# nishiki alien full suspension



## goosey (Feb 24, 2006)

I have inherited an 18" nishiki alien bike, full xtr m900, marzochhi xcr fork,noleen rear shock.The frame is green alluminum square tubing, the rear swing arm is chromoly.The bike has been sitting unused for about 7 years,the components look near new. The fork says it was made in 1994, is this bike from that year? Any info about this bike would be greatly appreciated.The previous owner isn't around anymore to ask.
Thanks


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## Shayne (Jan 14, 2004)

*Hmmmm*

Well I'm guessing that your bike is a Nishiki FS-1. The Alien wasn't a rear suspension model. Their full suspension bikes were labled FS-1, 2, 3...
If the XTR components are original you can look for the date codes on them to get a good idea of its year. 
I think those bikes were made from 1993-96 so 1994 is a pretty good estimate.


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## goosey (Feb 24, 2006)

Shayne said:


> Well I'm guessing that your bike is a Nishiki FS-1. The Alien wasn't a rear suspension model. Their full suspension bikes were labled FS-1, 2, 3...
> If the XTR components are original you can look for the date codes on them to get a good idea of its year.
> I think those bikes were made from 1993-96 so 1994 is a pretty good estimate.


Thanks for the info


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## bushpig (Nov 26, 2005)

Upload some pictures!


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## BadHabit (Jan 12, 2004)

goosey said:


> I have inherited an 18" nishiki alien bike, full xtr m900, marzochhi xcr fork,noleen rear shock.The frame is green alluminum square tubing, the rear swing arm is chromoly.The bike has been sitting unused for about 7 years,the components look near new. The fork says it was made in 1994, is this bike from that year? Any info about this bike would be greatly appreciated.The previous owner isn't around anymore to ask.
> Thanks


FWIW, the designer of the Alien (not sure about the FS) later designed the Lodestar/Litech Team and Elite magnesium frames.

I wish I could recall his name.


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## rollercam (Mar 25, 2005)

does it look something like this?


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

BadHabit said:


> FWIW, the designer of the Alien (not sure about the FS) later designed the Lodestar/Litech Team and Elite magnesium frames.
> 
> I wish I could recall his name.


Richard Cunningham, current Editor-in-chief of MBA designed the Nishiki Alien back when he still owned Mantis, so I kinda doubt he had anything to do with Lodestar's frames as they were designed in hungary, at the time Richard had already sold mantis and taken his job at MBA.


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

Incidently, the factory in hungary where the lodestar frames were made used to be part of the Schwinn group (think it was Schwinn-Europe A.G. or something like that), and thus was full of competent bike designers to begin with.


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## ssmike (Jan 21, 2004)

Pictures please - especially of the swingarm.


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## IF52 (Jan 10, 2004)

Yeah, pictures please. I think I remember that bike. We had one in the shop for a few years that we just couldn't sell. Had a Mert Lawwill style rear suspension IIRC. We finally sold it to a guy who had been a team mate of Lawwill's back in the 70's and only bought it because of the name association. This customer actually also had an old H-D XR750 in the picture window at the front of his house. Guess he was just kind of sentimental that way, huh?


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## rideit (Jan 22, 2004)

rollercam said:


> does it look something like this?


Wow, nostalgia!!!
I owned two aliens, a red one with Chromo stays, and one of these babies...fun bikes, for sure!


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## goosey (Feb 24, 2006)

*nishiki fs-2, not alien as originally thougt*

Here are some photos of the fs-2


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## Arran (Jan 27, 2006)

Good score! /\ /\ /\ /\ /\ /\

Rollercam, do you still have that frameset? \/ \/ \/ \/



rollercam said:


> does it look something like this?


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## Lloyd395 (Dec 14, 2004)

Its like a profloater with square tubes....


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## BadHabit (Jan 12, 2004)

DeeEight said:


> Incidently, the factory in hungary where the lodestar frames were made used to be part of the Schwinn group (think it was Schwinn-Europe A.G. or something like that), and thus was full of competent bike designers to begin with.


Wish I'd got back here sooner to see this, D8. Very interesting.

My information is based on a phone call to a number listed in a magazine review of the Lodestar frame way back when; it was being raced by someone famous--my memory is getting bad or something. So this individual identified himself as the designer of both frames and said he had been canned that day and was packing the proverbial cardboard box. Maybe he was in the habit of enlarging his role. 

He said the Lodestar was designed in America and that the frame was designed to "minimize stem length"--the extent of my recollection.


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

The factory was called YBM Magnex, and they used to have a website but it doesn''t exist anymore. The company and lodestar included for that matter was a front for money laundering for the russian mafia, and made it into the wall street journal a few years ago when that detail became public knowledge.

I was an ORIGINAL lodestar dealer incidently, and know a lot more about the brand's real history than a disgruntled kid who lost his sponsorship.

http://www.cbc.ca/stories/2003/07/02/ybm_030702

http://www.worldbank.org/html/prddr/trans/julaug99/pgs11-13.htm

PS... I still have the original catalogs someplace in my collection. I could always go hunt for it as it did have the original address, phone #s, etc for the factory.


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## B2Reditor (Apr 27, 2008)

sorry to bump such an old thread. I figured id post in this thread instead of starting a new one. If that was a bad idea feel free to split the thread 

I saw this thread and had to run out side n get a pic of my girls bike. I worked at a shop all thru school. I graduated high school in 95. I have one of these to. She liked mine so much she had to have one but smaller. So I built her a 16.5 she still rides it to work every day! Ill get a pic of mine in the next few weeks


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