Hi everyone;

I've recently started riding again, I've really missed it. I've also been looking at Craigslist a lot just in case I see something special (mostly for touring bikes on the cheap). The problem is I don't know what the deals are and what to stay far away from when it comes to all the other bikes out there. It also seems that a couple people are posting a lot of the ads as the backgrounds of the photos are all the same, I'm guessing they are the ones trying to make money from it and to stay away from those bikes.

I want to get a bike or two at a time that I can work on, I used to be a mechanic and since I don't have a garage anymore, this would keep me wrenching a little.

I want to be able to get a bike and restore it so that someone else would be happy riding it. I don't want to make any money from it, but I don't want to put more into a bike than what it's worth when I have to sell it. That is where the problem lies. I just don't know enough about brands and the market of older bikes to know whats worth fixing and what to sell them for when I'm done.

If you guys could give me any hints I'd really appreciate it. What brands should I look for, what should I stay far away from?

When you restore a bike do you typically have to replace a lot of components, or do you mostly just take the bike apart and clean, lube, polish the parts? If you need to replace things, what are the most common components to replace besides seats, cables, tape, chains, tires, brake pads, etc.

I think it would be a great way for me to learn a bit about truing wheels and get better at adjusting derailers, etc.

I just don't want to be wasting money. I'm also a little scared I won't want to sell the bikes after, but I just don't have room to store more than two.

Thanks for any insight!