Mashita-san wanted an all around bike -- primarily for city use. We found this used (but never built up) Panasonic order made randonneur frameset, including fenders and rack, at Cycly in Sengawa for 49,000 yen. It has a lot of character already, with the hammered fenders and small, light weight randonneuring front rack.
Panasonic designed these to be very strong -- perfect to take one on a ride, say, across the Asian continent. Thicker tubing -- mostly double butted, but a straight gauge 1.0mm walled downtube! And 26" wheels, so easier to find replacement parts if your wheel gets destroyed just outside of Rawalpindi or Nairobi. It might even last a lifetime?
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| Before |
The bike built up into something that should be very nice for zipping around town or its real purpose -- covering long distances in speed and comfort. It is very stable and quite fast. ... Not sure if it will ever be used on a long ride, but it can be. And it has a kick stand.
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| After |
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Shimano Canti brakes -- a first for me. Hiroshi helped me with adjustments.
Now they are working well. |
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| Cateye solar-powered rear light |
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| Shimano 105 drivetrain. Lowest gearing is 34-32, with its smaller (26") wheels, capable of spinning up any hill |
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Shimano Click R pedals -- Like SPD but takes much less force to disengage.
Good for a first time user of cleats/clipless pedals. |
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| Nitto front rack -- part of the frameset |
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Handed down a beautiful used Supernova E3 Pro dynamo light.
Looks nice on this rack/frame. |
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| At C Speed for inspection and some final guidance |
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Front wheel, No. 00025. SV-9 dynamo hub, XM317 rim, DT Swiss Competition spokes.
Rear wheel, No. 00026. The same rim and spokes, and Shimano 105 5800 rear hub. |
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Arrived in a massive box.
Breaking this down for recycling removal seemed like half the work. |
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