Japan entry-level fixed/ss
 

Hi guys,

New to the site, which is to say been lurking for a bit. I know there's some japan hands here, so I hope nobody minds if I drop a few idiot questions into the mix:

1) I'm having trouble finding good domestic entry-level fixed/ss bikes. Rakuten, for instance, lists a bunch of shady-looking stuff (more on that below), the bike shop in the area carries british Charge bikes at a crazy markup, the bike shop in nakameguro with the awesome-looking frames is way out of my price range.

2) Rakuten Rider'z Cafe PIST, ie http://en.item.rakuten.com/black-m/10002009/; looks cheap? Hard to tell given that my Japanese isn't good enough yet and my general knowledge of Japanese domestic bike terms is worse.

3) Kuromori steel? My research says this can be anywhere from decent steel to high-end stuff that's as good or better than CrMo. Am I way off base?

Since I'm new here, you guys tell me what I do in return for the info.

2) Looks very cheap, but it might still be decent. There is no listing of what components it has, which is generally a bad sign. Do you have the ability to check one out in person? If so, take a look at the components and lift it up, if its very heavy, it's probably Hi-Ten and in that case, I'd pass on it.
3) Never head of the stuff. Common steel brands that most have heard of are Tange, Ishiwata, and Reynolds. But even a name doesn't guarantee quality so can't really just go by that.

There are some members here from japan here, and I can't remember what they all ride, but they should be of some help.

Just wondering, wouldn't some of the large companies (Fuji etc.) have bikes for the domestic Japan market?

3) I am going to take a guess that it is just the direct translation (クロムモリ>kuromori) from Japanese due to the fact that it is a katakana based word.

As far as bicycles on the cheaper side go, you have a few options. The cheapest option as far as I know of is Tokyo Bike. I have see a few of them every once in a while.

A bit more expensive, but probably a slightly higher build quality are the Fuji track bikes.

If you do not mind non-domestic brands Cycle Spot has Bianchi Pistas for a decent price.

The final option would be hitting up Cycly, a second hand bicycle/parts chain shop. They have stores throughout the Tokyo area and lots of Japanese 'used' goods are almost in fairly new condition half the time.

Hope that helps you out some

Do you have some sort of "Craigslist" in Japan (Tokyo), where you can find used equipment for lower prices than new?

^^^
Yes, its called MIXI and there are ppl selling **** on there all the time.
Also, if u get **** from Cycly double check everything YOURSELF. I got a frame from there and the guy said the frame had 120 dropouts, but it was actually 110. BULOX!

mxs, thanks for the information. I'll look up cycly this weekend. Tejano, there is indeed tokyo craigslist, but like pretty much all english-language classifieds here, it's a) mostly expats selling to expats, and b) hawked like crazy because a lot of the time there's some guy needing to leave the country ASAP and get rid of his stuff.

As far as Tange goes, is it pretty good stuff? I've heard it is?

OP, I would go to LBS and check out some bikes. If you hurry, you might be able to still buy some Fumikiri bikes. Cheapo SS bike. Prolly you can have it fixed easy.

You might get a translator to help you out with LBS people, too. Most Japanese can't speak English (even if they "know" English). And, this almost always leads to a serious misunderstanding; to make it worse, a lot of em is "terrified" about interacting in any foreign language. Being able to communicate in Japanese (via translator) should improve your situation considerably because there is less for LBS people to "terrified" about. ...

... But then getting a translator is a pain in an arse. Don't you have friends at work who could come with you? If not, PM me. I may be able to help out.

Tomo_ishi,

I'm not too stressed about visting the shop; I can get my wife to come, or at worst struggle through the japanese, which is always fun.

Any reference on the Fumikiri bikes? I'd love to look it up.

^^^

ninniku is that an overweight beagle? i have one.

It's the MVP of lobster dogs, as far as I'm concerned. Not mine, tragically.

What's your budget?

Kind of unrelated but since the late 80s Fuji has been owned by company based in the Philly suburbs.

Budget is sort of a quantum thing, you know? Hard to tell until it's directly observed going into a cash register.

That said, I'm pretty sure I will be murdered by my wife if I spend more than 10man, and I will probably get the stinkeye for weeks if spend more than 6man. If I can cut costs to 3man, my domestic life is assured stability, but what about my commute to work and exercise afterwards?

Not much good can be had for 3man

I say get a mamachari and strip all the junk off. It'll be good for exercise as it weighs a ton. You lose style points though.

I have seen a few of these "conversions" recently in Tokyo, I will take a photo next time I see one!

Yeah, I kind of figured. So let's say 3man is miracle find range, 6man is expected, and 10man means I better like it a lot.

There's a guy selling charge plugs near my work for 8man, which seems super-steep. But they look pretty nice. Gonna check out the nearby bianchi place after work today.

That's not true. Budget is a strictly measurable quantity. Heehee. I would love to see you explain about the uncertainty principle to LBS people (and promptly get kicked in your back-side).

Most LBS in Tokyo will tell you to be prepared to pay about 3 months worth of commuting cost to by any bike (if you are buying for commuting + exercise). I am thinking 600-800 Yen per day (go and back) * 25 days per month * 3 month = 45,000 - 60,000 Yen. So you start with that.

I see ...

- Kona
- Riteway
- Schwinn
- Marin
- Fuji (Feather/Classic)
- SE (Cheapest one is trashy)
- Mongoose
- KHS
- Jamis
- Felt
- Progressive
- Bianchi

http://www.cycle-yoshida.com/bicycle...ingle_menu.htm
http://www.qbei.jp/category/1_231_303/

I kinda like the looks of Progressive bikes, but I don't know how they perform. ... So now the sizing ...

Fair enough. For someone of my limited discipline and relatively decent means, I have noticed that important purchases tend to run higher than I had hoped. Don't tell that to the LBS people!

Thank you for the exhaustive list.

It'd be pretty awesome to have a bike, after a weekend of looking; too bad none of the shops in my area let me try the bikes out!

Seriously, wth?

http://img697.imageshack.us/img697/2048/bikets.jpg

Finally got a bike. Marin Dominican. Decent (not great) deal. Didn't want to order off the internet. Took a wrong turn out of the shop and wound up at Haneda, but I think in the future I'll just say that was my "break-in" ride.

As an aside, the top tube has a really funky shape to it. Is that uncommon because it's gimmicky, because it costs more to make, or because it's not as strong or what?

So how's the bike riding? I guess I'm a dork, but reading old threads is kinda like reading a novel... and this one's got a cliffhanger. How's the durability? Did it get yuo where you needed to go?

Are those tubes tear drop shaped? That frame looks a lot like a Leader 722TS.

It really does. Same dropouts too.

Tube is tear-shaped. Bike is riding well! Flopped to fixed. Been riding it to work in Shinjuku, which at first was awful. I was using Yamate-dori, which is one of the biggest streets in Tokyo, and the whole thing is a torn-up mess. Nowhere to go without getting punished by the pavement.

But I found another route that cuts through a pretty nice neighborhood and up past Yoyogi Park, so it's all good!

The one challenge is that my wife's firm does a yearly ride-up-mount fuji (up to the fifth station, nothing too crazy) and I want to do it on this bike but the idea is pretty scary. No way am I in shape.