Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby TalluDe » Sat Jan 28, 2012 9:13 am
I really like the look of the older bikes.
Kinda want to have a Giro Italia Tour De France replica from 70's or 80's.
However, I want to ride it and was wondering did they make bigger frames back in the day? like 61cm to 64cam or 24 inches in the old money.
Kinda want an old Gitane as my first bike few years back was one. Are the older Gitanes any good?
Read the first post I have learnt a lot and can now spot the junk on feabay.
any help would e great!
thank you
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby ldrcycles » Sun Jan 29, 2012 11:43 am
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby Mustang » Mon Jan 30, 2012 8:56 am
Same goes for small frames I have found, they sit there on ebay & soon as you bid the price goes through the roof!!!ldrcycles wrote:There are definitely big sizes available in old frames, the trick is finding one. Patience is what you need, lots and lots of patience.
Found a Vitus at a Sydney dealer this week...asked price...how much you got????
70 years young.
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby bog1953 » Mon Jan 30, 2012 9:46 pm
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby maccayak » Thu Feb 02, 2012 8:56 pm
Cheers Geoff
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby Mustang » Thu Feb 02, 2012 8:56 pm
70 years young.
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby bog1953 » Fri Feb 03, 2012 11:08 am
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby gbannerman » Fri Feb 10, 2012 1:51 pm
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby Mustang » Fri Feb 10, 2012 9:39 pm
Carbon Viner
70 years young.
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby WyvernRH » Tue Mar 06, 2012 9:18 pm
Yes,big frames were made but lots of big people around in the USA so the prices tend to zoom.TalluDe wrote: However, I want to ride it and was wondering did they make bigger frames back in the day? like 61cm to 64cam or 24 inches in the old money.
Kinda want an old Gitane as my first bike few years back was one. Are the older Gitanes any good?
Gitane, yes they are a much underestimated manufacturer due to the fact thay sold a heap of so-so bikes during the trendy bike boom in the 70's.
Just like Peugeot they made a whole range from boat anchors to TDF material but they tended more toward the touring side and made some very fine 531 tourers.
If you can find an earlier model from the 50's you can be sure that it will be worth riding in the role for which it was designed.
Cheers
Richard
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby Retro man » Wed Mar 14, 2012 2:22 pm
http://www.gitaneusa.com/
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby baysieskip » Sat Apr 14, 2012 10:00 am
I would like to thank you for sharing your bicycle wisdom. You saved me from purchasing a souless low end hybrid that would have cost me (and my family) much more than we could afford.
Since stumbling across your post I have been lucky enough to find some great stuff on hard rubish collections. I have just completed my first bike, a Repco Superlite Burgundy and lilac forks (much like the one seen on the first and 15th page of the Repco app society post). I am now working on a Repco Superlite for a mate and a Gordonson Step through ladies bike for the wife.
I tend not to leave the house on a weekend before reviewing your sage words and always find they direct me towards some great stuff that others cannot recognise the value.
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby drubie » Sat Apr 14, 2012 9:24 pm
Nice to hear of the neglected good'uns getting some attention baysieskip - having just re-read the post myself there's not too much I would change in it, although the number of decent bikes showing up at our tip seems to have diminished quite markedly. I hope somebody who knows 90s mountain bikes can come up with a similar checklist because there are a bunch of them and frankly I have no idea what I'm looking at other the ratio of junk/keepers seems much higher than with old roadies.baysieskip wrote: Since stumbling across your post I have been lucky enough to find some great stuff on hard rubish collections. I have just completed my first bike, a Repco Superlite Burgundy and lilac forks (much like the one seen on the first and 15th page of the Repco app society post). I am now working on a Repco Superlite for a mate and a Gordonson Step through ladies bike for the wife.
Post some pics of your bikes!
but really, that's rubbish. We get none of it because the choices are illusory.
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby baysieskip » Sun Apr 15, 2012 10:12 pm
It's sure something to salvage a bad bike and use it save a great bike.
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby Kempie » Mon Apr 23, 2012 10:48 am
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby Paddles » Wed Jun 06, 2012 1:45 pm
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby koen » Thu Jun 21, 2012 9:04 am
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby ldrcycles » Thu Jun 21, 2012 7:42 pm
It's not just you, MTBs are virtually not worth looking at. Because MTBs took over from 3 speeds as 'basic transport' bikes, people associate MTB with things like Huffys, so they don't value them at all. Seriously, find a nice MTB and try to get some money for it. Case in point, recently found a Specialized MTB, and a Specialized road bike. Both aluminium frames, similar sort of quality, put the same amount of time and money into fixing them up. Roady went for $300, MTB $100. There are good retro MTBS out there to be found but VERY VERY rare, and barely worth stopping to pick up unless you want it for yourself.drubie wrote: I hope somebody who knows 90s mountain bikes can come up with a similar checklist because there are a bunch of them and frankly I have no idea what I'm looking at other the ratio of junk/keepers seems much higher than with old roadies.
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby BRLVR.v2 » Thu Jun 21, 2012 8:56 pm
Yep, I've just picked up a 93 Bridgestone MB1 with the Ritchey fork, Tange Prestige etc.....ldrcycles wrote:There are good retro MTBS out there to be found but VERY VERY rare, .
This looks desirable too. http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/270999943658 ... 1423.l2649
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby ldrcycles » Thu Jun 21, 2012 9:08 pm
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby Slow6 » Thu Jun 21, 2012 9:15 pm
All true. Although we are lucky in that way, in aus you can still pick up a high end and sometimes even rare(ish) 90's mountain bike for $150 and for $400 have it done up as you would have back in the day for thousands. not worth trying to sell them true but as long as there's room in the backyard for another shed that's not a problem!ldrcycles wrote:It's not just you, MTBs are virtually not worth looking at. Because MTBs took over from 3 speeds as 'basic transport' bikes, people associate MTB with things like Huffys, so they don't value them at all. Seriously, find a nice MTB and try to get some money for it. Case in point, recently found a Specialized MTB, and a Specialized road bike. Both aluminium frames, similar sort of quality, put the same amount of time and money into fixing them up. Roady went for $300, MTB $100. There are good retro MTBS out there to be found but VERY VERY rare, and barely worth stopping to pick up unless you want it for yourself.drubie wrote: I hope somebody who knows 90s mountain bikes can come up with a similar checklist because there are a bunch of them and frankly I have no idea what I'm looking at other the ratio of junk/keepers seems much higher than with old roadies.
A couple of good basic tips for hunting out quality early mountain bike would be if it has cantilever brakes it's usually 96 or earlier and the running gear will more often than not give away if the bike is worth while. LX - XT or XTR shimano usually mean a higher end bike late 80's bikes will often sport nice suntour gear.
If you have the name of the bike in the ad try searching this site http://www.bikepedia.com/ it will often give you the full original spec year and retail price
Avoid at all costs and mountain bike with caliper brakes.
If you're really keen it's worth stopping into bike shops that look like they have been around for a while and asking if they have anything lying around from the 90's. all those super expensive anodized its and bobs often were hard to sell and end up buried at the back of the shop.. country towns are especially good.
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby Slow6 » Thu Jun 21, 2012 9:18 pm
That Fisher is a great example.. I would fall over myself if it were in Melbourne. Love the early Marzocchi forks and e-stay = mmmmmmmmm.BRLVR.v2 wrote:Yep, I've just picked up a 93 Bridgestone MB1 with the Ritchey fork, Tange Prestige etc.....ldrcycles wrote:There are good retro MTBS out there to be found but VERY VERY rare, .
This looks desirable too. http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/270999943658 ... 1423.l2649
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby BRLVR.v2 » Thu Jun 21, 2012 10:27 pm
Neither do I really, but such a collectable rarity at the price I paid was too good to pass up. It may get townie treatment and be used for shopping and library runs yet. Slicks Guards and a porteur rack kind of thing. Lugged MTB frames are the coolest in my eyes.ldrcycles wrote:but i don't do mtb anymore so they're just sitting around til i get to them.
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Re: Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby Slow6 » Sun Jul 01, 2012 11:09 am
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Idiots guide to salvaged 80s roadies
Postby singlespeedscott » Sun Jul 01, 2012 4:21 pm
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