Quick Intro:
Bought the fiance a bike for her birthday. Started looking into one for myself. Got hooked on vintage steel frame road bikes. Rebuilding/restoring bikes appeals to me. Possess 0 maintenance/mechanical skills/knowledge. What little tools I did have are lost/borrowed. Read the flipping 101 thread. Read about finding vintage bikes on mytenspeeds. Went out and looked. It has been a week, I now have 4 bikes sitting in my garage.
Unknown Peugeot Mixte:
Paid 30 bucks for this thing at a moving sale. It is mighty small, possibly a kid's bike? Will add pictures later.
1980 or 81 Trek 412 or 414 (2 of them): Pics
Had an inkling to drive around random neighborhoods in search of old bikes. Found a truck full of scrapmetal with a pair of drop bars peeking out. Saw the Trek name, rang the doorbell, 2 trips later, bikes are home. Pictures are of the smaller of the two. Haven't thoroughly inspected the components to narrow down the exact model. The wheels scare me, the back one of the small bike is definitely bent. The others could be as well.
1992 Bridgestone XO-2: Pics
My latest acquisition. Found a guy with literally 2-300 bikes on his property and a sign on his sidewalk saying he sells used bikes. Decided to take a peek. Didn't find much but the Bridgestone caught my eye. Almost all stock minus the moustache bar, and Tom Slick tires. Guy wanted 170, picked it up for 80. Not sure how good of a decision that was yet.
I guess I am also looking for a little direction. I need a bike to ride with my fiance. We will be riding mostly paved roads/trails but some trails are unpaved in certain areas. I would like for this hobby to be self sustaining, but I realize I may have to spend some money to get going at first. The less the better.
Thank you all for the wealth of information and I look forward to participating in future discussions.