Originally Posted by
ItsJustMe
Depends on if it can be made really whole again. There's no point in buying something new just to have something new.
The frame is
broken. A frame break is pretty much the end of the bike's life. Not too much you can do about it. Yes, it might be fixable but at what cost? $200 or $300? And if the top tube is broken, what else might fail next? If this were a unique bike...custom, important technology advancement, historically important...then it might be worth pouring money into but it's a good early 80's production bike. It's not really worth the effort.
Originally Posted by
ItsJustMe
I switched from clipless back to platforms+toe clips this year. I honestly haven't noticed any "de-enhancement" of my ride; seems pretty much the same to me. I'm not a racer, I'm just going to work and back.
There are other enhancements that have occurred since 1983 that make riding easier and more enjoyable. Clipless is only one of them.
Originally Posted by
ItsJustMe
As you can guess, I'd probably fix the bike, assuming that fixing it still left me with a safe, reliable ride. Again, why buy something new when you've got something old that you like and can be made whole for a fraction of the cost of a new replacement?
I really hate the "throw it away" mentality that we've developed in the last 30 years or so.
This is not a "throw away" mentality. I doubt, highly, that this frame could be repaired to the point of safe usability. At some point, fixing something becomes too costly to be effective and fixing something that has had a major problem and the 'assuming' that it will be safe could cost you far more...hospital stays aren't cheap
