Some may have noticed I have been focused on touring bikes the last year or so, but I finally finished my latest rebuild of a racing bike, an early 80's Zunow, probably 1982 or 1983. This bike was originally bought by an American serviceman stationed in Okinawa, who rode it there then brought it home. His wife sold it on eBay a couple of years ago, I think the owner may be deceased.
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You may note Italian parts on this Japanese bike. The Campy shift levers are original, as are the Zunow-badged Silca pump and Zunow-badged ALE water bottle. The bike had original Cinelli bars and stem also, although not these. I changed the original Cinelli stem for one to fit me and the orginal new logo Cinelli Criteriums for new logo Giros which I find more comfortable. The bike also came with a too-small 27.0 Campy seatpost, which I changed to a 27.2 early Campy SR, one bolt but with an exposed hex head bolt. As I've observed before, the early Zunows were the most "Italian" of the Japanese bikes, and often were seen with mixes of Campy and Japanese parts, or even sometimes full Campy. The first time I ever saw photos of a Zunow frame, I thought it was Italian, not Japanese.
Also note the very Italian-like lug cutouts. At this time Zunow still used the spade logos, although his own hummingbird logo appears on the seatstay caps.
Other original parts include Suntour Superbe HS, brakes, and hubs built with Mavic OR1 tubular rims - another European touch. The original crank was a Sugino Super Mighty 165 mm (with Zunow pantagraphed BB cups and BB axle), which I've changed out for a 170mm and added black drilled SR 50-42 rings from Baron and Cecile. The original Suntour Superbe derailleurs have been replaced with Superbe Pro. The 13-28 Ultra-6 FW replaces a close ratio Oro original. Given the mix of Japanese and European components the yellow Turbo saddle seems appropriate.
This bike is a lot more sedate than more recent Zunows with "over the top" graphics. I actually like the recent bikes as they have a way of doing over the top in an elegant way. But the early Italian-style Zunows are a nice more understated contrast.
Regards,
Jerry Moos
Big Spring, Texas, USA