Road Cycling - should i buy it?

looking at purchasing my first road bike. its a old late 1980's trek 700 series. i havent ridden it yet but if it fits, the guy is asking 200 for it. need some feedback from you experienced roadies on wheter or not i should buy it :D

i attached a pic .. hope it works

$200 seems a bit high to me. I would buy it if it was $100.
I'm not knocking the brand at all, but thinking about new parts it may need. Usually I've found that an older bike will need to have many parts at least inspected, if not replaced.

Such as: tires, brake pads, chain, bearings, handlebar, and cables.

This is without seeing the bike in person though. From the pic it does look as if it was was well maintained. Has it been repainted?

It's probably a great bike on which to start. If it fits ok and you like it then go for it...just haggle a bit more.


;)

Maybe someone else on the forum has experience with this model and can help out.

If it's your first road bike and you have not ridden it how do you know it fits.Looks older than late 80s to me.does it have index or friction shifting? $200 only if it really its,is nearly perfect and you don't have to spend aything to make it rideable and it really fits!Stuff like that actually goes for $50 at garage sales and pawn shops around here. Consider that a new Trek 1000 can be bought on clearance for under $500. Same for many other bikes,but maybe you live in a 'bike poor' area.

thanks guys.. if the bike does fit me nicely then ill try to negotiate the price. another choice is to put in 200-300 and look at entry lvl road bikes for 400-500 ish? soo many choices hehe :D.

need a bike to ride to nearby stores and the local bike routes on weekends. the seller said the bike is in "exellent condition". dunno if its repainted thou.

I went and looked at a early 90's full dura-ace raleigh. the guy wanted $700 and wouldn't come down at all "this bike was almost $3k new!"

"yeah, but even though the parts on it are dura-ace i could get sora or tiagra parts that are the same if not better quality. so for the same price i could have a brand new bike that's better"

needless to say he wasn't happy at all

maybe that bike will fit you and you can talk him down, but i'd seriously consider looking into purchasing a brand new bike :-D you'll have a warranty! and the bike shop will do adjustments for you

you will probably regret buying a retro downtube shifting bike. I suggest you try out the newer STI/Ergopower equipped bikes and make your decision from there. $200 is a lot of money.

It might be an OK deal. Some of the other posters are correct that you MIGHT be able to find one at a garage sale for $50.00. HOWEVER, I can tell you from being a long-time yard sale bike hunter that the odds of you finding a reasonably modern bike that fits you for cheap takes a lot of hunting and a lot of luck and a lot of compromise.

If this bike fits, it is lightweight, and you like it, it is a good deal. Think about it $200.00 for a good road bike - where are you going to find that kind of deal?

OK, there may be some maintanance issues:

Brake shoes: $5.00 per set.

Brake cables, shifter cables - probably don't need replacement, just take out the cables from the housings. wipe them down, apply grease, put back into the housings and go. If they do need replacements, $5.00 per cable.

Chain: ? maybe. Check it. Pull the chain away from the chainring and see how much space you can make. If it needs replacement; $5.00 to $50.00. See Nashbar.com

OTHER IMPORTANT THINGS TO CHECK:

Look at the wheels. Make sure they are true and not damaged. Spin the wheel and guage the trueness by watching the space between the rim and the brake pads. Look and feel for damage to the rims. If you want to be really sure, take the tires off and look for damage. CHECK FOR FLAT SPOTS ON THE RIM. This is serious damage that is hard to see with your eye. Again, spin the wheel and guage against the brake pad, but use a pen or credit card held in place to see if the rim is moving up and down indicating a flat spot on the rim.

Check for wrinkled paint. This would indicate some kind of damage. Check closely at the welds around the head tube for wrinkles or chipped paint. Take the front wheel off and put it back on. If the forks were bent, it will be finicky to get the wheel back on. It should come of easily and go on easily.

Consider a major overhaul: When I buy an used bike, I always overhaul every hub; headset, bottom bracket, wheels. OR, ask the owner how many miles since he did it last. This is not expensive to do - $0.50 worth of grease and maybe $10.00 worth of bearings. If it has sealed cartidges/bearings, you can probably skip this step. In my experience, the headset bearings are the ones that usually need replacement, if anything.

Bikes can last a long time. Most bikes never actually get worn out. I work on bikes that are 30 + years old and rarely do any bikes get so worn out that they are not worth fixing.

If you like it and it fits, take it.

What does it have for components? It looks like a Brooks Swift saddle on it, and between that and the frame, you could peddle those on e-bay for the $200 he's asking, alone.
FWIW, I'd say that, if it is maintained, and the components are good, it is probably worth it. I own a late 70's Trek 700 road bike (silver-brazed frame), and it is still my favorite ride. It is very smoothe riding and lightweight, if a bit noodly in the larger frame size (mine is a 24").

Originally posted by Altwegg
you will probably regret buying a retro downtube shifting bike. I suggest you try out the newer STI/Ergopower equipped bikes and make your decision from there. $200 is a lot of money. Really! they work, and work with anything in the friction mode.Cheap and easier to maintain.

Originally posted by mike


Consider a major overhaul: When I buy an used bike, I always overhaul every hub; headset, bottom bracket, wheels. OR, ask the owner how many miles since he did it last. This is not expensive to do - $0.50 worth of grease and maybe $10.00 worth of bearings. If it has sealed cartidges/bearings, you can probably skip this step. In my experience, the headset bearings are the ones that usually need replacement, if anything. This may work really well for someone with all the tools and knowhow.With cup and ball BB, HS, and hubs one is probably looking at over $100 at a bike shop for complete overhaul.

Grunt,

what is the gruppo? shimano? campy? and what line?

I just picked up a mid-eighties Torelli with Dura Ace and Campy Victory for about 150.00. This trek looks to be in a bit better shape than the one I got but still it seems like a decent deal. True you could find one for cheaper but you will have to compromise in either fit, or condition or parts.....If it fits you Id see if you can get him to take 180.00 or so. If not Id still probably go for it. I think it will be a better bike than what youd get new for 5-600...but this is just personal opinion. A tune up with replacement chain, or cables will not cost more than about 30-40 bucks or so at a shop....

Originally posted by H20.1
Grunt,
A tune up with replacement chain, or cables will not cost more than about 30-40 bucks or so at a shop.... One might find a tuneup deal for $29.Parts are extra.

Originally posted by pokey
One might find a tuneup deal for $29.Parts are extra.

My LBS:

The works $12.95, any brand *limited time

true both wheels
adjust brakes
adjust hubs
adjust bottom bracket
set cable tensions
lube bike
adjust gears
tighten nuts & bolts
a $40 value
wash bike & clean chain $2.50 extra


I think that'd be considered a deal wouldn't it? :D

Originally posted by Ritalin


My LBS:

The works $12.95, any brand *limited time

true both wheels
adjust brakes
adjust hubs
adjust bottom bracket
set cable tensions
lube bike
adjust gears
tighten nuts & bolts
a $40 value
wash bike & clean chain $2.50 extra


I think that'd be considered a deal wouldn't it? :D Where, Afganistan? Around here a tuneup does not include wheel true,which fetches $15 each and that is only if it does not require major effort.

I recently bought my first road bike.
A used early 90's Specialized Sirrus (road bike, not a hybrid)
Shimano RX-100 components.
Specialized BG saddle, which looks like what's on that bike.
Actually my bike looks VERY similar to that one.
I got it at my LBS for 125 bucks.
I'd try to get them to come down on the price a bit, and then go for it, if it fits.
It's your first road bike. Don't go out and buy something for 5 or 6 hundred bucks when you haven't even tried out road riding much yet. Then when you are ready to upgrade, you'll have a much better idea which bikes to look at and what riding style you prefer. And you'll still have a beater at home for the trainer or rollers or bad weather or commuting or selling on ebay or...

ChipR

Originally posted by pokey
One might find a tuneup deal for $29.Parts are extra.

True, but cables are cheap. I had a new one put on for an SIS shifter and it was charged at 2.00.Chains vary. maybe extend the range to 30-70 dollars depending on what you need/want.

Originally posted by Ritalin


My LBS:

The works $12.95, any brand *limited time

true both wheels
adjust brakes
adjust hubs
adjust bottom bracket
set cable tensions
lube bike
adjust gears
tighten nuts & bolts
a $40 value
wash bike & clean chain $2.50 extra


I think that'd be considered a deal wouldn't it? :D

That's easy stuff. You can do that with a screwdriver and adjustable wrench. Maybe trueing the the wheels is a bit tricky, but maybe you don't need to do that.

What does "lube bike" mean? If it means putting new grease in all the bearings, then YES, $29.00 is a good deal.

Originally posted by pokey
Where, Afganistan? Around here a tuneup does not include wheel true,which fetches $15 each and that is only if it does not require major effort.

?Hampton Trails Bicycle Shop in Hampton, TN (http://www.hamptontrails.com/pages/783199/index.htm)

did I mention that gave me free lifetime tune-ups when I purchased my Litespeed Vela there

Grunt,
From what I can tell from the picture, the bike appears to
be a 700 series sport frame, possibly 700 Tri model ?
The 720 was discontinued in 1986.

1985 Trek 720 had cantilever brakes (the pic you provided
doesn't so I'd eliminate this one).
1985 Trek had models 760 and 770 which were full on
racing frames, I don't think its one of these (but it could be).
760 had full campy victory group, and 770 Campy Super record.
The saddle appears to be Flite type of saddle, or San marco.

1986 Trek 700 was a 531 frame (all tubes),had Shimano 600
series (SIS) drivetrain, stem and hub by specialized, matrix
rims. nice bike.

Can you get the serial number? I can track down frame size
model manufacture date etc. if you want.
$200 may actually be a good price.
I don't think its newer than 86 (if the seller is correct in
stating its a 700 series). Trek discontinued the 700 series
after 1976.

Hope this helps,
Marty

here is what the ad says...

TREK Road/Touring bike, Suntour Components, Late 80's mdl, excellent condition, $190 b/ofr

and marty.. ill try to see if i can get the serial number.

thanks everyone :) i feel more informed to make a good buy