesser grade steel than CrMo. The carbon manganese alloys such as Mangaloy, Magny and Mangalight were routinely used in the forks and stays of mid-1980s, upper entry level models to reduce costs while giving the customer a "CrMo frame". The marketers were very conscientious about distinguishing between frame tubes, stays and fork blades, a difference that most consumers did not appreciate.

When wrk101 stated that the chainrings were steel, the inference was that the crankarms were aluminum. During this era most mid-range models used non-swaged cranksets with aluminum chainrings, while swaged cranksets with aluminum crankarms and steel chainrings were typically a indicator of an entry level model.

Other 1984 Supra Sport have surfaced with tubular steel posts, so there is a possibility that yours is an upgrade or a spec change. Based on these other samples, wrk101 was not inaccurate in his statement.

1jdrriver

Hi Guys, Sorry it's took me so long to get back here, but I've been focusing on getting my dirt stock car ready for the 2013 season.

Back to my new bike. Here is all the info I could find by looking at the bike:

The numbers on the bottom of the pedal crank is M3155 97
The sticker below the seat on the main tube says " Chromoly, double butted, magnalite fork, high tension stays.

The tires appear to be original, and say "univega gran sport, 100psi 450gr 27"x1and1/4"
The brakes, front and rear, are dia/compe 50
The derailer and shifter levers are sun tour ar
The handle bars are steel and say "Special Japan" on one side and SR Sakae on the other
The toe clips say Mt. Christophe

After looking the bike over really good it appears to be all original to my untrained eye.

Any I.D. help will be greatly appreciated! What's it worth?

1jdrriver

Oh.... I have some pix, just got to figure out how to post them.

1jdrriver

T-Mar

Based on the serial number it should be 1984 model, manufactured by Miyata.

Hammerlock1

I've had my SupraSport since 1984 and have lost track the number of miles, but it has raised over $75,000 through charity rides in its life. A great bike and a nice counter-point piece to the over-the-top Pinarello "A" bike also in the stable. The Univega keeps me grounded.

Ex Pres 

Welcome to BF. But ya gotta show pics, too.