joe_mn

i have a 91 raleigh peak mtn bike. its in great shape but the wheels are pretty worn. it has sun chinook rims, deore xt hubs. i found a set of NOS wheels on ebay for $160 and thought it would be cool to get new oem wheels. a number of posters replied i would be wasting money putting new wheels on an old bike. well, what are NOS parts supposed to be used for? on a brand new bike? can anyone here tell me what a good use of NOS wheels like these are good for? and the wheels are complete. new rims, spokes, hubs all exactly like i have. pretty cool to find 20yr old nos stuff.

bradtx

From a practical dollars and cents perspective, yes. Restorations aren't exactly practical, except to the restorer. If you want them, buy them.

Brad

joe_mn

ok, but my wheels are shot. or actually the rims are wasted. 1 buckled so wheel needs to be rebuilt. so pay someone to relace new rim and maybe new spokes? or buy a decent generic wheel for $50 each with cheapo non-xt hubs? or pay a little bit more and get the real deal oem rims? what does a good quality wheel cost? certainly not $20-30 dollars each.

Nitram612

If the price is right for what you get, I say go for it. It sounds like you want to ride it not flip it so what it really comes down to is paying for what you want.

1989Pre 

One thing that burns my @#$ is when someone tells me how much my bike is worth to me. Your Raleigh is fine. Don't let anyone put a value judgement on your ride. I've almost punched snotty bike mechanics who say something like, "Your bike really isn't worth it." (spending more money on upgrades on).
Those NOS wheels sound great! Nice find! What I would do, though, is keep those old Deore XT hubs, overhaul them at your leisure, and have them built onto some NOS wheels. They are too good to throw out.
Sun w/ Shimano for $160.00? Sounds good to me.

Paul

joe_mn

another ebay seller has a set of used nearly identical wheels. sun rims, deore hubs. $80 total plus shipping. the back wheel is xt hub but the front wheel has a dx hub. my front wheel is actually ok shape. lot less abuse since i weigh 220lbs. i did buy a set of used wheels last year and have been looking for nice replacements. yes, i did keep the rear xt hub.

Drew Eckhardt 

Learn to build wheels (Jobst Brandt tested _The Bicycle Wheel_ on his grade school sons thus demonstrating that wheel building takes patience but not an advanced degree. I read it, built my first set of wheels, and they stayed true until bent in crashes), lace a rim with identical ERD on using the existing spokes, or some other rim with new spokes (expect to spend $.40 - $.70 each for quality spokes).

$50 for the rim, $50 for a rear hub or $30 for a front, $13-$23 for spokes, plus labor ($45 - $90 depending on local wages) and markup.

Provide labor, rebuild your existing wheel, and it can be $75 for rim and spokes this time and $50 for just a rim next time, the next time, the next time... over the following decades (some guys have hundreds of thousands of miles on the same hubs and spokes).

catmandew52

My LBS charges $50 labor to lace a wheel, an $1 per spoke and nipple, so it's pretty close to $90.00 a wheel after I supply hubs and rims. Unless it's a special wheel, above and beyond what you can purchase off the shelf, I just by the prebuilt wheels they sell, for daily riders. Resrorations and/or resurections are something different and if you want a specific rim with a specific hub and stumble across them on e-buy for a price you think is resonable, jump on it. It's your bike, and your money.

Sirrus Rider

When dealing with bike mechanics (especially those from the big box stores) fixing bikes is secondary to their real purpose which is selling you on a new bike.

Sometimes (from a dollars and cents point of view) they are right as it would be cheaper to buy a new bike. However, often to get the same quality of what was a midline bike 20 years ago or style for that matter. (Anyone notice that Rivendell is making pretty much '80-95ish MTBs in the form of the Hunqepillar?) You need to spend more.

I rather spend $100 for a survivor and upgrade it and make it my own..