In the "what it's worth" forum, [MENTION=267629]oddjob[/MENTION] (or is it #oddjob ) said in my thread about the PDG frame, that it would be easy and inexpensive to build it back up with original Shimano RX100 components. And indeed I looked on eBay and found it to be true; RX100 brake levers and calipers, shifters and derailleurs, cranksets and hubs all go for quite reasonable rates, so long as they are not new. There is a pair of brake levers for about $15 shipped, brakes for $30 shipped a pair, and so on. I think it wouldn't be too hard with some stalking to put together the whole group for not much, if you keep away from the brifters. You can still get plenty of 7-speed index service parts to go with it. Even the NOS parts aren't too bad.

What in your opinion is the sweet spot in this regard? What's the best value in an 80's or 90's group, if you wanted it all to have the same logo? 1050, Arabesque, something Suntour?

I like 1050. It's easy to come by, works really well, good value. Nothing wrong with Suntour either. I don't think Arabesque works as well and there are those who go ga-ga over the looks so pricing can be high. My 2 cents worth. Try for the donor bike route if you really want a good deal.

RSX was very similar to the RX100 in quality except it had a lower geared front triple. Good value.

I concur with #dueroute above, 105 is a great value groupset. Suntour stuff can get pricey as well given people's nostalgia for them. Arabesque can get pricey because its so pretty. Don't know much about it's function though.

Shout-out hashtags in first post should have gone to [MENTION=305894]oddjob2[/MENTION] #oddjob2

600 tricolor is also a good deal if you can find it on a donor bike. Buying piece by piece on the bay, I would probably go for 1050 since 600 tricolor holds value a bit better.

+1 I did buy an 89 Schwinn Tempo for under $100, full 105, though one of the rims/hubs is not oem. 56cm frame is up for sale. Also, sloar got a lot of groupset offers with a WTB posting on the for sale thread. I bought a 9 speed Tiagra group and a tricolor group including rims, from listings on the for sale thread at good prices.

Frame maybe worth 1.5X-2X
Vintage Bob Jackson 60" Road bike with campi, dura ace & 105 component

RSX
50-52cm Bianchi Brava Road Bicycle with Triple Cranks

600 group - nice rims $125 frame
https://sacramento.craigslist.org/bik/4514520147.html

Agree that RX100 is an excellent choice, but you can also score with cosmetically-challenged 600/tri-color/Ultegra stuff.

Thanks [MENTION=305894]oddjob2[/MENTION] but I don't want to end up with even more frames that don't fit! I was really thinking more hypothetically now than about my project. What do you like?

The BJ is a steal, check out ebay. If you're more conservative, the Schwinn SS. In the BJ case money in your pocket and a group, in the SS case maybe $75 out of pocket.

I think the best bang for the buck are the upper tier Exage groups. 500EX is the same as 1050 with different cosmetics. 500LX is the same as DeoreLX. 500CX is a hybird-oriented groupset much like 500LX. I've built bikes up with all three as well as the 'superior' groups they're based on.

Top

Like oddjob, I prefer to buy complete bikes with a groupset and then take what I need and sell the frame and/or extra parts. Just like it is more lucrative to part a bike out, it is much more expensive to build a bike piece by piece.

DT-shifted: 1050 in 6sp, 6400 in 7-sp, RX100 in 8-sp.

Upgrading to STI: 9-sp Ultegra is great for the money, be sure the shifters work before you buy.

Buying a donor bike for the ensemble is an effective solution. Very cost effective.
And yes, you will probably end up with a very small or very large extra frame as a result.
Give it to the bike co-op and take it off your taxes.

Why do you need a groupset? It is only in recent decades that groupsets came to the fore. I think that groupsets are overrated, and the only bicycle that comes close to having a groupsets in my collection is my late 80s Alpine.

How many decades does it take to be non-recent? I'm thinking 80's when I'm thinking groupsets.
Before that, I was riding Free Spirits, hadn't a clue what was on the bike.

Sheet, I'm old.

I am a fan of Shimano DA, 600 and 105. I have 5-6 complete groupsets in the shop. I just pulled a 105 Golden Arrow group off a bike and replaced with a mix of parts for my wife's beater bike. Most of the sets I currently have came from swapping of parts.

I got a shimano 105 groupset on a bike and its a nice sweet indexed set, Unfortunatly the bike its attached to is not selling so I think i will just part up the bike and sell off the bits

After considering numerous good value vintage groups from Japan, Italy, France....the one group that rises above them all IMO, is Shimano 105 1050. Designed to be a value leader, no compromises in performance or quality, and strategically marketed (or forced down the throats of bike manufacturers) as a complete group offering on mid level bikes.
The freehubset was basically 600 62xx, SLR brakes were better performing than their then current D-A single pivots, Uniglide 7-speed cassette with SIS, all aluminum RD. durable headset and bottom brackets. Even included their own UG chain.

I can't recall any weaknesses in the group. And it flooded the bike market. I think it was the group that brought the end to French component manufacturers, Suntour, and nearly killed off Campagnolo with their less than popular Victory and Triomphe entry level groups.

Latter 105 1055/56 would have evolutionary improvements, and continue to be a great value. But the 1050 from the late 80s was a milestone offering. The gap between it and 600 was small. The gap began to widen in the later generations.