Diamond Back Road Bikes?
 

I have been seeing a large amount of these pop up this month. Are they worth taking a look at? They look to be older 80s I am guessing since they have the shifters where they belong, On the down tube.

IIRC correctly Centurian roadbikes became Diamond Back (Aveneir?) in the very early '90s depending on the kit, 105, rx100, RSX, it may have DT shifters until I think the mid '90s. but depending on the price it certainly deserves a look.

Diamond Back road bicycles are 1990 or newer. Previously they were known as Centurion, but the owner (Western States Imports) decided to market the bicycles under the brand names of their ATBs. They are good bicycles, but unlike the Centurion, you'll find many of them used TIG welding, as opposed to lugs. Besides being less expensive, this allowed WSI to spec stiffer, oversize tubing on many models. Most of the Diamond back road models that have surfaced are made in Taiwan.

The very early Diamondback models were pretty much re-badged Centurions, with both Centurion (top tube) and Diamondback (down tube) decals. I suspect they were Lemans or Lemans RS's.
Some had the same marbled grey fade found on the 1989 Ironman, but I don't think it was a Tange 1 frame. As she says, some had Avenir decals, as the saddles were often Avenir. Some others had a "splatter" paint job that seemed to lack, let's say, aesthetic value.

As BianchiGirll says, the groups were not the 600 level of the previous years' Centurions, though I have seen one Diamondback with 600 tricolor. I bought a Diamondback Expert in a labeled 23" and with a labeled "100% chrome-moly" frame. It came with a 3x7 RSX STI group, Exage calipers and hubs laced to early Alex rims. It was a very smooth bike.

There were some pretty nice TIG-welded models, and some heavy ones.
I'd look seriously at a Diamondback Master or Expert, as the model name carried over from Centurion's Ironman line, if not the same setup. Generally, they are priced reasonably compared to the market. An LBS here sold them but yielded to heavy pressure/incentive from the Trek reps to drop the Diamondback line, and did.

That would more than likely have been a 1991 Diamond Back Prevail TG, as opposed to a Master. The Master was 105SC equipped from it's inception in 1990 though to 1994 when it was downgraded to RX100.

I stand corrected. I do remember the 600 group better than the model name, as I was trolling for a donor bike.

My buddy bought one a couple months ago. Here it is the day that he got it:
http://i649.photobucket.com/albums/u...n/PA242456.jpg

http://i649.photobucket.com/albums/u...n/PA242457.jpg

http://i649.photobucket.com/albums/u...n/PA242458.jpg

http://i649.photobucket.com/albums/u...n/PA242460.jpg

http://i649.photobucket.com/albums/u...n/PA242461.jpg

It was missing the front wheel, but for $80 it wasn't too bad.

I love the late 80s/early 90s Diamondback mountain and road bikes. I had a Diamondback Centurion Interval, and it was a very nice riding bike. Sold it rather cheaply to make quick money for another purchase, and I've regretted it ever since. So to answer your question, yes they are worth taking a look at, provided they are priced reasonably. Imo, the early 90s diamondbacks have some of the best paint jobs I've ever seen on a bike.

Not to mention being as old as it is..:thumb::p

Great bike for $80. I'd love to have it (and it fits). Check out the space between the rear wheel and seat post, and it's a Tange frame. Wanna bet geometry is similar to the Ironman? White cable, white hoods, that's a nice upgrade waiting to happen after cleanup/touchup. Probably already 130mm rear, too.

Part of the reason the rear wheel looks so close to the seat tune is because of the oversize tubing. That's going to erase about 2mm of gap, without changing the chainstay length or seat tube angle. However, the Expert/Master TG series did incorporate refined geometry over their Ironman predecessors. The wheel base was 3mm shorter, head angle one degree more relaxed and the top tube a bit shorter. You'll also notice a much different curvature to the fork, which is why it has the Super Radius decal. These forks had a smoother, more gradual bend, that started much higher on the blade.

I'd appreciate it if big_heineken could obtain the serial number of his friend's bicycle for my database. TIA.

Any clue what year this Expert TG is? I think it may be a '94 but Bikepedia lists different brakes.

http://images.craigslist.org/00z0z_g...Km_600x450.jpg
http://images.craigslist.org/00p0p_g...ZO_600x450.jpg
http://images.craigslist.org/00P0P_2...Y3_600x450.jpg
http://images.craigslist.org/01010_j...UQ_600x450.jpg

I believe this actually a 1991 model. The 1994 specs do not mention OS tubes and the 1992-1993 models used True Temper tubing. The 1990-1991 models used the Tange OS tubesets but he 1990 frames tended to have marble fade finishes. The vibrant colours with black streaks are typical of 1991. The serial number should allow us to determine the exact manufacturing date.

Most of the 1990's I have seen had the fade paint schemes but my 1990 Interval frameset is black.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800...923/ap9tUP.jpg

https://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/51...923/gTMuG5.jpg

You could be right. My '92 PDG Paramount has that splatter paint. I think the fad had ended by '94. I have a '94 Axis TR mountain bike and it would be cool to have a matching DB road bike from that era. The seller is asking $260 and it's pretty mint....

Really?

WSI often offered a traditional paint scheme as an option to their trendy paint schemes. Here's a March 1991 advertisement for the top of the line Diamond Back Prevail TG. Look closely and you can see the black streak/splatter.

Several bike magazines had a Diamondback road bike in their top values for 2015, and I've seen them used by crit teams where performance counted. I have no idea who or what is behind these bikes, but I think Performance is selling the carbon road bikes, and Dick's is selling the mountain bike lineup.

If you compare it with the 1991 ad in my previous post, you'll see the graphics (paint and decals) are a very good match. FYI, the 1991 MSRP was $606 US.

Yeah, this guy says his Master TG is a '91.

Big Dummy Daddy: Retina-vibrating, skinny-tired time capsule

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_YYUMOEFMnR4/TJ...0/IMG_2180.JPG

This is the same frame on ebay. Serial# U0122180S I think?

Centurion Designed Diamondback Expert TG Tange OS Road Bike Frame and Fork 57cm | eBay

http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/LP8AAO...KQ/s-l1600.jpg

Yes, that's what it looks like to me too, though the last character should be a numeral and is probably 5, as opposed to S. Still, it is December 1990 manufacture. That's late enough in the year to state that it is definitely a 1991 model.

T-Mar I don't care about Diamondbacks or any of this but man, it's nice to see you posting again!

Bumping this back from the dead. My freebie today. Will be a keeper project. 53cm. 105 groupset but no wheels. Cool splatter paint. Made in Japan. Rust here and there but I can take care of that. Just going to bring it to a nice riding condition.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4424/...2a50e281_c.jpgIMG_1670 by 2cam16, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4430/...6230fb64_c.jpgIMG_1671 by 2cam16, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4428/...59fb782f_c.jpgIMG_1672 by 2cam16, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4427/...0c7c2158_c.jpgIMG_1673 by 2cam16, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4432/...1fe01e44_c.jpgIMG_1676 by 2cam16, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4441/...59c99c02_c.jpgIMG_1679 by 2cam16, on Flickr

This is mine, a '91 DB Venture that was one of my entries in this year's Clunker Challenge 100. It actually rides very well and is a surprisingly nice bike, even with the 35mm Continental cyclocross tires. It's a keeper.

[IMG]https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4254/...23eefd92_b.jpg7/6/2017 2nd version by Russ Fitzgerald, on Flickr[/IMG]