casesensative

Was looking to maybe pick this bike up off someone on craigslist. Looking for a good commuter to scoot around town on and do some light riding on some paved trails in the area. No more than probably 15 miles in a single day. Is this a good price on this bike? What should my offer be?

Rare Trek Fast Track 54cm Road Bike


Thanks in advance,

AngryFrankie

That should be great for riding around town. Probably true temper tubes, Exage, not too nice to lock to poles. those tires look shot which give you a reason to talk him down. If I suddenly had no bikes and needed one to get around, I'd buy that. Point out the rotted tires and ask if he'd do more like 140.

bikemig 

+ 1. The bike is near the top end of what it's worth and you'll need to factor in tires (and other consumables that will need replacing) to the price.

Kevindale

Make sure it fits you. The seller has listed a rather generous size range. If you're 5'9" or above, it might be small for you, depending on your leg and torso length. It looks like the tires hold air, so you should be able to do a test ride. Bring a bike pump in case the tires are low.

Clang

Here's the specs for a '96. 1996 Trek 420 - BikePedia

For a bike with plain gauge Cro-Moly main tubes and hi-ten stays that was $450 new (and needs new tires), I think this is overpriced. I'd try $120.

When you say commuter I immediately think of touring bikes.

Nashbar Toure MT - $250

Nashbar Toure MT




If you're looking for something faster, this 1992 Paramount Series 2:

Paramount series 2PDG - $200 (Tampa)

Paramount series 2PDG

rumrunn6

$200 for downtube shifters? you sure you want that? I think I got my bike with integrated brake/shift levers for around $300

mstateglfr 

Road bikes with downtube shifting sell for over $200 all the time around me. Midlevel bikes at that. They do cap out, say $275ish as a totally general cap, but they certainly sell over $200.
I bought my Miyata 912 for $325 and it had downtube shifters at the time. I still think it was a great deal since I havent seen one since in my size with the offerings it had.

rumrunn6

I guess my point was the price difference isn't great so just be sure you choose what you want, cuz the riding experience is significantly different. at least it was for me. was psyched to get a bike w downtube shifters cuz it was a road bike, but then later when I got the other style, I was surprised how much more I liked it. if I had known my preference earlier I could have skipped the former

StarBiker

I priced my Trek 1000 Aluminum at $120 because it needs tires, and possibly a rear derailleur.
People do like to get carried away on CL for under $300 bikes.

casesensative

Thanks for all of the helpful responses. I actually started thinking along the lines of @rumrunn6 and decided I think I would just enjoy a bike with integrated shifters more and have a better time riding so I just broke down and shattered by budget and ordered something new. I got the 6ku 16 speed Highland bike:

https://www.fixiecity.com/products/6...nt=33438894794

I actually wanted the black version called the 'del ray' but they are out everywhere with no notice of when restock will be, so I just got the ugly grey model and they gave me a bit of a deal on it.

It seemed like it was pretty good on specs, and I liked the styling of it (other than the grey color), so hopefully it turns out to be a good bike for what I intend to use it for, gonna take it to a local bikeshop to have them put it together proper and get a rear rack added to it...

Thanks for all the tips and I'll let ya know how it turns out. I figure the paints gonna get beaten up fairly quick in the florida weather anyways, so eventually I can just get it painted a better color...

Cheers!

rumrunn6

uh oh, hope you like brifters! hahaha I think it's nice looking, good color for Florida! jealous it comes with fenders! one tip about new bikes I learned here, have the pro check/tension your spokes out of the box, then again after the 1st 100 miles. it's especially true for heavy guys like me. best of luck! when do you get it?

TugaDude

Glad you shared that link. Looks like you found a gem. DB 4130 and brifters for $400.00 is pretty sweet. Let us know how it is when you get it.