AlmostGreenGuy

You don't find the grail bike.



I honestly didn't know what my grail bike was until I had it and rode it. After years of buying various bicycles, a friend actually gave it to me when they cleaned out their basement. I pulled the bike out of the back of her truck, in the parking lot at work, and was instantly in love. It was glorious and beyond compare. The bike was my favorite bicycle color. It was even the right size. I think the fact that it was a friend giving it to me was a large part of it. She was entrusting me with something that had been very dear to her husband, and she knew that I wouldn't just turn around and sell it on Craigslist, and I wouldn't let it fall into a state of disrepair. She wanted it to be owned by someone who would actually use it and take care of it.

That first ride was game changer for me, after riding more modern bikes for years. The ride was so smooth and comfortable and relaxed. Almost effortless. No twitchy steering. Easy hill climbing. Buttery smooth gear changing. Bumps in the road almost completely disappeared. My perfect bike.

Kilroy1988 

That looks like a great Motobecane, but how can it be the right size if you have to have six or eight inches of seat post and such a long and high stem on the thing? It looks like you can easily ride a frame 4-5cm taller than that...

AlmostGreenGuy

I have extremely long legs and a short torso. So a smaller frame and a long seat tube is about as good as it gets for me on a vintage bike. The stem is actually a bit long for me, which will change after cycling season ends. The plan is to change out the stem, move the hoods down a tad on the bar, recable the brakes, and wrap some leather bar tape.

Kilroy1988 

AlmostGreenGuy

Yeah. My legs are almost as long as yours, but I'm only 5'9"!!!

I figure that I can always lengthen the seat tube and raise the stem for a custom fit. It's not so easy to shorten a top tube.

St33lWh33ls

Bad Lag

If you search for "Rolls" and "bicycle", you get lots of handlebar tape.

cdmurphy

You call that long legged?? I'm 5'11", with a 35 1/4" inseam. I agree - In a perfect world, I would want tall frames, with proportionally very short top tubes, and shorter stems. Here in the real world, I've had very good luck going with AlmostGreenGuy's route of smaller frames and taller stems to get the same effect. (A big thanks to Nitto for their Technomic Deluxe stems)

Here is my Grail Bike: A 58cm 1976 Centurion Semi Pro. I used to have a 61cm Pro Tour that fit identically, other than the taller top tube. Ironically, I prefer the ride of the Semi Pro, even though the stem makes it look a bit too short for me.

Rollfast

Nope, the French mocking you from their castle is not worth it.

repechage

I had a fist full of dollars ready. Finally opportunity arrived. Bought plenty of near grails along the way.
Turned down one even, the money had been spent earlier. Owner asked for a renewed offer 20 months later after I made a serious run.
So it goes.
Actually, kind of happy that one did not pan out. One can have too much capital in these machines.

The Golden Boy 

I got my Trek 720 by sort of absentmindedly searching CL. Fully knowing I would either find something not my size, a stripped one that was not my size with and obscenely high price or the hybrid with the same model number. To my dismay, there was one- my size, the price was fair... but it had been posted for a day... I just accidentally happened to have the money available- I called, just for giggles, and bought it.

I'm not going to call it a "grail," but we'll go with "lifetime bike."

He's got huge, sharp-- eh-- he can leap about-- look at the bones!

revcp 

Good things seem to run in twos for northerners. I'm just in the process of picking up a Trek 720 as well. I've been on the lookout for a Miyata 1000. Found one on CL my size. Paint job was rough--would have required stripping and powder coating or painting--and the (2nd or 3rd) owner had put on a mish mash of newer mid level components, so the frame was the only thing of value. Wasn't sure he would come down from his $600 asking price, and I would have needed him to come down significantly, but I made an appointment to go see it. That afternoon I stumbled across, also on CL, a 1985 720 in my size with a mint condition paint job and thoughtful upgrade on wheels, RD, bottom bracket, etc. It had the full complement of the original racks--front and rear, plus front lowrider--in the dark blue. My hope was to find a frame for a rebuild, but this was just too tempting, and the price, although high, was no more than what I would have spent on a frame, strip and powder coat, wheelset, components, racks. So, yes, sometimes the grail finds you.

jimmuller 

The tough part about finding a grail bike is deciding what it would be, or recognizing one when you see it.

Bianchigirll 

300# Gorilla

This could be somebody's Grail bike
https://www.shopgoodwill.com/Item/55520847

squirtdad

your frame dies, and you remember a forum member had a frame set of a grail ish nature and you check to see if they still have it and are willing to part with it

Kilroy1988 

I've secured a rather typical frame recently, and realized that it is probably a perfect candidate for modification/paint work to turn into something akin to my dream bike.

It won't have rare or flashy components, nor will it be worth the labor or financial investment as far as a turnaround is concerned, but it will absolutely be my own... And I realize that that is probably a large part of the equation for me!

I'll essentially be taking a 1973 Raleigh Super Course frame with Capella lugs and turning it into something like this Carlton Sprinter from the 1962 catalog (though with a more dynamic paint scheme):

https://farm5.static.flickr.com/4716...033d36c7_b.jpg

-Gregory

satbuilder 

Best way I've ever found if finding a grail bike is to buy a bike and be absolutely broke after the purchase.

Ten minutes later the grail bike pops up