nswartsell

Hey all. Wondering if someone out there might be able to help me replace my fiancee's bike.

Her dad bought a 54 cm orange Crescent bicycle with some nice lugs and Reynolds 531 tubing in the 1970s. He passed it down to her when she was 13 and she's ridden it nearly every day since.

A couple weeks ago a driver ran a red light and hit her. She's ok -- bruised up but she fell away from the car, thank goodness. Her bike wasn't so lucky. It ended up under the car as it sped away. We have not been able to locate it.

On top of the trauma of being hit by a car, she's just heartbroken her bike is gone. It means so much to her. There is no way to replace it, but I'm trying to do the next best thing and locate another one. If anyone has any leads on a 52 or 54 cm orange Crescent (the Reynolds version with lugs, not the lower-quality version), I'd gladly pay a very fair price for the frame or a complete bike. We're in southern Ohio, but I'd pay for shipping in most cases.

Thanks for reading this and for any help you might be able to give.

d2702

Welcome to the forum nswartsell. Very glad to hear that your fiancee is okay, car/bike interactions are always scary.

I have seen Crescent bikes appear on local sale sites (craigslist, offerup) so they are out there. I would start with local sale sites, on some of them you can save searches so you get alerted if your search gets a hit. There are also some sites that help you search nationally across those sites if you're for shipping something. The one I like is allcraigslistsearch. You may have to be patient but I personally enjoy the hunt.

In the meantime you might want to find her another ride, there are lots of good 80s steel bikes out there that aren't that pricey, maybe pick one of those up and get her back on the road until the perfect Crescent appears (is there a term that means "bike soul mate"?).

Another avenue to check is the for-sale forums on this site, it's possible if you put a request out that someone has one and is looking to N-1.

due ruote 

Oh man, that is tragic, but it sounds as though there's much to be grateful for. Bikes can be replaced; fiances, not so readily.
It might be helpful to post your location. This is a pretty friendly forum, and I'm sure if someone can help, they will.
Good luck.

nswartsell

Thanks for this info and the kind words! I wasn't aware of allcraigslistsearch so I'll give that a try. I've beaten the bushes locally but I'd shell out for some shipping if someone across the country had one in their basement.

nswartsell

Absolutely. Very glad she is okay. We just had a cyclist die in a hit and run here a few weeks ago so it's pretty fresh how tragic these things end up sometimes. Part of all of this is showing her how grateful I am for her and that she's okay.

Good call on the location -- Gonna update the post with that info. Also going to stipulate I'm willing to pay for shipping as long as it's not from Antarctica or something.

Mad Honk 

As a rider whose handmade Plantenga was run over by a hit and run type of accident. I have a Masi in 54cm that I bought two years ago. It had some damage to the finish on the fork which was sent to a specialty chrome shop in Indiana for re-chrome and is ready for a build. The frame is blue and is in good shape. The model is Nuevo Strada. I have decided not to keep it and had considered putting it up for sale here in the forum. If she might be interested or if you might want to get it for her as a placeholder until the correct frame can be found. I have well over $600 invested but would give you some deep discounts to get her back on a bike. If you are interested gimme a call @ 812-336-3283 I am in southern Indiana. Smiles, Mad Honk

alcjphil

I feel her pain. Not the physical part which could have been so much worse, but the loss of a treasured reminder of her father which cannot be replaced even if you can find an identical bicycle. Does a replacement have to be an identical bicycle or one that evokes the experience of riding her father's bike. What does she want? She obviously loves cycling and should have another bike as soon as possible. Even an exact replica of her father's bike will never be her father's bike. Talk to her and find out what she actually wants as a replacement.

Doug Fattic 

Another option to consider is a "tribute" Crescent frame. It is possible for us framebuilders to make and paint a frame to look like the original. In fact it would turn out better but of course be a lot more expensive. My colleague Rich Gangl has made several tribute bikes representing frames either he rode or famous former racers. He gave up looking for a 54cm Masi twin plate he raced when he was younger and finally just made one himself. It can be a bit challenging to locate all the old materials but perhaps just finding Nervex Pro lugs would be the majority of what would be necessary to find. It would make sense to modify the original geo to match her present needs exactly.

CliffordK

@nswartsell's Album:
https://www.bikeforums.net/g/user/559202
https://www.bikeforums.net/g/album/26405276

RustyJames 

nswartsell That’s quite a story and we are all glad your fiancé walked away with only a few scrapes.

It’s difficult to replace a one-of-a-kind (gift from father) with something similar (another Crescent) and fill the void.

Humble suggestion - if finding another Crescent doesn’t pan out how about something from you that will bring something special to the relationship?

CliffordK

Looking at E-Bay SOLD listings, there were a couple of Crescent bikes and frames that have sold recently. So, that indicates that they'll eventually pop up if you keep your eyes peeled.

Here is this one in Vancouver BC.
https://vancouver.craigslist.org/van...522818800.html

But, I'd probably keep looking.

If you have your heart set on a Crescent, then what I'd probably do would be to hunt for something cheap that was local that would keep you on the road. Snag it for now.

Or pick out something to use as a "Winter Bike" that can take wider tires, perhaps studs, and you won't care if it gets some salt.

Then keep up a search for your dream bike. Possibly rebuild better.

CHRISTMAS?

Also, how tall is your fiancee? I can't quite see the seat in the photo, but both the seat and the handlebar stem seem fairly high.

RustyJames 

Would this work?

https://offerup.co/a1Viit1yktb

Darth Lefty 

I’d be thinking that it’s time for her to get a new bike. Be the next chapter. Special as you can afford. There are a lot of US custom builders. Maybe a Waterford or a Riv or (I’m really spending your money) a Rex or Nobilette

RustyJames 

Photo from the OfferUp ad.



More photos in the ad. Looks like it’s in good shape.

CliffordK

Single Speed?

But, it looks like it has most of what is needed to convert back to derailleur shifting.

I think it is one size smaller than the OP's frame.

RustyJames 

OP says original frame is 54cm and is looking for a 52 or 54 so the ad I posted might work?

CliffordK

An option might be to also snag a different brand of quality Reynolds or Columbus tubing, but paint challenged, and then repaint it bright orange. And replace the decals.



It's Orange Bike Month
It's October - time to show your ORANGE bikes
Show me your classic orange (colored) bikes.

evwxxx

I almost have what you need, unfortunately, at 56cm c to c, a little bit too large,,,,

Doug Fattic 

Measure the standover and see if it really is too big. A bigger frame is easier to get handlebars up higher where those of us that have aged really like them.

Darth Lefty 

It may not be that relevant, I don’t know, but I received an insight a few years ago as my retired parents were downsizing. A lot of the things I thought were special to them were in fact just old junk they felt stuck with. An epic old upright grand piano from the 1890s, gifted by grandad to mom probably in the late 50’s, seemed like a family heirloom to me, who always had it in his life. But to her it was an old ***** tonk POS she had to clean and never learned to play that well. She was saving it for us. We gave it away. It’s ok to move on sometimes. Fiancée got this bike because FIL-to-be was done with it.

In another similar vein, I love my Dad’s Paramount but it’s never going to fit me very well. It’s a size too big. Maybe it would fit Doug who is apparently getting taller as he ages! :-D

Doug Fattic 

It is likely that a 56 cm frame will be a better fit for the OP's fiancée than a 52. This is because the longer head tube on a bigger frame allows for a higher handlebar position most older people and especially women prefer. The primary limit on how big a frame one can ride is how comfortable it is to straddle a frame standing over it. Of course a bigger frame usually comes with longer top tube so a shorter stem might be required too.

I've built a lot of bikes for women in my 47 year career building custom frames that involve a fitting first. Most women like to have their handlebars equal to the height of their saddle to take the pressure off of the sensitive areas of their crotch. I think it is worth exploring the straddle height of the OP's girlfriend to see if a 56 is a possibility. I'm pretty confident that a 52 won't allow the handlebars to get high enough using an ordinary quill stem. She would need to get a Nitto Technomic stem. I can assure you that the majority of women will not be happy riding a frame with handlebars not up high enough.

due ruote 

+1 We are all different, but many women have long legs in proportion to their height, so 56 might be a real possibility. And judging by the OP's picture of the 54 frame, I wouldn't go smaller than that, for sure.

SoCaled 

This bike does pop up from time to time, there have been a handful listed in California/Nevada over the last few years.
There were 3 of various sizes sold on ebay since August.
If you really want to replace this bike you may just have to patient and scour the interwebs

SurferRosa

Wow. That was quick.

nswartsell

Why yes, yes it would. Thank you. Never heard of OfferUp.The listing is a lil old but I've reached out. Thank you so much!