billnuke1 

What are your plans for this knowledge? Collect? Flip? Ride? Restore? If I may be so nosey! What is "high end" to you?

pinch1967

billnuke1
I was just wondering what constitutes as a high end road bike. I have been collecting for a few years and was wondering what collectors look for when buying , selling or keeping road bikes . I understand the steel quality is very important and components also very important. I always wondered was there a difference in ride from high end to low end . but that a totally different topic ! it seem all collectors and riders are very passionate about there bikes and i have learned a lot from this forum !!

RubberLegs

Drool Worthy Bikes! None of mine are...I got back into cycling to keep my mind off the fact that the economy tanked and was KILLING me....Cycling HAS helped get my BP down a bit. My BEST C&V is probably my 87 Bridgestone 550...a bit above entry level for sure, but no grail bike. I Started with a 79 LeTour IV....SUPER LITE...which I knew wasn't the case...it was a good starter bike. If my Bridgestone was a couple (or 4) models up, it might be knocking on that door of High End...

Chombi

It's sometimes amazing though, how a lot of "entry and mid level" bikes can be made to ride/feel like "high end" bikes on the road (and sometimes even better) with just a change of a few choice components and a good set of wheels.....
Which sometimes blows a big hole on the technical qualifications list of what a "high end" bike is supposed be.....

billnuke1 

I have a large "collection" of bicycles. I have been collecting for some time. I'm partial to Motobecanes at the moment! I have a number of Bianchis. Some Japanese, some Italian. I also have quite a few Schwinns. There not many makes that I don"t have one, or some of! I look for bikes, but I'm not one to go onto E-bay and bid on a high end bike. I have my favorite rides all across the "collection". Not all of my high end bicycles are my favorite rides! Some of my Shoguns are darn nice rides! I have old 3 speed Raleighs that are very satisfying to ride...elemental, no drama.
I have some bicycles that are unbadged high end(expensive) bicycles that take my breath away when I ride them! Don't pigeon-hole yourself! I was asking the question to see what you were interested in. Bicycles are "beauty is in the eye of the beholder", "seat of the pants" things! Life is a buffet!

R3tired

hmmm. from one point of view, a high end bike is just an expensive one (when it was new). it may have been a high end touring bike, or a racer. from a C&V point of view, there are accepted brands that are "high end" but there are also a bunch of small builder high end bikes that only the Yoda's among us (and i'm not one) can identify. i don't think one can learn how to identify those in a few minutes or days or in one thread. that's the C&V journey.

billnuke1 

it's the journey...not the destination.

iab

I look for blue. Blue bikes are best.

Not this blue, it is a fine bike nonetheless, just off topic,




This blue,

Fahrenheit531 

It's been said several times already, but I will echo it because it's that important: FIT.

I got my first "real" bike about mid-summer this year. Centurion Pro Tour, 1978. Gorgeous bike. And too big for me. I tried to make it work, but finally accepted reality. Writing that CL ad, and then watching the bike leave, absolutely sucked. Heck, I turned a profit and it still sucked.

Make sure it fits. THEN start falling in love.

sced

Another avenue is to check out the expensive vintage bikes on Ebay and then figure out why they are so expensive. It's the top down rather than bottoms up approach to knowledge acquisition.

Here's a start.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/MARIO-CONFEN...item2a2ea00905

Chrome Molly

When reviewing bikes on CL, I have a list of immediate disqualifiers:

• Stem shifters
• Turkey wings (with certain exceptions)
• Certain names (the walmart ones, huffy, free spirt, columbia, mongoose, etc - those names depend on the decade as some that were good in the 70's/80's/90's are good no more)
• Bent forks
• Descriptions of "dents" etc
• POSTS IN ALL CAPS - scammer most likely
• No picture unless the rest of the description generates significant interest

Then I proceed to examine some specifics of the post:

• Frame material and maker of tubing (hopefully something by Reynolds, Vitus, Columbus, Ishiwata, etc, or homegrown like Miyata) - that also goes for aluminum, but different makers and grades
• What is the quality of the tubing in that maker's lineup for that year (budget, quality, top end)
• A custom frame from a known maker, or high end bike from a larger company (time to catalog research)
• Size of frame - if not my size then my interest in it is only for parts and possible flip, but lowers my interest greatly
• Quality of condition - pristine, touch up, respray (how much $'s do I want to sink into it) - does the seller sound like they know how to maintain a bike?
• Component group and level of components for that vintage - generally nicer frames sport nicer components also - shimano 600/ultegra or better, Campy Chorus or better, etc
• Matching component group or mutt - mutt does not disqualify, but a complete original can indicate low use or great care in maintenance
• Other nice things - quality seat, nicer tires, color, polished lugs,etc
• Is it what I want/need even if it's nice? Worth the effort if a project?

Finally I look at the "tone" of the post:

• Is the price unreasonably high, willingness to work on price
• Do they think their s*** is ice cream, and want top dollar for something that needs work or for common parts
• Does it say garbage like, "going to the bay soon if no interest" on a two month old post
• How to contact seller?
• Does the seller have bunches of posts, meaning are they a flipper even if not a scammer (then you'll sometimes get the dregs of whatever parts group they have on hand) - may not disqualify, but my guard goes way up
• Other respectability of the seller and ease of purchase hints - what else is shown in pic, etc

YMMV - consider it the bottom up approach

rootboy 

Go with what catches your eye.

jimmuller 

What exactly are you asking? What is your purpose?

Are you talking about a complete bike or just the frame? With a complete bike the components give a clue as to what the maker meant it to be.

If you want to find or build a superb rider, then fit is most important, followed by frame qualities and components, etc. If you want a nice bike that looks grand and is stylish but don't ride long distances, then paint might be important too. But a great rider can be ugly and still be great.

Once you have settled those issues you'll have a better idea how to apply all the greats answers you've gotten here.

redneckwes

I have been collecting for only a comparatively short time. (Since 2006). I bought a lot of crap, and some decent machines. I kept some real junk, and I let some nice stuff go.

Like art It's a life long process of learning to appreciate the differences. Crap can be pretty well disguised as a decent bike, and a nice machine can hide under the outward appearance of mediocrity.

Wulf

There are so many brands that make upper tier bikes. I look for particuler bikes from specific time periods. I dont think I would bother with a bike I could not identify. My holy grail is an Eisentraut A frame from the late 70s or 80s but I keep my eyes open for Gordons, Hujsaks from the same time period and a few others.

Bandera

High-end bicycle questions cannot to properly phrased in English, try again in Italian or French with the appropriate gestures.

-Bandera

randyjawa 

This is How To Find Vintage Bicycles (for little or even no cash outlay) and this is how to determine Vintage Bicycle Quality. Hope it helps...

mnmkpedals 

As a relative newbie myself, I second this-- about going for what catches your eye.

I have learned more about CV bikes (bike in general too) from the crappy ones I have bought than the better one's I've bought. One of the best things I have found about this since starting is that no bike has to be forever, and like someone up above said, it is about the journey. My "highest end" CV bike would be laughable I suspect to most experts on here and as long as I love it (the look of it and the riding of it) then good for me-- and because of the circumstances of how I found it, when I bought it, I'll never sell it for a host reasons that have nothing to do with its perceived in the marketplace. My advice would just be to jump in with a $20 garage sale bike that fits and "looks good" to you and then start learning why it is or isn't great. Learn to fix it up, ride it, and either keep it or move on. You'll be a wiser buyer the second time, and so on....