cradduck

I am looking for suggestions on a vintage (or "older" if you are sensative) steel frame road bike to do my commutes in the near future. I have no real idea what constitutes a good vintage bike.

I grew up on an old Univega from junior high all the way up till my last year of high school and I loved that bike. It never failed me and I think my parents picked it up from a garage sale.

The main thing is that it is upgradable. I like a lot of the older stuff like the friction shifters, but the stems, wheelsets, drop bars, and brakes could almost always be improved on.

Sammyboy

Well.....I have a 70's Falcon Westminster. It came free (from Freecycle), with a busted freewheel, a lot of dirt, rusty chrome forks, and suicide levers. So far:

I put on a rusty chrome wheelset - for unstealability
Replaced the suicide levers with some with hoods from my parts bin (you need a parts bin - then kerb finds can be stripped and the parts kept - you'll never be sorry)
Rewrapped the bars with cork tape
Replaced the pads and brake cables
Cleaned off the rust from the forks

I've put about 2 hours, and $15 into it, and it's a lovely ride. The brakes aren't as good as I'd like them to be, but alloy rims and kool-stops would probably cure that. I've got panniers on it how, and it does everything I want, and I sometimes find myself wanting to ride it instead of my Gazelle Trim Trophy for fun rides, as well as for commuting. Look for something in 531 (because then you know it's reasonable quality), and with decent components.

CigTech

I got a 1989 Peugeot PB-14 that I picked up for $10.00. I have not done anything to it so far as upgrading it. I have put new tires and tubes on it and a rear rack and Trunk and repainted it.

mihlbach

As far as frames go...fit is priority #1. After than look for something that is good steel, such as Reynolds 531, and with holes for fenders and such. Japanese brand scan be found for cheap but their high quality is often overlooked. Decent frames from 70's or early 80s are the most versatile frames ever. They almost alway seem to have holes for fenders, can accomodate bigger tires, have horizontal dropouts if you want to go singlespeed or fixed, made of steel so you can cold set the frame if you have too, and on and on.

squeakywheel

- Cheap.
- Bike store quality name brand with CroMo steel tubes. I wouldn't insist on Reynolds 531 or double butted tubes for a commuter.
- Right size for you.
- Eylets at end of fork and by rear dropout for fenders / racks.
- 700c Aluminum wheels. 27 inch Aluminum are OK, but 700c is better. Don't get steel wheels unless you plan to scrap them.
- Horizontal dropouts if you want to convert to single speed
- 68mm English bottom bracket. American, Japanese or Taiwan built bikes certainly have this. Most English ones do (at least later model ones). I would measure the BB on a French and Italian bike before buying it. Walk away if it isn't 68mm.

walterk46

If you come across any "vintage" steel Schwinns, here's a quick spotter's guide:
--No lugs, oval head bage = made in Chicago. Bomb-proof, but not the easiest to upgrade due to non-standard sizing of components, such as stem, seatpost and bottom bracket.
--Lugs, round head badge, "Schwinn Approved" sticker on seat tube = imported. Japan-sourced bikes were made by Panasonic, Taiwain-sourced bikes were made by Giant. Initially, Schwinn bought from Panasonic, then moved lower-cost bikes to Giant and only bought the upscale models from Panasonic. Generally, these are good bikes and have standard sizing and are upgradeable.
--Mississippi-made Schwinns--don't know much about them.

mihlbach

How does 4mm difference in diameter make 700c better thatn 27"?

squeakywheel

Just variety and availability of tires. I have 700c tires on one bike and 27" tires on another. Both work fine. I can't just go to my LBS and buy 23mm wide tires for my 27" wheeled bike. I can for my 700c bike.

caloso

You could do a lot worse than a fine old Trek. Built in Wisconsin of Reynolds 531 or True Temper steel: Light, solid, easy riding.

mrhedges

There really is a ton of old road bikes from the 80s that can be easily converted to commuters. I Ride a trek 400 road bike from the late 80s and are working on building up a simple cheap commuter for my roomate out of a schwinn world frame and a touring/commuter for myself out of a nishiki both of these bikes were not high end when they were new but were still built out of quality parts so will function well. Most bikes from the 80s seem compadable with current parts and on the plus side there isn't a hold lot of demand for these bikes because they haven't became collectable

umpadumpy

Find another Univega...they're like weeds around here

marqueemoon

Pretty hard to go wrong with anything Reynolds 531 - unless it's French threaded (Gitane, Peugeot, etc...).

I would also look for something with caliper brakes that take a recessed hex bolt (the modern style). Centerpulls generally work well, but replacing them could be tricky.

Mid-80's on is what I would be looking for. If it has brazed on downtube shifter mounts it should work with most modern parts. A steel frame with 126mm rear spacing can easily be reset to 130mm. It would be tougher with a 120mm frame, and if it's that old you will probably have some compatability issues if your want to put modern parts on it anyway.

80's-early 90's stuff is nice because nobody wants it so it''s cheap. Indexed downtube shifters are great.

mihlbach

Oh yeah..well thats definately true, although there are plenty of choices still out there for 27" tires, but not as many choices as 700s and definately harder to find. But otherwise, it makes little difference, functionally if you are riding 27" or 700c.

squeakywheel

I ride both. Wouldn't walk away from a good deal on a nice 27 inch wheeled bike. I paid $15 for my mid 1980's Raleigh 12 speed (since converted to SS). Would be sort of nice to put studded tires on it for this winter, but don't think they come in 27". Not complaining. I knew that when I bought it.

squeakywheel

+1 on the indexed downtube shifters. My 1995 Bianchi Premio has a 7-speed rear derailleur with indexed shimano downtube shifters. Works great.

Um, I won't brag about how cheap I got the Bianchi because I don't think it was a bargain. It's in really nice condition and I bought it used about a month ago at the LBS. Someone had traded it in. OK, I'll tell. I spent $250 for it. I think list price was $500 in 1995. Anyway, it fit me and I liked it. Kind of an impulse buy. It's the most money I ever spent on a bike. Oh well, I'm happy. It'll last forever. The old steel bikes might not be as light as modern high tech ones, but they are sturdy.

Edit: Oh, forgot this was the commuting forum. My premio doesn't qualify as a good commuter because it doesn't have fender / rack eyelets at the fork ends and dropouts.

Oh, and by 1995, Bianchi had gone to 68mm English BB threads. I measured just to make sure.

godspiral

in a 20+ year old "off-brand" bike, would choosing a lugged frame be safer/stronger than a welded frame?
is lugged quality and durability more predicatable than welded?

YamacrawJ

Graduate from School of Hard Knocks Checking In: Realize that when you get a vintage bike, you may be getting vintage non-hooked rims. I did. When I wanted to replace my tires with Armadillos to increase flat protection, I wound up replacing rims also - to get hooked rims. The old rims couldn't handle the high psi's that Armadillos need to thrive. My Commuter: Motobécane Nomade - a pretty little mixte from Madison, WI, circa '80s if I can judge from the bike licenses. $5.99 from Goodwill - love at first sight.

Lamplight

I love all three of my old road bikes very much, but the only one I'd consider commuting on would be the Bianchi because it's so solid. Problem is, it doesn't have fender or rack eyelets!

squeakywheel

Good point. The old unhooked rims are fine if you use them with wider, low pressure tires. Were there ever any unhooked 700c wheels?

For unhooked 27" wheels, just stick with 27 x 1 1/4 tires and don't inflate over 85 pounds. I was riding with a guy a few weeks ago who flatted on his 27 x 1 1/8 tires. As we rode, his tires got hotter. The sidewall swelled at one point and the bead of the tire slipped over the edge of the rim. He had them inflated to the tire's spec'ed 105 psi. As he was changing his tube, I noticed there wasn't a ridge on the inside of the rim to hook the tires bead.

ollo_ollo

A quick way to spot a quality frame is to check the rear dropouts. If they are forged & have axle adjusting screws it is probably a pretty good frame as these features are usually limited to mid to high quality frames. Good frames don't always have the screws but I have never seen them on cheap frames.
Here's a picture(bike is a Motobecane Grand Jubile)