Classic and Vintage Bicycles: What's it Worth? Appraisals and Inquiries - How much should I pay for this schwinn breeze?

I was talking to a co-worker about bikes today and now I really want to buy a bike. I found this listing for a vintage schwinn breeze but from what I've read on these forums, I think it's a little overpriced at $120. What is a fair asking price for this bike? Thanks for your help.

http://boston.craigslist.org/nos/bik/1791095284.html

Edit: I did a search for "schwinn breeze" and found people who had found these bikes for bargain prices (like $20-50), I also saw a thread where a beautiful, fixed up one was selling for about $150.

great looking bike.

http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm190/pivotingdiamond/breeze001.jpg (http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/mm190/pivotingdiamond/?action=view&current=breeze001.jpg)

If I was in the market I would snap that up at $120.00. The people who buy $35.00 bikes (or free) spend all day driving around looking and rarely if ever are they complete and ready to ride. It's 100 times the bike that you would find at a big box store and as durable and stylish as any grocery-getter could be. I think it likes you too. The controls should work crisply and return quickly, cranks and pedals should spin freely and it should brake and shift at that price.

It is decent looking but there is still some oxidation that would need to be addressed. For $120 I would be looking for one that is very clean. I bought one in excellent shape with pretty much no rust at all for $100 last year.

I recently sold a pristene breeze for $150. I'd say no more than $75. Someone has done a little cleaning, but it may not go beyond that. It bothers me that they can't get a valve straight. It also has a good size crack in the sidewall.
http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm190/pivotingdiamond/breeze002.jpg

I would have expected the rust to have been addressed at that price. I would pass. I see a fair amount of rust on the bars, stem and fenders. I would expect to see more during an in person inspection. No thanks.

+1 To be fair on the $25 deals some (including me) have posted, we rarely mention the amount of time spent looking for deals. I look for bikes almost every day. So yes, I occasionally find some great deals. But the best deals go so fast, that if you are not ready to roll on a moments notice, they are long gone. I call this "scooping". Most larger cities have a number of people out there hitting all the garage sales, the thrift stores, C/L and whatever and scooping the best deals.

Thanks for all the opinions. The seller agreed to go down to $90 and I'm going to look at the bike tomorrow. I'm trying not to fall in love with it in the meantime. I'm sure I could find a better deal if I searched long enough but I'd rather not wait too long or I'll talk myself out of getting one. It seems like a lot of the really good deals go so fast that I wouldn't have a chance unless I literally ran out of work to go check on a bike. This one is in an out of the way location so I don't think it will get snapped up too quickly.

Thanks for all the opinions. The seller agreed to go down to $90 and I'm going to look at the bike tomorrow. I'm trying not to fall in love with it in the meantime. I'm sure I could find a better deal if I searched long enough but I'd rather not wait too long or I'll talk myself out of getting one. It seems like a lot of the really good deals go so fast that I wouldn't have a chance unless I literally ran out of work to go check on a bike. This one is in an out of the way location so I don't think it will get snapped up too quickly.

Yes, this is exactly what happens to the best deals. Buyers that have flexible schedules (either retired, self employed, or whatever), will scoop up the best deals. Sometimes, the deals last due to poor listing, lack of pictures, bike needs work, and similar. Sounds like you have a good deal worked out. Good luck!