Thanks to everyone who responded to me on this. Here are some details that I didn't' include about the crankset. I don't want to put much money into the bike since I will only be using it to train and try to get my kids involved in riding. The Nishiki chainwheels are bolted together by 3, not 4 or 5, but 3 bolts. I had emailed Sheldon Brown about parts and his response was to replace the crankset because they didn't have 3 bolt chainwheels. Also, I spent some time on the internet searching, to no avail. A coworker suggested to me that I go to a local thrift store and look for a crankset that would fit the Nishiki. I thought that might work, so this afternoon I set off. The first one I went to had about 20 Huffy's and I started to think that I was wasting my time. The next store I went to had about 20 bikes leaning against the outside of the building. I finally spotted one that looked like it might do the trick. As I leaned it away from the bike it was resting on, I uncovered an old bike that was a wreck. Tires rotting off, paint chipped/scratched, no decals, rusted chain, you get the picture. Anyway, it is a ten speed that has a 3 bolt crankset!
The inner ring is a 39 or 40 tooth and in decent shape. I measured the bolt distance and it matched the one I need so I ran inside and inquired about the price. Two bucks! Sold. I put the bike on my carrier that I just happened to have in my trunk in case of emergencies and off I went. Tonight, I make the transplant! Wish me luck.
I see that the name Nishiki is now owned by Derby. Does anyone know of any good info on the web about the Nishiki bikes?
Thanks again, Rick Kerkhoff
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Kerkhoff, Rick
> Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2003 8:54 AM
> To: 'classicrendezvous@bikelist.org'
> Subject: Nishiki and Voyageur
>
> Yes, I love my Voyageur. It has center pull dia-comp brakes.
> I rode the Nishiki last night and it rode great!
> I wish I could find out more about it.
> The chainrings are 54 and 49. The smaller one is much
> too large for the hills around here. I suppose I will have
> to change the entire crankset. I don't know if I will
> do that right away. I don't want to put a lot of money in
> the bike yet.