lostarchitect 

= 3

CroMo Mike 

I'm just a little curious as to why and how, when a contractor "finds" something of value on a job site, the something thereby becomes the property of the contractor, and title to the something can therefore be transferred to a friend of said contractor. And with such tainted title, can the friend legally sell the item?

oddjob2

Because in most cases, the building owner or fiduciary will have removed items of value or ask the contractor to save certain materials or fixtures. Furthermore, if a tenant leaves personal property at the real property, it will be considered abandoned.

lostarchitect 

If a client hires a contractor to gut a place, everything goes. If the contractor wants something, he keeps it. The client is expected to remove whatever they want first. There is no taint to that at all.

CliffordK

It really depends on what the job is.

It is not uncommon for part of the job to be "haul out the trash".

Assuming this is either a rental, or a house being remodelled for sale, or a house being remodelled following a sale, then I agree that usually the owner has already either sorted through the stuff inside, or chosen to get rid of it.

Some buildings are also managed by 3rd parties. Again, if the owner wants it, he would lay claim to it.

We don't know all the details of the job the OP is referring to, or what transpired between the contractor and the owner. If I was doing the job, I might mention to the owner. "Hey, I found a very dusty bike, does that go too", and let the owner (or the owner's representative) choose. One doesn't have to fill in all the details.

shawork

hey guys please try to understand.... the people who no have any idea about bikes . a richard sachs bike i s another regular bike... i didn't know the true value of my bike until i posted here in this website....so one of my best friend he doesn't care to gave this bike because is just a BIKE..... so please don make any wrong idea. i dont want to sell this bike any more. maybe in the future i will fix it... thanks all of you for your great comments..... see you guys......

CliffordK

Good luck with the project.

In a sense, that bike may be the holy grail of "barn finds".

It is likely 30 years old. If you look at the inside of the cranks, you may see some numbers with a circle, square, or diamond (or none at all) which can help you date the bike.

If the tires are glued on, they are "tubular".
If they have a bead, they are "clinchers".

Being "vintage", the bike is still usable, but it does change the perspective somewhat.

It may well have been sitting for quit some time, and just forgotten.

KonAaron Snake 

On ebay, from an experienced seller...cleaned and with the tape changed...$1500-$2000. You probably shouldn't expect that, but in a decent market, or shipped, $750 is the lowest you should consider taking.

Clang

I really want to read the craigslist ad he would write!

DMC707

A Richard Sachs bike is a very special bike --- it is not made of gold or anything, but it is handmade by somebody who is widely considered a modern master of the craft along with Ben Serrotta and a few others , and in the USA, not Italy

I cant tell you what to do with it, but it is a very nice find -- and a nice gift from your friend , even if he may not have known the difference between it and a regular Trek or Specialized

Henry III

I say from most of the general population it's just an old ten speed bike and think a lot of stuff like this got tossed when found. Same goes for anything people who don't follow a certain hobby and come across something special. Why the need to consider it stolen.

Get some degreaser, hose it down with and cleaner her up. Take her down to a shop and ask how must to get her back on the road. I say two hundred tops for a complete overhaul. Most of the time shop will include install labor with the purchase of their overhaul packages. That two hundred or so sounds like alot to drop on a bike you have no interest in but would make the bike more sellable...it's a Richard Sachs so along the lines of something with Carroll Shelby's attached to something auto related. It won't be hard to sell as it will sell itself because of what it is.

You could toss it on ebay and let it ride but selling something at Xmas time isn't the best but people always treat themselves to presents so who knows? Also Richard occasionally posts in the framebuilders forum as e-richie I believe.

big chainring 

What a great story. I work in the trades. People give me things or offer me furniture and other items. I totally get where this guy is coming from. Amazing what is sometimes discarded or left behind. And it's the Christmas season. Nice gift.

lostarchitect 

Absolutely. I am basically remodeling my bathroom with stuff that owners wanted ripped out.

exxongraftek

It's the way I got my first Exxon Graftek, 30 years after my first episode lusting after one...guy was paid to clean out a garage in Chicago, found the bike and kept it for years before selling.
Unfortunately many of the best bits were removed over the years to "fix" his kids bikes when they broke them. Somewhere out there, there's a Huffy with a set of Campy wheels and a Galli Ti rear brake...

3alarmer 

.
...to the OP ( @shawork ):

If you want to ask Richard Sachs about your bicycle (authenticity, age, history, original order.....stuff like that), he has an online presence as e-RICHIE at this link.

You have to join that forum to post a question, but with the proper information and photos, he will tell you what you have. He's a swell guy, and quite approachable in this way. I have one of his frames that I've been meaning to put new decals on and build up. Everything in its own time.

I grew up in D.C., so maybe I understand how something like this might have happened. Certainly your bike might have been stolen at one time, but who knows how long ago and under what circumstances. Don't let the bitter weiners get you down.