Repco Appreciation Society

stryker84
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Postby stryker84 » Thu Mar 13, 2008 3:51 pm

2.89kg frame, fork 820g

basscadetz
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Postby basscadetz » Thu Mar 13, 2008 4:08 pm

we just scored a repco "traveller" womans bike off the curb. i know nothing about australian bikes, as im a yank, and i just moved to this fiiine country.

whats the process of dating these?

im assuming its probably 1980's

i would post a pic but im not a big boy yet. :)
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Postby kukamunga » Thu Mar 13, 2008 4:16 pm

Kid_Carbine wrote:K.C. .....................3.68543kg [or more] Combined mass frame & fork, bare. [130oz]
(looking for coversion charts and calculator.....) :roll:

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Postby kukamunga » Thu Mar 13, 2008 4:58 pm

'Repco' guess the... frame/ fork... weight?

MountGower.........3.10kg (2.40kg/ 700gm)
MichaelB...............3.49kg (2.65kg/ 840gm)
Kid_Carbine..........3.69kg*
stryker84..............3.71kg (2.89kg/ 820gm)

Ok. I am making up the 'rules' as I go along here! :wink: The closest to the combined weight of bare frame and forks (in kilograms [kg] to two decimal places) wins all the componentry pictured on the bike (including bottom bracket - what the hey!). Pick up Melbourne only.

But still post separate frame & fork weights for interest.

NB: Please. No duplicate total combined weights (or I'll add 10 grams)!

(* Kid - Have rounded your figure to two decimal places)

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Postby kukamunga » Thu Mar 13, 2008 5:26 pm

'Repco' guess the... frame/ fork... weight?

Ok. I am moving this 'competition' (only) to a new thread here

I will continue to discuss the frame on this thread though (Phew! :oops: )

(PS: Sorry, 'basscadetz'. Hope you get a reply soon!)

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Postby munga » Thu Mar 13, 2008 7:24 pm

basscadetz wrote:we just scored a repco "traveller" womans bike off the curb. i know nothing about australian bikes, as im a yank, and i just moved to this fiiine country.

whats the process of dating these?

im assuming its probably 1980's

i would post a pic but im not a big boy yet. :)
Repco Travellers were the mainstay K-Mart ride-to-school bicycles from the late 80's to the mid-90's. Earliest versions were single colour with the crested 'R' head tube logo. My best mate had one with butterfly bars (think ape hanger harley bars) and double plugger brakes..
Last edited by munga on Tue Jul 08, 2008 6:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.

basscadetz
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Postby basscadetz » Thu Mar 13, 2008 7:30 pm

sounds like what i have. black, with crested r headbadge. thanks!
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Kid_Carbine
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Postby Kid_Carbine » Fri Mar 14, 2008 1:11 am

kukamunga wrote:
Kid_Carbine wrote:K.C. .....................3.68543kg [or more] Combined mass frame & fork, bare. [130oz]
(looking for coversion charts and calculator.....) :roll:
Why do you need to convert it, & into what do you want to convert it?
I already did the conversion for you, 130 ounces [130oz]which is 8lb 4oz or the metric weight that you requested which is 3.68543kg Easy peasy.

I'm shooting a little high on the basis of your seat pin dimention of 26.2mm. That seems to me to be a pretty small seat pin that would normally be used in fairly thick walled tubing. I would have expected a 26.8mm seat pin
Uncharasterically thick walled for a bike with such attractive lugwork.
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Postby kukamunga » Sun Mar 23, 2008 9:21 am

kukamunga wrote:'Repco' guess the... frame/ fork... weight?

Ok. I am moving this 'competition' (only) to a new thread here

I will continue to discuss the frame on this thread though (Phew! :oops: )
On third thoughts, I'll continue all discussion on this frame here

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Postby kukamunga » Sun Mar 30, 2008 11:08 am

Hard rubbishing yesterday, I picked up a Repco 'Olympic 12' complete, but not in original condition:-

'535 PR (or '23'?) CrMo double-butted Giant' frame (yellow w/ white fork, headtube & seat-tube); rear dropouts spaced to ~130mm; unshimmed 26.2mm seatpost fitted (should be 26.4mm);
700C/622 wheels: Sachs 'LY 93' 13-21 8-speed rear cluster on a 'Sovos' hub (rim unknown, 36H)/ front Wolber 'Gentleman TA' rim on Joytech hub, 36H;
Sugino 'VP' 52/42 cranks; Aluminium 'Champion' drop-bars; Dia-Compe brakes; 'Pro-Star' tan rubber hoods (& levers?);
el-cheapo Shimano rear derailleur; Shimano FD Z204 (LI); Shimano downtube shift levers;
Look road pedals; weight ~10-11kg?

The bike obviously been geared for and seen a fair bit of road use.

Can anyone tell or show me what an original 'Olympic 12' specs should be, and when they were released? I imagine from the name, they were originally 12 speed?

Will clean bike up and post some pics in separate thread soon. Any info in meantime will be mucho appreciado, especially regarding the Sachs 8spd rear clusters (I have another, an 'LY 98' 12-21)

Cheers :wink:

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Postby kukamunga » Sat Apr 05, 2008 11:33 pm

I can't believe it. Yesterday I picked up yet another Repco - a Victory Tri-A 'Performance Series' in excellent condition.

Suntour (Accushift) Edge 14 speed drivetrain, with Diacompe BRS Edge brakes. What looks like the original tyres , brake pads and bar tape are hardly worn; there's not a mark on the seatpost; front rim brake sidewalls have hardly seen contact with brakepads; paintwork is as new. Apart from out of true wheels, this bike has hardly been used!

I can't believe someone put this out for hard waste collection. The owner was home and said "take it" - so I didn't ask anymore questions. I bought it home. Have trued front wheel, but the rear wheel may need re-nippling as I have rounded off quite a few binded ones whilst trying to true and retension.

Once again, I will post pics of my Repco stable soon.....

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Postby kukamunga » Sun Apr 06, 2008 12:44 pm

Ok. A few rushed photos of three of my Repcos.....
'Victory Tri-A' and 'Superlite' (4130 CrMo)
Image Image Image Image
'Olympic 12' is in not so original or good a condition, and is running 16 speed. Note '535 CrMo Giant' sticker. Will change saddle and pedals on Tri-A this arvo and take out for a trial spin.....
Last edited by kukamunga on Fri Jul 18, 2008 2:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Kid_Carbine
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Postby Kid_Carbine » Wed Apr 09, 2008 2:16 am

I can't believe it, but I too have become the owner of a Repco Superlight. Like so many of the others, it too is yet another cast off.

I have no idea of it's age at this time, but I guess it's about 15 years old or more. The tyres appear to be original with very little wear, very little indeed.
Why is it that so many are being dumped in little-used condition?

The component list looks to be in the 'ordinaire' category & is as follows if anyone can offer any comments as this is out of my league.
Frame 4130 Chromolly Double Butted [no other detail]
Derailleurs. Suntour AR
Brakes. Dia Compe 500 [no QR to allow easy wheel removal]
Hubs. Low flange Mailard
Rims. Weinman alloy 27x1-1/4
Cranks. Sugino [no other detail yet]
Seat Post SR 26.6mm [Has a code of D-84 which I took to be April 1984, but I seriously doubt it.]
It's a 10 speed model.
The seat post came straight out when I released the clamp. I was concerned that it might be siezed, but it's still nice & free. The headstem moved easily as soon as I released the center bolt too, so corrosion is not a problem with it.

I hope to have a picture or two soon & it will be looking for a new home as soon as I can give it a full strip-to-the-bare-frame service-overhaul along with a cosmetic restoration. Somebody's gotta want it if I make it pretty.

I have also become the temporary owner of about six more smaller Repco bikes but hope to be rid of them within a couple of days. One of them has a rear fork-end problem like several other Repco's in this thread. Somebody must have been looking the other way in the quality control department & I am wondering just how widespread this serious situation was/is.
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il padrone
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Postby il padrone » Wed Apr 09, 2008 8:08 am

27" wheels puts it pretty firmly in the 80s, 700C was in common use by the early-mid 90s.

10 speed really suggests early 80s. I specced 10 speed for my Cecil Walker in 81, to ensure I had a non-dished rear wheel, but most better bikes used 12 speed by this time.

So 1984 sounds entirely plausible for this bike.

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Kid_Carbine
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Repco Au Go-go

Postby Kid_Carbine » Thu Apr 10, 2008 7:40 pm

Well this is my Repco collection. Fortunately I was able to pass on the smaller ones almost immediately to someone who wanted them.
They're just the ticket for someone with twin boys & twin girls.

The big boys bike seems to be 100% original & will be stripped & cleansed, then carefully re-assembled & made fully serviceable ready for someone else as I am sure that there must be somebody out there who will love it much more than I ever will.
The computer head is missing so I will remove the pickups etc. & those godawfull reflectors to keep it clean & simple.

Anybody else have a similar one, who can add some confirmation about it's age? [see my prevoius post]

Image
ImageImage
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MountGower

Postby MountGower » Thu Apr 10, 2008 8:15 pm

I bet if you ride it after you've cleaned it up you'll like it.

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il padrone
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Postby il padrone » Fri Apr 11, 2008 11:12 am

Looks good. With that colour scheme suggest it's definitely early-mid 80s. Late 80s - bikes like Repco went for blended two-tone colour schemes, IIRC. Suntour derailleurs also; before about 85-86 Shimano was much less dominant, Suntour made the best touring (what this is really aimed at) derailleurs.

Lots of my friends from this period rode these. Looks to be a nice frame, cromoly, double butted. Worth keeping and doing up. My CW road bike has a SR seat-post that looks just like yours.. SR Laprade? And the saddle, what type? Not a Concor turbo?

Agree, keep it, do it up, ride it, have fun.

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Postby Kid_Carbine » Mon Apr 14, 2008 11:24 am

Another forum member who is quite knowledgable about these late model bikes & components has seen it in the flesh in the last few days dated it in the 1982 to '84 period.
I mentioned the code on the seat post [D-84] & suggested that it could be a date code [April 1984] which would be a code for the post, not the bike.
It was agreed then that it could easily be a mid to late 1984 built machine.

If this is true, then the bike is actually about the same age as the young bloke that I had believed was the original owner. Perhaps it was his fathers bike, I'd better check.
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munga
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Postby munga » Wed Apr 30, 2008 5:49 pm

Image

getting there:

Image

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m@
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Postby m@ » Wed May 21, 2008 3:00 pm

munga wrote:Repco Travellers were the mainstay K-Mart ride-to-school bicycles from the late 80's to the mid-90's. Earlest versions were single colour with the crested 'R' head tube logo. My best mate had one with butterfly bars (think ape hanger harley bars) and double plugger brakes..
Sounds about right - bloke pulled me aside as I was walking my Traveller through town to the shop and said "I used to ride a bike like that to school!". Guess he would've been late 20s/early 30s... ;)

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Postby kukamunga » Wed May 21, 2008 8:56 pm

m@ wrote:
munga wrote:Repco Travellers were the mainstay K-Mart ride-to-school bicycles from the late 80's to the mid-90's. Earlest versions were single colour with the crested 'R' head tube logo. My best mate had one with butterfly bars (think ape hanger harley bars) and double plugger brakes..
Sounds about right - bloke pulled me aside as I was walking my Traveller through town to the shop and said "I used to ride a bike like that to school!". Guess he would've been late 20s/early 30s... ;)
I've overlooked quite a few 'Traveller's in my hard rubbish quests (hard rubbish bike snob that I am)! :lol:

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HappyHumber
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Postby HappyHumber » Thu May 22, 2008 12:49 am

m@ wrote:
munga wrote:Repco Travellers were the mainstay K-Mart ride-to-school bicycles from the late 80's to the mid-90's. Earlest versions were single colour with the crested 'R' head tube logo. My best mate had one with butterfly bars (think ape hanger harley bars) and double plugger brakes..
Sounds about right - bloke pulled me aside as I was walking my Traveller through town to the shop and said "I used to ride a bike like that to school!". Guess he would've been late 20s/early 30s... ;)

Putting that a bit further into context I got a red Traveller for my 12th Birthday, in 1986. It was the plainer, red metallic paint work with simple lettering and the "R" headsticker. Mum was on the widows pension and had it on layby for some time from the local general appliance store (small town type store - sold a lotta different stuff).

I had been so excited about getting it, I got up at like 3am on the morning of my b'day, snuck over to my neighbors carport where I knew it was 'hidden' and went off riding it around in the pitch black streets till the worst of the excitement had worn off at about 5am, came home and went back to bed. Mum was dissapointed when I had emerged later and she'd missed all of the initial excitement.

Crappy as I now learnt it might have been - I loved mine, and still have a little moment with myself everytime I see some old tatty example around the place. It was my first bike with any sort of gearing. I rode it pretty solidly throughout high school. I eventually got sick of fixing the creaking BB with my limited knowledge and tools. I think chewed up more than a few lock rings on the ol' adjustable cups with a hammer & flathead screwdriver. I can't remember exactly what happened to it - I think I gave it away for parts to someone.

I remember drooling over the catalog for months before I got mine. All I really remember of it was there was fancier models than mine available; not that I really understood the differences in specs back then. I'd still love to have even that catalog; it'd be a great reference in this thread.

I think the 'Continental' was another low end model. Might have only been a Ladies version though. I remember seeing a few examples with similar stickers as my Gents, but in pale-ish blue, in more recent years.


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GaryF
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Postby GaryF » Thu May 22, 2008 1:55 am

It seems like the Repco's are the Aussie equivalent to the American Schwinns of the 80's.

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HappyHumber
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Postby HappyHumber » Thu May 22, 2008 9:17 am

GaryF wrote:It seems like the Repco's are the Aussie equivalent to the American Schwinns of the 80's.
don't forget Apollos, Indi 500s.....
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Postby m@ » Thu May 22, 2008 9:18 am

I didn't realise the Travellers were quite so low-end... :(

...still happy with the value for money though ($20 from tip shop) :)

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