Classic and Vintage Bicycles: What's it Worth? Appraisals and Inquiries - what frame is this? ugo de rosa?

my neighbor is getting rid of his singlespeed and he's telling me it's a '91 ugo de rosa but it's been spray painted. can someone please help identify this frame for me? how much is this bike worth? he's selling it for $170

parts on the bike:
- cloud 9 seat
- origin 8 stem
- origin 8 brake levers
- origin 8 crank arms
- origin 8 pedals
- velocity wheelset
- tektro brakes

http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h358/kristonenicolas/83c71f26.jpg
http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h358/kristonenicolas/68b73fa4.jpg
http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h358/kristonenicolas/25deb035.jpg
http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h358/kristonenicolas/e3d2f7cd.jpg

if you need more pictures please let me know.

Awfully long wheelbase, fork rake and slack angles for any DeRosa I know of - but no matter what this thing is, because of the paint job and lack of headbadge, if you really wanted to turn it back into anything, it would take $$$.

I might give $100 for it - the components do have some value.

figured it might not be a de rosa. anyone know what frame it is?

It's not high-end. And it's certainly not a De Rosa. If Ugo heard that someone said it was, he would instantly drop dead so that he could immediately start spinning in his grave.

Are those little hearts brazed beneath the down tube? :lol:

Are those little hearts brazed beneath the down tube? :lol:

they are stops for cable clamps.

nishiki?

+1 I was going to guess Nishiki as well, bottom end Nishiki. Ugo? More like Yugo.

+1 If FG/SS is your preference, the parts have some value there. Of course, for a few dollars more you can get a brand new one with factory paint, in any size, and pretty much any color, from a variety of internet bike sellers.

I have seen those heart shaped cable stops on just about every brand of bike out there.

Dude obviously googled to find bicycles with hearts and decided he had a De Rosa. Of course, the De Rosas with the bicycle wheel logo are better.

Okay. Thanks guys. I'm certain it's not a derosa.

Any ideas on finding out if it's a nishiki or not and what year it is?

Okay. Thanks guys. I'm certain it's not a derosa.

Any ideas on finding out if it's a nishiki or not and what year it is?

Looks like it fits the Nishiki S/N format: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/390318-Nishiki-Serial-Number-Database

One guys opinion, but once you remove the headbadge, original paint and decal work, most of the lower end Japanese bikes from that era are interchangeable. Its more a question of what it was, rather than what it is.

Nishiki made some nice frames. Next thing I'd do is see if you can find out from the S/N what the frame tubing is. Maybe Randyjawa knows. If it is a nice db CroMo Tange for example, offer him 65$ and let him bump you up. Stop whenever it feels like you are losing interest. Unless the tubes are really first class, I'd get flighty at $100 as Ex Prez said. But I wouldn't hold out any hope of that being the case at all. It depends on how badly you may want the parts.

As wrk 101 says, 'what was it'? Tell the guy ... its a ghost with no pedigree other than the serial number. Perhaps he should have filed that off while he was at it!!!

From the looks of that nylon looking Shimano type BB thingy-puffer on the non-drive side (not even snug on the shell face) I'd say that this bike has had a very weird and tawdry history. Pull the seat post and poke a light in to see how much rust is there. Just my gut feeling. The parts ... the parts!

+1 I often buy bikes just for the parts. With a rattlecanned frame, I put a value of zero on the frame. But the wheels, crank, bb, seat post, stem, bars, tires, saddle, pedals, etc., all have some value. Do they have value to you? Me, some of those parts would have value, so I would pick it up for that. If the seller wants more, no problem, perhaps someone else will put a higher value on it, and I move on.

Now if you want this as a complete bike, then just compare it to what you could buy a brand new SS/FG from bikes direct and all of the rest of the internet sellers. I would discount from what I could buy a new one for, as this bike is not new.

An old generic frame with a rattlecan paint really just has minimal value. But if you want it to ride as a complete bike, then that frame is fine for that service and has value for you! Beware of the build, as pointed out above.

Also, as a point of reference, the Nashbar Hounder is on sale right now for $175, and then this weekend, you can take an additional 15% off (putting it less than $150). And the Nekkid 3 is $200, less 15%, making it $170. New SS/FG bikes have gotten really, really, cheap. So buying a sketchy one with crappy paint for the same money, is questionable.

Usually a De Rosa will have his heart logo on the top of the fork lug and "DEROSA" on the top of the seat stays. These are cast into the lugs and paint will not eradicate them.