1976 Bridgestone bicycle team Bleu de Nil

Check out the restored Bridgestone bicycle from Rini Langkruis, the former coach of the Dutch Bleu de Nil – Bridgestone team.

We bought the bare steel bicycle frame in the spring of 2017 from  a fellow collector Dirk-Jan Wiebe from Bicicletta Vintage and restored the bike to its original team specifications with a first generation Shimano Dura-Ace groupset and an ultralight SR stem and handlebar.

About the Bridgestone Bicycle Company

Bridgestone is a world renown Japanse tire brand. But Bridgestone ‘does more than great tires’ as they claim on their website. Bridgestone makes tires, bicycles, golf clubs and a large range of high quality polymer-based products for the automotive, sports and construction sector.

The Bridgestone Bicycle company was launched in 1949, as a spin-off from the Bridgestone Tire Company. But it wouldn’t be before 1964 that Bridgestone made its first steel race bikes with the launch of the Competitive Cycling Division. The information on these early road race bikes is very scarce which makes it hard to identify and date Bridgestone bicycle frames prior to 1980.

Despite the cult status of the Bridgestone RB-1 road bike in the U.S.A., Bridgestone bikes are not listed as desirable collectibles in Europe.

Luckily, this exquisite example of Japanese engineering was especially crafted for the Dutch Bleu de Nil – Bridgestone cycling team which made it somewhat easier to reveal its age and history.

The frame is very lightweight, steady as a rock and displays stunning details finished with a professional two-tone (yellow and pearl) paint job.

Specifications

  • Frameset: Bridgestone DB
  • Size: 59cc / 61ct
  • Bottom bracket: Shimano Dura-Ace first generation
  • Crankset: Shimano Dura-Ace first generation
  • Front derailleur: Shimano Dura-Ace first generation
  • Rear derailleur: Shimano Crane (first Dura-Ace generation)
  • Downtube shifters: Shimano Dura-Ace first generation
  • Headset: steel Shimano Dura-Ace first generation
  • Stem: SR Superlight
  • Handlebar: SR Superlight
  • Handlebar tape: Bike ribbon white
  • Brake levers: Shimano Dura-Ace first generation
  • Brake calippers: Shimano Dura-Ace first generation
  • Seatpost: SR superlight 26.8 mm (different model in the pictures)
  • Saddle:
  • Pedals:

 

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