For the third look inside my bicycle garage I offer a somewhat rare bike with a good back-story. The bike is a 1983 3Rensho Standard with a rather unspectacular Shimano 600 group. 3Renshos are not particularly rare, even if they are fine bikes, but this one is unusual because it was made for the domestic Japanese market. An American who was teaching English in Tokyo and needed transportation purchased the bike bringing it home when she returned. Fast forward two decades and I am at a garage sale chatting with two nice ladies when I ask if they had any bikes. The younger one said she had a bike that used to have those funny glue on tires. Next thing I know she rolls out the 3Rensho pictured here. A little negotiating, a trip to the ATM and the bike was mine.
The unparalleled craftsmanship on 3Renshos make the brand special. The hand cut spear point lugs and flawless brazing create a beautiful machine. For those not familiar with 3Rensho it is the creation of master frame builder Yoshi Konno who built frames largely for Keirin track racing in Japan. The track models are highly prized and carry a hefty price tag which is fine with me because I prefer road bikes. One last note, 3Rensho became very popular in the 80s and Yoshi Konno eventually stopped brazing frames himself. So an early frame like this one is more likely to have been built by Mr. Konno.
The first pictures show the bike as it arrived, followed by pictures of it after a good cleaning.
The unparalleled craftsmanship on 3Renshos make the brand special. The hand cut spear point lugs and flawless brazing create a beautiful machine. For those not familiar with 3Rensho it is the creation of master frame builder Yoshi Konno who built frames largely for Keirin track racing in Japan. The track models are highly prized and carry a hefty price tag which is fine with me because I prefer road bikes. One last note, 3Rensho became very popular in the 80s and Yoshi Konno eventually stopped brazing frames himself. So an early frame like this one is more likely to have been built by Mr. Konno.
The first pictures show the bike as it arrived, followed by pictures of it after a good cleaning.
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