I picked up this Univega Range Rover off of Facebook Marketplace for $90 in the summer of 2022. The serial number starts with M which should correspond to being a 1984 model, but I am not 100% sure.
Univega was an importer of bicycles built in Japan by Miyata from the 1970s through 1996, but I don’t know very much about the company or this specific bike. The current spec of the bike is:
Frame: Tange Chromoly Tubing, Yellow
Fork: Unbranded Rigid Steel
Rear Derailleur: Shimano 8SIS RD-MC18 Long Cage
Front Derailleur: Shimano FD-AX55
Shifters: Shimano SIS Light Action, Black Plastic
Bottom Bracket: Tange Sealed Cartridge
Crankset: Sugino MP 170mm 28/38/48T
Freewheel: Shimano MF-Z012 6-Speed 14-30T
Brake Levers: Chang-Star 4-Finger Long Pull
Brake Calipers: Chang-Star Wide-Profile Cantilever
Handlebars: Yellow Steel Riser
Stem: 100mm Black & Silver Alloy 1″ Riser Quill Stem w/ Brake Housing Stop
Headset: Tange Passage, Silver
Grips: Black Unbranded Rubber
Rims: Araya 26×1.75 Alloy
Rear Hub: il Joytech black alloy, Bolt-On
Front Hub: il Joytech black alloy, Quick Release
Rear Tire: Specialized Crossroads III 26×1.95
Front Tire: Kenda 26×1.75
Saddle: Schwinn Approved Foam Cushion
Seatpost: Silver Alloy
Pedals: Black Flat Plastic
Other: SKS Xtra-Dry3 Rear Mudguard, SKS MudX Front Mudguard, Sanyo Bar Lock
This bike is a typical example of an early mountain bike from the 1980s. Mine is a size 22″, and it fits me pretty well as a 178cm man with relatively long legs which give me a ‘cycling inseam’ of 86cm. The riding position is fairly neutral and quite upright, although on longer rides I wish the handlebars were a bit higher and swept further back because I feel like I am leaning too far forward to be comfortable over long distances, but not really aggressive enough to actually use it off-road. I like to use this bike on casual rides around town and for shorter commutes / utility runs.
I’m not exactly sure what the original spec of the bike was but it is currently a mix of different vintage Shimano components along with a Sugino MP crankset. I really like the gearing on this bike – the 28/38/48 tooth crankset pairs well with the 6-speed 14-30T freewheel and means that I spend most of my time cycling on the middle chainring, and it also came with my preferred crank length of 170mm which meant that I did not have to swap out the crankset to make the bike feel like a good fit.
I have played around with the idea of converting this to either a 1×7 or simply upgrading to a 7-speed freewheel, but in reality the current 3×6 is perfectly functional and adequate and is in keeping with a bike of this era. The shifters are switchable from index to friction shifting but I find that the indexing works well and makes it very easy to shift this bike smoothly while cruising. Unfortunately the cover is missing from one of the shifters, but overall I think that the drivetrain looks good and is perfectly adequate for an around-town bike. The only thing I would really like to do is upgrade the shifters to something more durable and aesthetically pleasing but in reality this is not really necessary.
The brakes are a very cool set of Chang-Start wide-profile cantilever brakes paired with Chang-Start 4-finger brake levers. This gives the bike a great aesthetic, the brakes feel excellent with good modulation, and the power is also quite good. Setting these brakes up properly was a challenge, in particular the centering of the front brake, but now that they are set I am very happy with them
The wheels are silver Araya 26×1.75″ alloy rims paired with fairly generic il Joytech hubs and I think that they fit the aesthetic of the bike very well. In particular I think that the silver quick release lever looks very artistic contrasted against the blueish front brake caliper. There is a mix of black and silver components on this bike so the wheels also match that particular aesthetic. The tires are generic 26″ aftermarket tires although I like the smoothness of the tread on the rear, so when they wear out I will replace both with something suitable for pavement and light off-road use.
This bike doesn’t have too many accessories on it but I did throw on some SKS mudguards to make it more functional in the rain or the snow, and even though they don’t fully cover the tires they work to keep the worst of the road spray from ending up on me. I also added a vintage Sanyo wheel lock which my boss brought back from Japan and gifted to me – it’s a variation of the frame lock in which a bar rather than a ring slides through the spokes. This is a cool feature which gives a very minor amount of extra security when leaving the bike for short periods of time.
Overall I was surprised by how much I ended up liking this bike. It isn’t a perfect fit for me but it is one of those bikes which speaks to me and I get a lot of pleasure out of riding it. It rolls very smoothly and comfortably, it works in a a variety of situations, and it’s also cheap enough not to worry about it, although I would be pretty sad if it were to get stolen!
