Fuji Sagres
 

I picked this Fuji Sagres up at a yard sale my neighbor was having about two years ago. I aired up the tires, rode to the end of the block and back, hung it up in the garage and forgot about it. The tires were too small and gave it a rough ride for me and the down tube shifters were not something i was used to. Last week, inspired by le Tour, I got it down and dropped it off to my LBS for a tune up and bigger tires. I said let's give it another shot.

The guy at the shop was excited to see it. He has a mid 80's Trek himself that he built as his rider. He cleaned the Fuji up, tuned it up, trued the wheels, and installed new tires that fit my needs. Last night I got it back and went for another test ride.

Wow what a difference the tires made. The bike rides so much nicer and smoother on these roads. After a mile I was getting used to the shifters. She rode fast and the original seat didn't bother my lower regions as much as I expected. What was supposed to be just a quick around the block test ride turned into a 3 mile loop. I am excited to put more miles on it tonight after work. I am a clyde getting back into cycling after a year and a half off a bike so anything that gets me pumped up again is good.

http://www.classicfuji.com/Models_fo...6%20Sagres.jpg

http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment...4&d=1375359216

looks like a fun bike. after you wear out the rubber, think about putting some 1.25" paselas on it to bring out the frame color. i'm surprised fuji put black tape on even the red model, though it looks more appropriate there. enjoy.

Tires can make a HUGE difference to the ride of a bike. A lot depends on rider weight and type of road surface too. I find my 700/23s at high pressure on my AL frame bike beats me up much faster than the 700/28s at lower pressure on my CroMo framed Bridgestone. Fuji bikes in the mid 80's were good solid rides, my son rides an 87 Team Fuji (updated to 700/23 with 9 speed cassette)

Nice looking bike, glad you chose to keep it and get the tune up and tires for some good rides. That velcro cradle bottle holder is a blast from the past, hope you have the correct bottle for it, just as a keep sake. Some softer bar tape or even old school Velox style cloth tape in a complimentary color would help too.

Bill

Fuji made some outstanding bikes in the '80's, have fun riding the Sarges.

I never noticed their description of handlebar wrap, "Black thick shinny tape", it looks like yours is even original.

Very nice bike. You should experiment with user interface and other 'stuff' as you ride it more to find what YOU find most comfortable. The best vintage bike is the one you enjoy riding.

Thanks for the kind words. I have riding gloves so the tape didn't bother me as much. I like the fact its completely original. The Velcro bottle holder is neat but I don't have a bottle for it so that's going to be replaced with a couple cages. I set the seat to the right height and the guy at the LBS set the bars a little higher so I can get used to the drop bars then eventually I can bring them back down. The bike itself was fairly comfortable. I need to put a few more miles on it to figure out my next move but so far I am enjoying it. This weekend my wife and I are going to hit the MUP and see if we can hit 10 miles. A little at a time.

A few years back I found a Sagres just like yours, but mine was the cabernet red. Wonderful riding bike. I wouldn't change a thing on yours.

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n...l/P1010791.jpg

These are great midlevel riders they got a bad rep because Fuji but a funky cid oblong chainrings and Suntour accushift on the ones from 87-89 or so and moved frame production to Tawain. So a stock 87 sucks while a 85 is great bike. Yet if you change out he chainrings and shifters on the cid ones the are just a s good.

I refurbed one of these about 2 years ago, bought it from a scrapper.........very nice bicycle IMO

Got up yesterday morning looked out of the window and said this is a great morning to ride. I got my gear on, AND my helmet for the first time, and took it out for a spin. Went 4 miles this time. Really a nice old bike. Seat still doesn't bother me either. The down tube shifters are a PITA but still getting used to them. One thing I have noticed with this thing is I am able to focus more on my cadence. Since I don't want to shift as much, I have found that I am increasing my pedal RPM which is a good thing. I have a tendency to go into higher gears and push instead of spin. I think this is going to help with the cardio aspect I need as well as better feeling legs.

Another thing I found was this sucker is fast. This one section that's a gradual down hill for a half mile I probably hit 25-28 mph. The fastest I've been on a bike since I was a teen. My BMW cycle is a hybrid that's a great rider but I've topped out at 23 on that trying as hard as i can to do 25. As I started the slight hill down I shifted up and went a little faster, than another gear, and another until I was topped out and was spinning at the same cadence. The speed limit is 25 on this road but most cars do 30. They were barely passing me. If i really wanted to push it i could have gone over 30 i think. What a great feeling.

I got home and just stared at the bike thinking to myself this was the best yard sale purchase yet.

Just wanted to share my new found appreciation with you guys.

Sagres are popular, I've reconditioned a Sagres and a Sagres SP and they sold immediately.

If you haven't had the hub, bottom bracket and headset bearings redone, which is typically not included in an LBS tuneup, you should do so ASAP. Should cost about $50-$60, $5 if DIY and you have the tools. Here's the evidence:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...sson-for-Noobs

Enjoy!

Great to get out on the open road and RIDE! Yes, spinning a higher cadence is better on old legs and knees! Oddjob2 is VERY correct in that if you have not done the bearings, and are putting real miles on the bike, damage could be happening. Here is a closeup of a BB spindle bearing I had to totally rebuild due to decades of neglect (NOT my neglect) sand, water, age = GRIND GRIND GRIND!
http://i413.photobucket.com/albums/p...psae6da40e.jpg
That surface SHOULD be smooth!

I nearly bought a Sagres, talked to the guy for three days, and finally got a pic of it. Unfortunately it was the 27 inch frame. I had to pass on it, since 25 is my top end max size frame. I did buy a LOT of my bike tools I still use from the guy though.,,,,BD

I don't think the bike had a lot of time on it by the condition of the original tires I replaced. I will keep this in mind and add it to my to do list.

It's not a matter of miles, it's a matter of age. Grease breaks down and the VOCs in it can dry up.

Thats a good point. I'll have to ask the LBS what they exactly did to it for its tune up. I know he took the bike apart and soaked a lot of the components to clean them. I'll post my findings.