Got an early 90's Univega Via Carisma in excellent shape from facebook marketplace ($50). Replaced with more comfy handlebars and new saddle. The frame was too big for me so I sold it for $130. Too bad as it was a beautiful bike, i love Univegas.

25incher with 27in wheels. The lower models of that era were sized in inches and rocked 27in tire size. Had a long chat with a traders joe's worker who commutes on a Nouvo Sport 85? with the strange areo-center mount downtube shifters. Mine was a year later and had normal side mount DT braze'ons.

I got my lady this Mixte for Christmas last year and I've convinced her to go on a few rides with me.

She hated the Fizik seat, bruised her butt she said.




I got her a new seat, which cost me like twice what the bike did but she likes it.

The seat is worth every penny if she's happy with it. Often times the tires cost more than the bikes that I pick up. Used bikes are inexpensive because it is so costly to get them back to roadworthy condition and the owners have fallen out of love with their bikes and/or riding them. A low price is not an indication of the bike's worth.

I like the pedals on the Univega. They look like MKS Tourists. And of course, I love Mixte's.

I got my wife a Panasonic Mixte, but she is not riding it. I'd gladly get her a Brooks it that is what it took to get her to ride it.

I think it was the Bike Exchange in Harvard Square that always had beautiful Univega's in their shop window for everyone to admire. Me included.

It was a bit unloved when I got it, yeah.







The guy I bought it from had done a job painting someone's garage and his customer had given the bike to him, and he then had it out on his patio outside for a little while. I spent about a week going through it taking off little flecks of white house paint and gave it a polish, went through all the bearings and such. It had steel MKS pedals that were probably original, but they were pretty rusty. The pic there was the craigslist pic and I think it had been outside, listed for awhile before I picked it up. I took the opportunity to put the MKS Sylvan Touring pedals that I had on one of my bikes on it, and got a set of Sylvan Touring Nexts for myself. I put an Izumi chain on it at one point, and shifts like butter — so quiet. The tires that were on it were not bad and I left them, but the seat that was on it was terrible is why I put the Fizik on there. I like how it looked and it gets good reviews as a ladies seat, but I guess it's a different segment, and she should would have to be wearing padding in her shorts to make that work. For being a fairly low end bike, it's actually quite nice I think... loads better than her daughter's Target-bought Schwinn that she was borrowing. Both her daughters actually have been riding the Univega as much or more than she does and love it, she told me.

What was I suppose to do guys? I paid $100 for a thrift store find.. I do t jnow why, it just looks so nice and will fit well when dialed in. I know it's the base model but hey, black, chromo, all the parts e ept the BB have to es of life left.

This is me with my first Univega in about 2002. It was a 1970's model I believe and it was a gem of a bike. It was stolen outside a restaurant on 24th Street in San Francisco. It had cost me $25.00. I got a 1980 Supra Sport Univega as a replacement also for $25.00. I have it to this day and ride it every day here in San Francisco. It is a terrific bike. Fairly cheap components but a very efficient, classy bike (although not as nice as the one in the pic).

Univega Competizione that I just put together:



The groupset, hubs, headset , quill stem and seatpost are all Shimano 600. This is pretty much my shrine to the Shimano 600!

Found this gem last October. It needed a little TLC when I picked it up so I gave it a little tune up and replaced the pedals, saddle and grips. Being a San Jose Sharks fan I added orange to the teal.