bfrasersmith

First of all, thank you in advance for any suggestions on valuation.
This was built for me by David DiFalco, a protege of Bruce Gordon in Petaluma, CA
It was based on late 60's/early 70's French Constructeur style
I am forced to sell due to a disability. It is very nearly brand-new.

Frame Construction: Lugged/silver
Frame Tubing Material: Columbus SL Cromoly double-butted (vintage)
Fork Brand and Material: DiFalco custom (Columbus blades/Campy dropouts)
Brakeset: Paul Component Engineering Neo-Retro brakes, Dia Compe Aero Gran Compe levers
Shift Levers: SunTour friction bar end
Front and Rear Derailleurs: Shimano Deore XTR (1994 vintage)
Crankset: Velo Orange Grand Cru 110 Fluted Triple (24x34x48t)
Pedals: White Industries Urban Platform with Bruce Gordon toe clips
Bottom Bracket: Velo Orange Grand Cru
Rear Cogs: Shimano Deore XT 8-speed, 11-32 teeth
Chain: Shimano Deore XT
Seatpost: SR LaPrade Fluted
Saddle: Brooks Swift Titanium
Handlebar: Velo Orange Grand Cru (copy of Nitto of Tokyo) with elk hide custom grips
Headset: Velo Orange with SunTour cable hanger
Hubs: White Industries titanium axle
Rims: Velo Orange RAID, 700c
Tires: Panaracer Pasela White 700x28c
Spoke Brand: Wheelsmith stainless steel double-butted
Spoke Nipples: Alloy nipples
Fenders: Velo Orange Zeppelin 52mm
Water Bottle Cages: King Cage Titanium

One other thing I should point out is that it has a custom paint job (look closer at the head tube and down tube--those aren't decals!) This is the most gorgeous bike I have ever owned and it kills me to have to sell it!

SoccerBallXan

Excellent choice of paint and scheme.

bfrasersmith

Thanks for posting my photos on the thread SoccerBallXan. That was very kind of you.

pcb 

TL;DR: I think you're best off seeing if DiFalco and some of the outstanding high-end shops in the Bay Area can lend a hand selling this for you. Your best bet is interesting local folks with deep-ish pockets who know of DiFalco. DiFalco isn't well-known enough, and the component selection isn't high-end enough, to likely come very close to what it all originally cost you if you try to sell it on your own. Figure not more than $2k complete on an ebay auction. You could net a bit more parting it out, but that's a lot more work.

I'll start off by saying I'm really sorry to hear why you need to sell this, and hope you come through this all as best you can.

The frame and bike are lovely, clearly hardly ridden, and it's a style/type that, though not the best-selling thing in new road bikes these days, does have fans willing to spend good money on such nice steel. But despite those advantages, I do suspect the chances are high you'll lose a fair amount over what it all cost you.

To start off, I don't think DiFalco is a particularly well-known builder, at least nationally. He's not a well-known old-school builder like Sachs/Weigle/Gordon/etc, and I don't think he's a pretty well-known emerging younger builder like Bishop/Chapman/Vanilla/etc. Well-regarded regionally doesn't translate to top dollar outside of your region. The frame itself looks absolutely beautiful, but it's hard to get top $ for lovely paint and painted logos/headbadge from a builder that isn't all that well known.

It's nicely assembled, though only a few of the components are at the same quality level as the frame. That's not at all an issue in terms of how it looks (to me, anyway) or how it rides, but it does play a part in how much it might sell for.

The White hubs/pedals and the very clean XTR rder are the really cool parts. The Paul cantis and Brooks Swift Ti are solid high-end spec, not quite as exciting because they're not hard to find and aren't outrageously pricey. There's nothing particularly exotic about a whole bunch of Velo Orange parts, they're not something that gets a lot of high-end enthusiasts' pulses racing. And Panaracer Pasela tires are pretty low-rent for a frame like this that must have been several thousand $$$.

Whatever a new DiFalco frameset at that level costs new, I think you'll do better finding somebody in/around Marin who'd pay not a whole lot less that that for a complete, rideable bike, despite the parts spec issues. If DiFalco has a decently-long waiting list, even better for you. I don't know him at all, but I do know some friendly builders who will help sell used frames/bikes they've built for customers. It can't hurt to ask. Also maybe worth checking if American Cyclery, Sausalito Cycles, etc do any consigment selling.

And it's already been mentioned in your other C&V thread, including by me, but the fender lines on the bike really should be tweaked to show it as beautifully as possible.

bfrasersmith

Thank you for your very well thought-out critique of the bicycle, pcb! It gives me a much better understanding of what I have with this bike. The builder, David DiFalco, was a protege of Bruce Gordon, but now devotes 100% of his time to restoring automobiles from WWII and before. His shop is in the same building as Bruce Gordon's shop. From what I can observe as an amateur visiting his shop, he is extremely talented and very sought-after! This bike was a professional trade with him. Regrettably, 9 times out of 10, I rode my mountain bike and this sat on the rack unridden. I did ride it a handful of times on some long rides and enjoyed the compliance of the steel frame. It fit me perfectly. I also enjoyed just looking at the bike--there is something extra-special about a nice handbuilt bicycle and the attention to detail that went in to making it.

pcb 

You've got your finger on one of the greatest frustrations of my cycling involvement, the undervaluing of work from most every lesser-known US builder. There have been very talented builders crafting beautiful, well-made frames for many decades, whose used frames sell for less than many used factory-built production frames/brands. For those few Sachs/Weigle/Gordon-level builders, there are dozens of DiFalco/Stout/Mikkelsen/Mooney/Redcay/Kellog/Stowe/Lyon/Boi/yaddayaddayadda under-the-radar/regional builders whose ability is not reflected in the prices their frames fetch.

It's great when you're buying, but pains when you're selling.

Bruce Gordon wasn't well known for being compromising about things he cared about, so DiFalco working with Gordon for more than a decade says a lot. But DiFalco isn't all that well known, even/especially among enthusiasts, so his connection to Gordon doesn't add a lot of value. The only DiFalco-branded frames I could find doing a google image search for "David DiFalco bicycle" were photos of your frame. That unfortunately puts your frame in the running with all the other lesser-known builders, which sucks mightily when you're selling.