Blackdays

Lately, I've really found myself wanting to get a vintage steel bike that I can ride around on around town/run errands on (my heart really wants a Bianchi!).

However, scouring Craigslist and local thrift stores isn't yielding any substantial results for me. I have a very small frame (I used to ride a 50CM Felt F3), and it seems like all of the bikes I'm finding are 56CM+.

Are smaller just this hard to find? Or am I just running into some bad luck here.

rccardr 

Smaller = harder to find in vintage steel. You may luck out on CL, but I'd also suggest eBay. Bigger market = more opportunity.

roccobike

Smaller bikes are harder to find and when you find them, they are more expensive. It's logical. My ideal frame size is 54-56cm, I can ride a 58cm with a little adjustment. A 59cm is out of the question. However, I started my return to road bikes riding a 49 cm Ross. I currently have a 50cm Bianchi that I ride with a set back seatpost and a stem from a hybrid to push it up and out.
You can make a bike grow, but you can't shrink a large frame.

septacycles

Be patient... many craigslist add do not have the size listed and the owners do no know how to measure. If it looks close... contact the seller and ask what the size is or tell them how to measure the bike frame. Try posting to your local craigslist bike section... wanted 50 cm vintage steel road bike. good luck

rccardr 

ANd...have you checked the For Sale forum on this site? BigBossMan has a VERY nice 52cm Specialized Allez for sale at a more than decent price. Sure, you're in Pittsburgh and he's in CA, but that's why they invented shipping companies.

rekmeyata

There are some areas of the country where you can find good bikes in garage sales, Craigslists, and thrift stores but not where I live, unless you consider old sears bikes good bikes! E-Bay is the only place to go, but they will sell for more then a find from one of the places I listed.

wrk101

+1 Small bikes are harder to find, and command a hefty premium. I pick up any small bike I can get my hands on. Less than 5% of what I find is 50cm or smaller. Back in the day, riders were sized onto bigger bikes. My 1975 Peugeot U08 was a 24 inch frame, with a 34 inch standover. I have a 31 inch bicycle inseam, so do that math.

And when I do find smaller bikes, they tend to be on the lower end (I do not pick up entry level bikes). The last mid grade vintage small frame bike I had was an 18 inch Trek 400T Elance, 531 main tubing. Buyer drove 4 hours to pick it up.

So if you are seeking a small frame bike, I would cast a wider net, be prepared to drive a distance, watch Craigs List not just in your area, but nearby towns, be prepared to launch: buy now, research later. And of course watch ebay as well. I routinely watch Craigs List from 160 miles away (one way) and closer.

90% of what I find are in the 54cm to 60cm range.

+1 While you can make adjustments to a smallish bike to fit, you are not going to make a bike that is too big smaller.

Poguemahone

As you've been told, there is a premium on smaller bicycles. It can be fairly high, and competition for them can be fierce IME. They are, however, out there. I seem to find a good number of them in the 50cm range. But I can sell them pretty much imediately, and since I take a 62cm, they don't stay in my care long. There's no way to make them fit me.

Much of the advice about broadening your search given here is wise. I would add that you should talk to friends and aquantances about your need for a bike. You will be surprised by what folks have in their attics/garages that they haven't touched in a while. A bit of networking helps.

In addition, use the search feature on CL. Search the yard sale section for the following terms: "bike" "bikes" "bicycle" "bicycles". Yard sale stuff tend to be cheaper than stuff in the actual CL bikes section. However, be prepared to make a reasonable offer if the seller actually has something and knows what it is.

rhm

For all the talk of a premium on smaller bicycles, I rarely find what I'm looking for in a 60 cm size. There's a bell curve in people's sizes, and the people in the middle of that curve have the most/best bikes to chose from. Move away from that in either direction, and the supply seems to dry up.

Be patient. You'll find it.

karrar

there is a 52 cm bianchi on the DC craigslist

Bheleu

Try this: https://bike.jaxed.com/cgi-bin/bike.c...ye=&submit=+GO+