Photo: Beat-up Sekine commuter, bought for a song. Probably a 1976 SHT 270; with butted tubing, Shimano Crane rear derailleur, Titlist front, SR cranks, and original Fujita suede saddle.
In an effort to find out more about these bicycles, I stop and take a look whenever I see one on the street. Locked to a rack, riding by on the bike route- my head turns. If it's an interesting bike, I'll even chase the owner down for a chat. Most people are pretty friendly and nice about this, and many even let me take photos of their bike and add the serial number to the database.
Today, I'm going to have some business cards printed up to give to the people I talk to. I'll still be a weird bike nerd, but it's always more legitimate if you have a card.
