atariwhizkid

I have a chance to pick up a 34-year-old, 1-owner Schwinn Super LeTour from CL. I am going out to see the bike this weekend, and from what I've read this is a decent mid-level model. This bike would be an obvious upgrade from my current vintage bike, a 1980 Schwinn Continental, which, while very sturdy, rides like a Chevy Caprice with tank treads instead of tires. From what the guy told me on the phone, it's in pretty good shape, minus a ding he put on it a year ago. He said he used it for commuting and trail riding around his home.

I just started getting into classic/vintage bikes, and I have a fun time rebuilding them, though I'm completely oblivious to their value...

The guy's asking $99. This seems cheap to me, considering I overhauled and sold a crummy, spray-painted '73 Continental on CL recently for $65.

A couple questions: what components were on these things? Is $99 worth it?

atariwhizkid

By trail riding, I mean the C&O trail near his home in MD.

roccobike

Google is your freind. Try googling vintage Schwinn catalogs. You should be taken to a link that has the Findley collection of catalogs. You'll find the 1980 catalog in there and you can look up that bike. A 1980 LeTour should have alloy rims, an important component. If it does, that's a plus. If they are steel, I think $100 is too high. If you're really lucky it's a 1983 or 1984 LeTour. They had some really nice double butted, chromoly frames that have a great ride. If it's one of those, I'd grab it for $100.
Keep us posted as to what happens.
Hope this helps.

atariwhizkid

Thanks!

They guy is pretty certain he picked this puppy up in 76 and swears it's all original. We'll see. From the photos and compared to the catalog images I've found (thanks for the Googling tip on the Findley site), it seems to be correctly dated as the 1976 Schwinn Super LeTour 12.2, at least judging by the "flamboyant red" color, downtube shifters, etc. Looks like it has the alloy rims and Shimano 600. He also has one of those vintage-y rear lights with the generator thingy that rolls right on the rear rim.

It's in my nature to try to talk people down in price a little bit, and this guy seems to want to unload it.