Classic & Vintage - Is This Bike Any Good?

Hey everyone, I've been looking for a cruiser for a friend of mine and I have a chance to get a 1960's Huffy Oakwood 26" cruiser. The seller repacked the bearings, put new tubes and tires on it, and lubed up the brake and shifter cables, so it's ready to go. He's selling it for $125.

I don't have a picture of it right now, but here's the link to the web page that it's on...http://nostalgictimez.com/Bikes_For_Sale.html... It's the creme colored one about half way down the page.

I just wanted everyone's opinion on whether or not this bike is any good, and if $125 is a good price for it?

Also, this bike would be for someone that's 5'2" or 5'3", so would 26" be a good size for them?

Thanks for the help

http://nostalgictimez.com/images/16593984.png

Is it any good? That depends on what you plan to do with it.

For short rides around the neighborhood, yes. To commute 15 hilly miles each way to work and fast club rides on the weekend, no.

3 years ago, I sold a similar Huffy that was in mint condition for $75, and was happy to have got that.

I don't know anything specific about that bike, but judging from the look of it, I'm inclined to doubt the "1960's" dating. Looks late 70's - early 80's to me. The price is not, in my opinion, a bargain. Nor is it necessarily a ripoff, if the seller put much work and materials into it. But have your friend ride it and make the decision; don't buy it for her until she's tried it and she's convinced it's the bike she wants, the right size, the right color, etc.

Mid-1980's. $75 dollar bike.

-Kurt

Looks like a used bike "dealer" with maybe an actual storefront and hanging out a regular shingle. He's offering a 30-day warranty on the bikes and everything as well as other services.

It's hard to compare this with your average C-list private sale or flipper.

You can't really compare prices of a used auto bought at a dealer to one bought in a private sale out of a paper or craigslist. If you look at "blue book" values for cars/motorcycles you will see two different columns for the prices for each type of seller. Bikes values are not really all that much different.


Sure, it's going to be more expensive to buy the same used bike at a LBS compared to one you can find online through a private seller. My LBS is selling a bunch of Raleigh sports that they have rebuilt on the premises for $300-500 each and they don't look nearly as nice as the ones I do. There is no way I could get that much for them (oh, I've tried) -but they just might.

Remember that price is always negotiable on used items. Retail/new maybe not so much. Give him an offer and see if they bite.

It's not a bad bike and might be roughly comparable with the English 3-speeds of the same era and would make a fine bike of this type if was well-refurbished. The bike does have a heavy one-piece crank and the hub may be of the older Shimano type which had some problems and were not as bullet-proof as the Raleigh Sturmey-Archer types. But like I said, those bikes tend to go for quite a bit more around my area when sold by actual businesses. The old Huffy or Schwinn for a bit less.

I concur with the mid 80's time frame, too.

That bike is a beast....that being said, I love it. It would be an awesome bike for after dinner summer rides around the neighborhood. Maybe Sunday morning to the coffee shop to read the paper. Rides under the 5 mile range.
The price is a bit high but not too far out of range if the tune up has been done and tires are good.


someone that's 5'2" or 5'3", so would 26" be a good size for them?

Yes it should fit them with the "step through" frame.

It's a $60 bike around these parts, providing it's in great shape and ridable. Maybe a little more if it's got new tires and a new saddle. You can buy a similar bike new for the same money he's asking. No it won't be old, but you might get alloy rims and a lighter bike which would make it easier to ride. Just because it's old doesn't make it valuable.

What kind of new tires are those? The $6 Niagara kind or the $25 Paselas?

They look like Kenda K40's. Figure $10/each shipped. They are fine tires. I run them myself and put them on the bikes I build.

Figure that bike has at least $25-30 worth of new parts on it and a $100 heavy tune-up including all bearings packed.

I don't think $125 is out of the question for the price. Sure you can find ones that haven't been worked on for $75 but if you don't know how to do the work yourself you aren't going to save much money taking a $75 c-list bike to your LBS for a tune-up over this one that you know the work has been done and carries a 30-day warranty.

I also agree that that bike looks to be late 70's/early 80's rather than the claimed 1960's.

The seller's prices seem to be uniformly high for what he has to offer. I think he is trying to ride the waning "retro wave" that the hipsters have created with the trend towards older steel frames for fixie conversions.

I doubt that bike sold for $100 when it was new (in the 80's)

I would pay $50-$60 for it.
At that price, it would be a cool bike for riding around the neighborhood.

If it were me, I'd go for the yellow Raleigh (for $75). It has a better quality frame, and is a nicer bike.

Also, this bike would be for someone that's 5'2" or 5'3", so would 26" be a good size for them?

Thanks for the help

The 26" refers to the wheel size, not the frame size. The frame design is a "step-through" type (normally aimed at the female market), and gauging from the location of the seatpost collar, it looks like it would be a close call for a smaller person. It would most likely fit.
To my eye, those actually look like 700c/27" wheels, but it makes little difference for the suitability of the bike for a 5'2-5'3 person.

Looking at the size of the head tube I would very much doubt that this is a 21" frame but more likely something like a 19". I also don't think those are 27" wheels but most likely the standard 3-speed 590mm. If it is 21" then it might not be suitable for a male who is 5'2" but women tend to have longer legs for their height so it is always possible. If it is indeed a 19" frame then it would most probably be fine.

I'm looking at the 21" Lady Sports 5' from me and this frame in the picture looks a lot smaller, especially the head tube length compared to the size of the pedals and the handlebar which looks REALLY wide in comparison.