Tim, Welcome to the club. I have 3 Voyageurs, one of each color made. Blue, Or ange and Yellow. The orange bike I bought brand new in '74. The others I acquired between then and now. The bikes were a one year run made in Japa n, most likely by Panasonic. The original RD is the Shimano Crane. I have no idea how many miles I have on my orange bike but it still rides like ne w.
The frame is all chrome under the paint and the paint has a tendency to chi p. Also the seat posts have a tendency to get stuck if not greased. The f ollowing link has the owner\u2019s manual online thanks to Bob Hufford.
http://www.geocities.com/
I\u2019ve never seen one with the paint stripped off like on the link Da le supplied. I didn\u2019t think the chrome would look that good if the paint was all stripped off. I have another orange frame that has all the decals worn off, I may have to try that myself.
Rick Kerkhoff
Cincinnati, Oh usa