Originally Posted by
mongol777
So you missed it? Don't beat yourself too much - I see nice bikes popping up here and then very often for $50-100 range. Just yesterday there was nice Peugeot for $20. Looked rough but just needed scrubbing and clean up.
I would recommend to narrow down brands/models you like, tubing, geometry, etc; study this forum and get an idea on what is bike worth. This forum helped me so many times to get the right bikes for myself, my friends and occasional flip (to fund byuing more bikes
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Thanks a lot for the advice, much appreciated as a newbie!
The Bianchi would have been great because I'm in no position financially to pick up anything of that quality at regular prices...just from the research I've been doing I would've been at that guys doorstep if I'd seen the phone number - I'd emailed him and hit up bikeforum while waiting on a reply. Ah well, you live you learn.
That's a pretty good template of what I'm looking for - something under $100 hopefully at least part alloy to keep the weight down - and up until now I've just been trying to discern which brands you can more or less be guaranteed you'll at least be at a good starting point. Only having online sources to research, opinions vary wildly on brands and models so it's hard to tell. I've done some reading on geometry but it's a bit beyond me at this point without more real world experience to really understand the practical results of the differences.
I know at my price point it's unlikely but I figure if I had an idea of the brands and models that sometimes go for $100 and under I'd know what to keep an eagle eye out for. This summer I had a go on an acquaintance's road bike and I've caught the bug...I can tell it's something I'll really enjoy along with the associated tinkering. Any suggestions that might point me in the right direction would be amazing. Sorry for the mini-essay, thanks again!