Originally Posted by
wrk101
Somewhat funny, but I am in Illinois right now visiting family. Picked up a nice set of 700c wheels and tricolor drivetrain, complete with STI, in Indy on the way up. Then in Illinois, I picked up a 1981 Schwinn Super Sport, came with concave rims and Phil Wood hubs! Both sat on CL for at least a week.
Every time I visit Illinois, I come back with bikes, last trip I got five. If you look aggressively, there are some nice deals out there.
I wish I had more time this trip, but it's two days and then head back.
Having picked up quite a few bikes in IL over the years, the further away from Chicago you get, the better the deals!
I just took a look at Chicago CL. Three or four complete bikes that would make great donors, plus a couple of nice wheel sets.
I think right here in the city the deal get snapped up pretty quick, lots of bike enthusiasts here. Other problem is that i am not experienced enough to know what I should be looking for. I have a raleigh, so I have been reading all about raleigh's lately and know a lot about them now. But i still have a lot to learn when it comes to Schwinn, bianchi, fuji, Colnago, peugeot, etc, etc, let the list go on. For example for some reason I have always had it in my head that schwinn was a sub par brand. but after browsing this site for a while, I know thats not the case, but there still must be specific makes with in the brand to shoot for right?
I need to figure out a good way to quickly teach myself these things. I really like the idea of buying a bike for about $30, and getting a bunch of great parts out of it (Like a wheel set).
I think i will start checking the bike section of CL daily, just looking at the newest postings and then googling the bikes or parts to get an idea of what they are all about.
Funny thing is that I havent even finished working on this bike and i know I want to start another one right after its done. I have been thinking it would be fun to have a single gear bike too. Thats not a bad plan for the second bike, see how many deals I can score and how cheap i can keep the whole build!