Does the cost run beyond the value of the bike? That depends on what value we're talking about. Re-sale value? Way beyond. Value to you? Maybe not.

I do my own mechanical work, so that saves some money and adds some joy to the process, but I really like the bikes I've sent out for refinishing. My favorite example is this 1970-ish Stella.


(Not shown in this picture is the extremely cool custom/repro head badge that rhm made for me.)

I got a good deal on the frame from gugie, and I found some eBay bargains on the parts. I paid a substantial price for paint and decals. Altogether I've got around $2000 in this bike. I couldn't sell it for anywhere near that, but on the other hand, you couldn't buy it from me for what I've spent on it. I've got no buyer's remorse. It has all the glow of a brand new bike, and every bit is exactly as I want it.

Someone asked why pay to have a bike restored when you can buy really great bikes for much less money. That certainly has some merit. I'll put this out as a comparison -- 1984 Pinarello Grand Turismo with SunTour Superbe/Superbe Pro components. I bought it from a friend who wasn't as comfortable financially at the time as I was, so I paid his full Craigslist asking price -- $500. Someone who didn't know him could probably have talked him down to $400.



A lot of people on this forum would probably prefer this bike over the Stella. It was a great bike. Only a little bit of patina. Quite a bargain. I spent a bunch of money on parts to rebuild it like the Stella. It's all a matter of what you want.