Shogun Appreciation Society

[ldrcycles]

This is a 1994 Metro SE i fixed up for a workmate, the payment was an Apollo Concorde of similar age .







Anyone heard of Sovos hubs? they look pretty reasonable to me.

[stumpjumper]

Stuey - this should help. It was ten days ago, not yesterday - sorry.

Sold on eBay for $66 on 8th January. 58cm frame - looks like an older Japanese frame.





shogun katana racing racer road speed bike
Item condition: Used
Ended 08 Jan, 201221:51:43 AEDST
Bid history:
8 bids
Winning bid: AU $66.00

Item number: 290651547191
Item location: brisbane , Australia
Posts to: Local pick-up only

Seller info
gem22 ( 241)
99.6% Positive feedback

[Stuey]

Thanks. Bargain for the buyer.

[rkelsen]

looks like an older Japanese frame.

Naaawww. Those burn-your-eyeballs-out fluoro orange frames were made in Taiwan. Late, late 80s to early 90s.

Still a good bike, though. And certainly a bargain at $66.

[blick]

The hierarchy (in the 80s and 90s anyway) seems to be from the top:

Team Issue
Ninja
Samurai
Katana
Selectra
Sports

That Team Issue bike is a nice example of a top shelf mass produced bike.

It's a steel frame, most likely Tange Prestige and more than likely built by Tange themselves.

As for componentry, it would have had Shimano 600 or 105 as original equipment.

Right on the money there. My bike is Tange Prestige and shimano 600 groupset.

I'm feeling better and better about my curb side pickup. Seriously thinking about sinking some more money into it and getting the frame blasted and powdercoated...

[rkelsen]

I'm feeling better and better about my curb side pickup. Seriously thinking about sinking some more money into it and getting the frame blasted and powdercoated...

Sink some money into it, absolutely. But why powdercoat it? Are there lots of scratches on it?

Personally, I'd give it a good clean. Maybe some new wheels and a nice alloy stem. And then ride it.

[stumpjumper]

'Auction Watch'



SHIMANO NINJA SHOGUN ROAD BIKE
RXS STI
Dark Green Metallic
Frame Size: 28"
Frame Material: Aluminium
Not in use, shows signs of rust, wear and tear.
No bell or night riding lights
Endzone saddle in black

eBay Aust
Ended 20 Jan, 201220:16:43 AEDST
Bid history: 11 bids
Winning bid: AU $92.00
Norman Park, Queensland.

[mark field]

less than $100, thats better than the Katana ive just spent about $400 putting together

[stumpjumper]

At least when you build a bike, you can make everything the way you want it. On the other hand, if you keep buying and selling the things, it might even out.

[rkelsen]

less than $100, thats better than the Katana ive just spent about $400 putting together

But Mark yours is all new. That Ninja looks like it needs work.

[RonK]

I don't mean to offend but I bought a Shogun Samurai brand new in the early 90's and couldn't get rid of it quickly enough. And now people are collecting them? Astonishing!

[ldrcycles]

@RonK, what was the problem with your Samurai? I rode an early 90s Samurai for a while about 2 years ago and found it pretty good.

[RonK]

@RonK, what was the problem with your Samurai? I rode an early 90s Samurai for a while about 2 years ago and found it pretty good.

Well, we got off to a bad start when the back wheel (Araya I think) failed after only a few weeks. Repeated visits to the bike shop and several replacement wheels didn't solve the issue for long and I ended putting in more of my own money for an upgrade to Mavic Open4CD rims.
But the real problem was that the frame flexed like licorice. Descending the steep hills around my home, the bike would develop a terrifying head shake. The frame was checked for alignment by a now well-known bike builder who happened to work at the shop at the time and was found to be reasonably true, but even a replacement frame did not solve the problem. Eventually by mutual agreement the shop took the bike back and I paid the difference (pro-rata) on a higher spec Avanti, which turned out to be a very good bike. The Samurai I felt was only fit for the rubbish tip once the excellent Mavic wheels I had built were removed.

[rkelsen]

But the real problem was that the frame flexed like licorice.

I dunno how much you weigh, but the Tange Shoguns have a weight limit of 90kg. If you put more than that on them, they tend to flex a fair amount.

[RonK]

But the real problem was that the frame flexed like licorice.

I dunno how much you weigh, but the Tange Shoguns have a weight limit of 90kg. If you put more than that on them, they tend to flex a fair amount.

Well, I don't recall precisely what my weight was 20 years ago but it hovered a little over 85kg for many years. A weight limit was never mention at the time nor was my weight ever raised as a possible cause.

[rkelsen]

See "TANGE TUBESETS: WEIGHT AND USE COMPARISONS" at the very end of this article: http://sheldonbrown.com/centurion/index.html

[ldrcycles]

Well i'm around 87kilos, and never noticed any flex from the frame, but i'm very interested to hear you mention a head shake, i scared myself silly down a fast hill on my commute once but i attributed that to the headset having come loose. It never happened any other time. After that incident i got a bit over enthusiastic with tightening it and 'indexed' the steering, still rode ok though.

[RonK]

Well i'm around 87kilos, and never noticed any flex from the frame, but i'm very interested to hear you mention a head shake, i scared myself silly down a fast hill on my commute once but i attributed that to the headset having come loose.

So, I'm not the only one to have this experience with the Samurai.

I lived in a hilly area and steep descents were unavoidable so I experienced them frequently. It was very scary.

[greg75]

Hello.

New member and proud Shogun owner here. Was all excited to find this thread and looking forward to posting a few photos of my pride and joy. Then half way through I find that pictures of her have already been posted by someone passing the bike off has his. Oh well, rest assured BLU_FZ!, the bike is actually mine and has been since new.

You can see the original post to roadbikereview where the photos were taken from here:

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/retro- ... 58256.html

It still looks much the same now. I've recently rebuilt the rear wheel with an NOS Araya rim to replace the original Araya CT19 that had started to develop cracks around a few spoke nipples. And yes, I've replaced the tyres! It still does a lot of duty, doing the work commute twice a week plus the odd Saturday morning jaunt.

[munga]

oh, that's pretty funny!
wonder what the excuse is..

anyway, nice bike, greg.

[rkelsen]

Hey Greg, if you send me the links, I'll post the pics up on your behalf.

As for your discovery, isn't the internet a wonderful place?

[MoeJoe]

Well i'm around 87kilos, and never noticed any flex from the frame, but i'm very interested to hear you mention a head shake, i scared myself silly down a fast hill on my commute once but i attributed that to the headset having come loose. It never happened any other time.

+1, I haven't any felt flex on my steel Samurai, in fact I think it feels very rigid especially around the BB area. I'm about 80kgs and commute with a seatpost mounted trunk pack so it isn't in weight weenies territory.

I nudge 60-65km/h down Lilyfield road on the way home pretty regularly and will feels pretty solid to me.
I originally had a headset made from the top of one headset and the bottom from another one which just didn't seem 'right' and must have flexed a little bit and did come loose at times. I've replaced it with a cane creek and all is good now.
If the front end is shaking then you have no choice but to inspect the lot - headset and steerer tube/forks would be high on my list. Maybe even the tube is bunched up near the valve stem and you don't notice until higher speeds, or something......

Dis'ing a Shogun on a Shogun Appreciation thread is verboten, y'hear

[Clydesdale Scot]

Hey Greg, if you send me the links, I'll post the pics up on your behalf.

As for your discovery, isn't the internet a wonderful place?

I think there is NO need to post the photos as Greg is advising they have already been posted
see this post
where the metadata date on the photos is the date they were posted on this forum (1 April 2011).
Greg's link back to where he posted them on 1 Jan 2009 have a metadata date of 1 Jan 2009 (confirmed by the forum image hosting data)
mmmmm

[Stuey]

Then half way through I find that pictures of her have already been posted by someone passing the bike off has his. Oh well, rest assured BLU_FZ!, the bike is actually mine and has been since new.

Bizarre!

[benmagga]

Hey all, new to this forum, I found it while Googling for info about the Shogun frame I picked up on the council cleanup here in Brisbane over the weekend.. I'll post a photo in case anyone recognises the model but there's no sticker so it might be a cheap one? - Ben

Here's a photo of it - http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150655395360569&l=33ba4bfdbe The wheels are off another bike I grabbed - a brand I've never heard of called 'Cignal'. It's all a bit rough and ready but it'll be my leave-at-work-to-ride-to-get-lunch bike