Shimano Dura-ace cranks

[oldschoolace]

Hi guys, i've had these 170 cranks for a while now and am thinking of putting them on my Batavus build.

 All i know is that they are probably late 70's and i've seen a few geese sporting them. The silver anno is tatty and i have just started to polish them.

Does anyone have any info on them? would it be sacrilage to get them gold anno'd? 

[Gnarlyscoots]

On the back of the arms buddy, it should be stamped with 2 letters. This is the month and year code of the arms    They were used on the '79 Team Goose model, I can tell you that too  

As for getting them anno'd Gold, you need a good annodiser that can near colour match the gold. Take along an old school item of gold and ask them. They should be able to get it quite close. DO NOT over polish them though if you get them anno'd. Just a light tidy up of scuffs and scratches  

[oldschoolace]

Ah cheers   It a E C  so im guessing march but what year would E be.
I wont be overpolishing them, just getting out the little nicks  

edit: just found a site which recons E is 79/80 

[Gnarlyscoots]

Shimano

Shimano components have a two letter date code, in the form XX, where X is a capital letter. A friendly Shimano representative told me the code is not public but he was able to answer some of my questions. One letter is the month, the other is the year. He thought all Shimano components use a common code. Some Dura-Ace seatposts are stamped with a two letter code of the form X-X, where X is a letter. The Shimano representative believed this is the same meaning as the more typical form XX.

The date code is stamped (or cast?) into the component and appears separately from other markings. It is easy to confuse the date code with the alphanumeric model number (e.g. "HB-6500" marked on an Ultegra hub). The code is on the outer flange or the center shaft of hubs, on the backside of crank arms, below the insertion mark on (at least some) seatposts, and on chainwheels. On crank arms, the letters may appear as about 3mm tall and enclosed in a circle. On at least some rear derailleurs the date code is stamped on the inner face of the outer part of the cage. On at least some headsets, the code is stamped on the underside of the fork crown race, and it is visible when installed.

The first letter represents the year and the second is the month, where A is January and L is December. For the first letter A is 1976 and the letters proceed sequentially from there: K is 1986 and Z is 2001. Year 2002 restarts with A.

Shimano Year Code
A - 1976  B - 1977  C - 1978  D - 1979  E - 1980  F - 1981  G - 1982  H - 1983  I - 1984  J - 1985  K - 1986  L - 1987  M - 1988

Shimano Month Code
A - Jan  B - Feb  C - Mar  D - Apr  E - May  F - Jun  G - Jul  H - Aug  I - Sep  J - Oct  K - Nov  L - Dec

[Gnarlyscoots]

Thats correct buddy. E = 1980 and C = March   

[MartyC]

Dura-Ace is the highest quality Shimano product; tbh putting them on a Bavatus would be criminal    .  But they are your cranks and you can put them on what you like.

[oldschoolace]

Dura-Ace is the highest quality Shimano product; tbh putting them on a Bavatus would be criminal    .  

  I know what you mean but it originaly had 3 piece cranks and the only other set i have are super maxy and they are spoken for 

Too tight to buy a third set 

[oldschoolace]

Thats correct buddy. E = 1980 and C = March   

Cheers fella 

[MartyC]

Dura-Ace is the highest quality Shimano product; tbh putting them on a Bavatus would be criminal    .  

  I know what you mean but it originaly had 3 piece cranks and the only other set i have are super maxy and they are spoken for 

Too tight to buy a third set 

Don't listen to me LOL!  Go for it, they are great looking cranks and can only enhance any bike they get put on 

[kungfunky]

They are great looking cranks and were top of the tree bitd, strong and light.  I've got a couple of very early sets on my bikes and they look awsome. Your cranks so put them on what you like    no one moans when they see a OPC on a Gen 1 

[Devilock]

Dura-Ace is the highest quality Shimano product

XTR cranks aint exactly budget...! 

[MartyC]

Dura-Ace is the highest quality Shimano product

XTR cranks aint exactly budget...! 

Maybe I should have caveated with "road kit" lol!

[bobafett]

One of my all time favourite cranksets 

They were available in various colours from the late 70's through the early 80's and yes they did indeed come on mongoose completes (namely the Team model)