Our local transfer station has a treasure shed for people to drop off household items which may be of use to others. This ‘95 Diamondback Ascent (small frame) and the Nishiki Brava in the background were sitting there with massively tacoed rear wheels, so I grabbed them up.

The Nishiki has a USA-made frame. Probably Taiwan-sourced tubing (with stamped dropouts), but the welds are nice. Could easily be made rideable with just a new rear wheel or rim. It’s extremely low-end with steel hubs and mostly unbranded drivetrain.

The Diamondback is a bit of a gem. Low level True Temper AVR butted chromoly tubes with some pretty basic forged dropouts. The welds are about what you would expect; mechanically good, but not pretty. 1” or maybe a 1-1/8” threadless Tioga headset. Decent fork. Seat post is free. Shimano STX derailleurs and crankset. STX cantilever brakes. The Grip Shift is what it is: crap. The unbranded rear rim is pretzel city. Hubs are okay-ish Joy Tech. Overall, not a bad bike.

Always keep your eyes open.

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