Originally Posted by
Biketiger
Are prices for vintage steel roadbikes going down? For example, a nice 1980 original Richard Sachs 10 spee complete with campy grupo recently sold on ebay for $765. True just one sale but it was a 10 day auction not buy-it-now.
We know condition is king but how important is flashy paint job? The bike was a maroon brown with yellow decals. But it got me thinking, has the value for old road bikes decreased over the past decade? If so, why?
Is everyone now so accustomed to carbon fiber and integrated shifters, and definitely not down-tube shifters, not to mention non-aero brakes, and the inferior freewheel, 27" rims and don't even talk about tubulars. I'm NOT dissing these bikes. I have one - an 83 Trek 630 - albeit with 700c wheels & better brakes. I know that the most coveted examples - classic italian race frames, ornate lugs and the like will always command high prices but has the overall market softened?
Has technology & taste made classic roadbikes built in the 1970s and 80s and similar (like steel 26" mtn bikes) the way of the film camera? Cool but not what most people with money to spend on bikes are going to pay too much for? Maybe the folks who fancy these bikes already have one or two? People are into many different types of bikes today, road, gravel, mtn, fixie, cross that the room for 10 speeds has shrunk? What do you guys think?
Well if look at sold auctions on efbay all the other RS frames and bikes are holding their own just fine. A new 2019 frame sold for 5k so.......
That being said, many other iconic, coveted, rare, higher end bikes that used to bring good $$$ do not these days.
The one you point out was imo an anomally. Nothing wrong with the color, likely root beer brown, very popular back in the day as were the yellow decals that are on it.
That was a very sharp bike, and a smokin deal.
In general all or most of the things you cite have something to do with it, its a fickle thing at best to begin with, getting more so by the day currently.
