* The serial number format appears to started in 1987 and is known to extend beyond 1989 on Giant branded models, though no Nishiki examples have been reported, to date.Ĭirca 1989, Nishiki was acquired by Derby International, which also owned Raleigh and some manufacturing was done at their Kent, Washingtion facility.ĮXAMPLE: R9035167879 is the 7,879th frame built on day 35 (i.e.

Xxxxx = numbers probably indicating a sequential manufacturing number during the fortnightĮxample: GD706959 was the 6,959th frame manufactured during the 4th fortnight of 1987.

Y =last digit of calendar year of manufacture (i.e. The format precedes 1978 though no samples have been reported on Nishiki bicycles.į = letter indicating fortnight (i.e A = weeks 1-2, B = weeks 3-3. * The serial number format changed in 1987. Yy = year where 80 = 1980, 81 = 1981, etc.Įxample: G0384 is a frame that was manufactured by Giant in March 1984. Mm = month where 01 = Jan, 02 = Feb, etc. The date codes data is generally stamped on the drive side dropout. Two part serial number, with first part designating manufacturer, month and year. * Serial number format may extend beyond the stated end date but there are no reported examples, to date. ZZZZZ is a five or six digit number, apparently representing a sequential frame manufac turing number for the year (or era in the case of pre 1975 frames)Įxample 1: KA24587 is the 24,787th frame produced in 1981 for the US market.Įxample 2: CG231117 is the 23,117th frame produced in 1977 for the Canadian market.Įxample 3: WE54612 is the 54,612th frame produced in 1985 for the US market. Exception is letter S, used on all frames prior to 1975. Y is a letter indicating the last digit of the manufacturing calendar year, where A =1, B = 2, C = 3… J = 0. X is a letter indicating the market using the following codes: Kawamura manufactured frames (1972-1987*) General developments in the database will be reported in this post (ie post #1 ) below: Where possible, I will answer questions as they arise. Thank-you in advance for your contributions. For component date code format, location and decypher, refer to Date of Manufacture of Bicycle Components can be used to date a bike: component dating. Requested info is model, year (if known), frame material and make, model and date codes of major components. A full, drive side view is the preferred pic.

To this end, it would appreciated if any Nishiki owners would submit posts with pics and specs of their Nihiki.

I now have sufficient data sets and confidence to report the results for serial numbers from the 1970s to mid 1980s, however sufficient data is lacking for the late 1980s onward. As some you may be aware, I have been collecting Nishiki data for several years in an attempt to more accurately determine their age and create a timeline of models.

Nishiki serial number database bike