oat ratis

My friend from high school has a 1973 Masi Gran Criterium from under the velodrome in Milano and signed by Falerio. He asked me to find out what it is worth. It's in good original condition except he put on bar end shifters back then (campy). I looked on E-bay but only found stickers and head badges, nothing like this. He's my good, old friend and I don't want to screw him. What do you think it's worth?

lotek 

you can check e-bay competed items.
If its in good condition at least $500, probably more.
The signature is a decal only (or thats usually what it is).
Check out classic rendezvous classifieds and the CR list.

Marty

Dick Boyum

You can also search ebay under closed items to see what Masi's have gone for historically. The chance of finding one currently up for auction at any given time is slim.

lotek 

I've done a bit of checking around and the bike is worthless, I'l buy it
for $200 just to give the owner a leg up on a new plastic or beer can bike. . .

seriously, I need to up my original estimate by about $500.
If I were the owner and was selling the bike I'd say $1000 would be a good
starting point. An 80's volumetrica with Super Record components went for
$1580.00 recently.
Alot is going to depend on the componentry on the bike. Super Record will
be worth more than Nuovo Record. Another consideration is size of the
frame (funny but true). If he is serious about selling the bike
have him take ALOT of pictures, don't clean the bike up too much sometimes
the patina makes it more desirable to collectors (if repainted etc. value
goes down). Expect to get alot of buzz from the Masi cognesenti and some
pretty specific and detailed questions.
2 questions for you, what is the serail number of the frame? and any pictures?

Good luck and keep us posted,
Marty

oat ratis

Please check my last post on velonews forum for more detail.

Thanks.
BL

TheOtherGuy

IF it's actually a '73, it could be worth more than you think... 1973 is when Faliero came to California to start up Masi Carlsbad. The first Masi frames rolled out of there during the last couple of months of the year. Meanwhile back in Italy, I understand that Alberto Masi was building Italiano (or oversaw production there) Gran Criteriums. A check of the serial # on the bike in question should tell you where & when it was built. The very first 25 California Masi had a serial starting with 1S_ _ . After that first batch of 25 (all 57 cm frames CTC), the California frames were numbered with a MC prefix. Later California frames from San Marcos used another prefix; I think it was SMC. I believe the Italian-built frames used a single letter to denote which city they were built in there... If it's not a US built frame but indeed an Italian Gran Criterium, you should ask about it on the CR mailing list. Price range on a really nice early '70s GC...? Figure $1200+ depending on actual vintage and size (53-58cm fetch the most $), and wether it was a special custom or a production frame. BTW- the very first of the CA Masi frames were most likely massaged by Mario Confente and/or Faliero during some part of their assembly. Whatever you find out, you'll most likely love the bike; they're very well built, beautiful, and ride great! Good luck!

molten

regarding Masi, the only one that I have is a Gran Corsa from the 80's. My first road bike.

mattmatthew

do you have any pics of the Masi? i have a Masi as well. actual date on frame is unknown, because on italian Masi's from the 70's they'd stamp the serial no. and year on the fork steerer tube, which was apparently parted from the frame before i acquired it. my best guess based on other frames i've seen puts it around 70-72. it's hard to know for sure.

aloha,
matt

lotek 

Matt,
There is alot of interest in Masi (both cali and italy) on the classic rendezvous
list. Post over there with a link to pics (they do not allow imbedded images)
and I'm sure you will get more info on your masi than you ever wanted
(and probably start a few hot debates as well).

Marty

mattmatthew

Hi Marty,
Thanks for the suggestion. Actually, part of the reason I can even date the Masi between those years is because of the Classic Rendezvous list. At some point though, the volume of daily messages became too much and I had to unsubscribe..! Last I recall, the CR list was a little burnt on talking about Masi's, save a few, and would've rather had discussion on Flying Scots, Holdsworths and Hetchins. ;-)

Aloha,
Matt

lotek 

Matt,
Nah, they always like a good Masi Thread.
Got to be better than 172 messages about BCD
for cyclotourist chainrings (even tho I did learn alot!).
Know what you mean about the volume. I switched to digest
format, only get 2 or 3 a day. The only problem is that if someone
offers something for sale you're probably late in getting in on it.

Marty

markwebb

I have noticed something odd about recent sales on eBay. A great museum quality DeRosa from 1970's like new all Campy SR failed to even get a bid. The minimum starting price was $1,700. Then a rather standard Benotto with average/starter Campy components in NOS condition went for $1,200. Several very excellent examples of vintage steel NR and SR bikes (Raleigh, Motobecane, DeRosa, Masi, Cinelli, etc) have been selling in the $500- $900 range.

I would expect the Masi to be more sought-after than the DeRosa, and I would think a price +$2K would be a reasonable expectation. But - I think there is now a lot more activity in the $500-$1,200 range now than the higher priced bikes. If it were me I would wait until April or May and see if there are better prices being paid for such high value classics.

mattmatthew

To be honest I'm not sure it has anything to do with the bike itself. With Ebay a large degree of what-goes-for-what is almost purely psychological. A bike that starts at $1700 with six days left may never get a single bid. However, start the same bike at $1.00 with a $1700 reserve, a crapload of really good detail pictures, and a lot of descriptive text and it may easily end at $2500 with 100 bids. The very concept of Ebay is built upon the oft times illusion that you have the chance to get things for cheaper than normal. In reality, though, it is not always the case. My guess is the seller of the DeRosa hasn't sold or bought much on Ebay.