djseebs

I've inherited a late-80's Trek 820 Antelope thats been sitting in a garage for a over decade and I'm debating whether to buy a new bike or try to rebuild this one. Derailuer & shifter is a mess, brakes are questionable, & tires won't hold, so I'd probably have to replace almost everything except the frame. Can anyone give me a rough estimate as to how much I'd have to spend to bring it up to par with current bikes?
I know this depends on how upgraded I want it. But assume I only need this thing for commuting, so nothing too fancy. Any advice, personal experience, or a push in the right direction is greatly appreciated.

spider-man

For a commuter, how about a fixed-gear? You could build a set of wheels for a couple hunnert, depending on whether you are using new or used parts.

What's wrong with the mechs, shifters and brakes? If they just need cleaning and/or adjusting, that's the cheapest way to get it on the road, but that's not the same as "up to par wirh current bikes."

RiDE

I personally don't think it's worth it. Maybe if you had spare parts laying around then it would be worth the trouble and it would be a good way to learn how to overhaul a bike. A new 820 is $199 at my LBS

dafydd

what do you mean by shifters & derailleurs are a mess and brakes are questionable? are they broken, or possibly just not set up correctly? some new tires and brake pads and a tune-up would be considerably cheaper than a complete overhaul and upgrade, and you may be happy with the results.

but before you do anything else, does the bike appear to fit you and will it suit your needs?

djseebs

The thing fits me great.
Brakes: Look pretty worn for a decade in a garage. They're adjusted just fine, but not as responsive as I'd like. It definitely needs new pads.
DeRailleurs: Since my original post, I've spent a few hours tweaking and adjusting. The best I've gotten is it can step up through most of the gears with no problems, but skips gears down-shifting. The original owner said it always did that...
I could live with this I guess, but like RiDE mentioned I'd like to practice tearing apart and rebuilding a bike for fun as long as I've got one. (without destroying my wallet). I suppose a tune-up at the shop is in order.
thanks for help guys

Doctor Morbius

If it needs more than tires and tubes and adjustments, don't bother.


Way way more than it's worth. You'll dump as much or more into it getting it on par with current bikes than if you just went and purchased a current bike. Unless it's a classic worthy of restoration, it won't be 1) worth your time and money & 2) worth anything to anyone else.


OK, I'm going to give you a little nudge in the right direction --> https://www2.trekbikes.com/Bikes/Moun.../820/index.php <-- There you go. That's your nudge. Like I said above, if it needs anything more than tires, tubes, perhaps some cables and adjustments, it ain't worth it. If all you need is a commuter you can buy a Schwinn Varsity on ebay for $10 to $20 that actually works! Many of them have been restored costing hundreds of dollars but they'll only bring in maybe $100. Get one of those.

dafydd

keep in mind that shipping alone on a varsinental could easily cost most than a few simple fixes on what he's got, and then there's no guarrantee it's works, and it's not terribly suited for all-weather commuting (steel wheels). not trying to nitpick, varsinentals can be a great choice for some people, just pointing out that ebay can be a real money pit for upstarts.

I think the best thing to do it go to someone knowledgeable you trust and get their assesment. if you want to start doing your own work, sheldon brown's and park tool's websites are great places to learn.

rmfnla

"Varsinental"; I like that!

Those Schwinns had the worst frames ever! We once stripped one to repaint and the tubes were spot welded w/ bondo slathered on to fill in the gaps!

I cannot imagine owning one of those POSs at any price.

The Trek would make a great bike to learn on. It sounds like the derailleurs, shifters & brakes all work; they probably just need a good cleaning. I bet new tires (& tubes) pads & cables would get it running again, and if you did the work yourself it would not cost much and you'd be learning something.

Don't get caught in the Upgrade trap...

dafydd

sure, they're heavy as all hell, but hey, they're crazy sturdy.

balto charlie

Well I was/am in the same boat. I could easily buy a bike that equals what I paid for the parts(not even counting the tools) for my recent rebuild. BUT I decided it was time I learned to do ALL the repairs. I just finished rebuilding the wheels with new bearings and grease. If I paid myself 1.00 an hour I would have broken even at best but now I can do it. This week cable and crank replacement and repack the BB. I am keeping the derailleurs but removed and cleaned them up. I commute almost everyday and figured that this is going to be a lifelong commitment. Between mnt biking, commuting and rec riding I had better learn or get a second job to pay for my bikes. FWIW: This forum, park online guide, Sheldon Brown will get you through the rebuild.

cs1

I just went through the same thing with my wife. She scored a real nice Specialized Hard Rock for $7 at a thrift store. By the time I replaced cables, casings, brake pad and innertubes we had $60 plus in the bike. Still, she was happy with her new find.

Tim

rmfnla

$67 for a good-running Hard Rock; good deal.

Happy wife; priceless!

Doctor Morbius

Fixing up an old bike with the intent of learning how to do repairs on an old beater (as opposed to your good bike) is one thing.

Fixing up an old bike with the intentions of having a good bike for the money is something else entirely. Any old bike can be fixed up with enough money and (more importantly) know how. The question is whether it's worth the time, money and headaches. There are always exceptions, however, and the Specialized Hard Rock just mentioned sounds like one of them.

rmfnla

You didn't mention anything about the Happy Wife.

You must be single; no wonder you're hanging out in the Adult Video Section...

Doctor Morbius

Well, how happy can she be with a Specialized Hard Rock? You didn't cover it with rubys and pearls did you?

Single is not so bad. It's affordable anyway.

jeff williams

A Trek Antelope is not a top shelf frame. Nice old heavy steel, maybe a commuter.
A bizzilion bucks won't make it on par.
Wasn't 'on par' when it was made.

My incomplete overhaul is over 600$ so far. When all replaced ALL, I'll est @ $1000.
I could have been satisfied with running whatever, but the idea for me was to make a GREAT ride.
There are frames worth spending $$$, a great bike will cost many buttons, new or built up.
The Trek could be a commuter, buy a newer\used bike and swap components.
A set of good wheels is the paramount point of performance.
One gear and good wheels and I'm happy.
Also, bikes can be simple and work great -even better.
Nothing wrong with centerpull canti's...6-7 speed drive?
Keep it.

The Trek was a budget bike....but the frame could run for years. I worked on my friends....o.k. not great. Lacked the advanced frame geometry for anything bold.

https://www.firstflightbikes.com/atb.htm old school, I ride my old horse hard.
Perhaps a better frame and consider this, for the XXX$$$ you'll get way better new.

But a good chromoly frame will always bust your bank. Now they are uncommon and possibly more expensive.
A new frame by my builder will be above 800$.
I have the entire build @ that price now...so all is not a lost cause. But I'm not riding a low end late 80's Truk.

I'd say no, buy new or find a higher Q frame to bother with.
If you can find a used bike for cheap with swap compatible drive\components....maybe.

liv_rong

Try to fix it yourself. If you have basic tools, it will be cheap and you will learn a great deal. A few suggestions that should help you:

-if you know how to adjust brakes and derailuers: take them off, clean them, lube pivot points and sand and grease posts. also lube pivot point on brake levers and spray into shifters

-new housings and cables(spray teflon based lube in housing before you put in cables)

-new tubes and rim strips if needed; new tires if they have cracks or or dry-rotted

-new brake pads, and clean off rims

These steps will make your bike perform much better, and if its just a commuter you should be in good shape. You may also want to try to true the rims if it needs it, if its not too bad you can just do it while the wheels are still on the bike, just use the brake pad as a reference point. Just make sure the wheel is in straight. All of this shouldnt cost you too much and it will definetly be cheaper than buying a new bike.
Good luck. You will be very satisfied doing your own work, and you will learn much.

By the way, donr get one of those old Schwinns, those things suck. They may be tanks, but you will be much happier with your bike if you just do some simple things. It will stand the test of time too. Who cares what it would be worth to someone else, it seems like you want to fix it up for you, not to sell and make a profit.

rmfnla

Huffys are affordable, too...

moxfyre

I have that bike (maybe a different year) and I love it... it's at home in my parents' garage and I ride it whenever I'm home.

I'm not sure what you want to upgrade exactly. If I recall correctly, mine has a 6-speed freewheel hub. What I would suggest is to upgrade to a modern 7-speed freewheel, and slap some cheap decent grip shifts on it (7 speed units are cheap from Nashbar). I dunno about the derailers, but I have an LX RD for sale cheap if you're interested If the canti brakes aren't broken, just get new pads. Then some 26" slick tires, those are pretty cheap from Nashbar too. Aside from those repairs, you're talking a whole lot of elbow grease, and probably some ball bearings and a few cables.

Advice: Don't bother upgrading to 9 speed, you'd have to rip out the rear hub, rebuild the rear wheel, and spread the frame, and it really isn't worth either the time or the money. 21 speeds is more than enough for a commuter.

Based on my extremely frugal habit of buying up cheap used parts, I'd say you could buy all the parts needed for $50-$100. Depends a lot on exactly what you need/want.

cruentus

I've stripped quite a few Varsinental frames, and I've never seen one that was "spot welded" nor have I ever found any bondo on one of these bicycles. Either the frame you were working on was not a Schwinn, or someone mucked it up before you got to it.

wasabiboys

Dude learn how to do it yourself save your money!

dbg

You're not really saving money almost any way you look at it. Tearing it down and rebuilding it (bottom bracket, headset, wheels/hubs, ders, brakes, cranks, etc) could mean spending more on the necessary tools than the finished product is worth. But if you like doing mechanical things and want to learn bikes, just doing it can be its own reward. I've rebuilt plenty PoS's ..and when they're done and running perfectly it's a great feeling. When all bearings are cleaned and greased, and all the mechanical parts are working perfectly smooth... you can hop on and enjoy that ride like no other. It's then I like to think the bike is working better than it ever has before, ever.

Then I hang it in the garage or give it away to someone.

bkrownd

You will not save money on this project. If the frame/fork isn't damaged it'll cost about $100 in parts and $50 in labor to get it fixed up to decent shape with a 6/7-speed rear at a decent bike shop. (if you can find one) Maybe a bit less to make it a single-speed townie bike. If it has lots of miles and you need new hubs/wheels, add another $100. (probably) Then it will be a decent old bike. Personally I'd prefer that over a new 820 with the crappy suspension fork. I'm fixing up my old beloved 820, and using it as an opportunity to learn how to do it myself. Money is not important, as far as I'm concerned. I just want to be able to ride my old friend again, just like in the old days.