Jon1964

Hello:

Real newbie here. Getting back into biking after years of not biking. Used to really love the road bike sport/hobby. Got a Puch Cavette for my birthday when I was 13 in 1977. Bought a new Trek 1200 in 1988. Loved that thing. Fast and handled great. It felt like I was driving a Porsche. It was stolen in 1994. No bikes since.

I am looking to buy a road bike. Budget requires me to spend around $165.00. Used obviously is the course of action. What is recommended to get to a bike like my Trek 1200 in good ready to ride condition for around $165.00? I found a 1988ish Trek 1200 on ebay sized exactly as my old bike (same colors too - hey, wait a minute, did they live in Newport Beach, CA in 1994.....?). Needs a tire. Probably two to match them properly. Has lock in pedals for racing shoes. I would like just standard pedals with toe cages. A bit cosmetically rough - but not bad for a twenty three year old bike. they want at least $225.00 plus $75.00 shipping. Want to spend less. Or is this as good as it gets?

Ideas?

Thanks.

Divtos

Check the classified sections of newsletters/forums of bike clubs near your home. Just this weekend I saw a Trek for $100 and a tandem for $800.

Velo Vol 

Are you prepared to splurge and go $170?

canam73

Where do you live? Any colleges near by? Students will sell stuff for cheap. The main thing is to avoid the shipping charge. And for $165 you will have to be patient, but people have found decent, ridable bikes for that.

M_FactorX19

just what i was going to say.

i just dont see you getting anything decent for that price. maybe something really dated but its kinda like a really used car you get for a few hundred bucks but needs $2k in new parts to make it run and only blue books for $1.5K. if you have to replace everything on the bike when you get it because it is wore out it wont be worth it.

miyata man

I am very careful about buying stuff from private sellers for just this reason. My current budget bike was procured for $200 and I could have gotten it lower if I really wanted to make the guy feel worthless. It had been ridden less than 10 miles by the original owner after it was built to order at a local shop in 1987 and then stored under a sheet till last year. Patience a good eye and possibly just luck. Early spring is not the ideal time to expect low prices but just before spring break is the mother of all clearance events on campuses nationwide. Just take your time and you should be able to find something serviceable in decent shape.

pgjackson

I don't think there is such a thing as a best used bike for $165. You could possibly find a junker, formerly-decent bike in that range...but you would probably have to sink several hundred dollars into it to get it back in shape.

nixternal

You definitely need to keep an eye out at your local shops that sell a couple used bikes. When I was first looking for a bike I ended up finding a bike store that had a few used road bikes. I found a gorgeous 1980s Raleigh that was freakin' mint. The owner of the store told me, if you have $100 on your right now, it is yours. I didn't even hesitate. I bought it right then and there. I rode it twice and was in love with it. When I went to ride it the third time, well someone else must have been riding it Like some have said, patience. Depending on where you live, put a call out on Craigslist letting them know how much you would like to spend and what you are looking for. You will get some hits. Here in Chicago, this is how people get robbed though, so like I said, depending on where you live

jmX

I think according to the persons user name, he's a timetraveler from 1964. Back then $165 was a lot of money and got a decent bike. Cut the guy some slack.

gaucho777 

$165 isn't much these days. A nice vintage road bike at local garage sale may be your best bet. You're unlikely to find anything on ebay once you factor in shipping costs, and the nice deals on CL go very quickly at least around most metropolitan areas. Check CL garage sales and search under bikes/bicycles.

Kimmo

I'd say this one just needs some fresh cables, a chain and some TLC...

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ave-or-restore

$100.

adclark

I would say just keep checking on CL until you find something. Deals can be had, you just have to wait and find one. I picked up a 10 year old bike with 105 9-speed SIS for less than $150 a few months back just because the guy was moving and already had 5 other bikes much nicer than it in his garage. It had a steel frame and everything still worked great, but he said it was just his first bike that he never rode anymore because he had 5 others that in my estimation were over 2k each. With your budget, it may take you a while to find something, but if you wait long enough and are quick to respond when something does pop up, you can find some great deals.

Jon1964

Thanks for the input everyone.

I definitely want something vintage, that was a an excellent performer in its day. I can hold out till something pops up locally - ebay or Craigslist.

Are there oppinions of what good $ value road bikes I should be on the lookout for which are about 10-20 years old?

SortaGrey

What makes a dab more sense.........

Learn how to access how much work the bike needs.. BB ok? Wear on rings... ? Does the bike fit you? Any bearing play in the hubs? How to the hubs feel and sound when spun? Make at that price level is mostly irrelevant..... and many of them were stamped on the same accembly lines anyway...

You can find some great deals at that price level.. take your time and shop with care. Be leary of the bike that has freshly peeled stickers.. the sign a local bike license has been removed to mask theft.

And rather than shop a price level.. shop the value. Your 160 might be a steal at 25 at a yard sale... a 200 buy might be worth double that.

canam73

I'd look for a chro-molly framed bike with downtube shifters and 700 wheels. If you get lucky you'll score something with shimano 600 parts, but at your price Exage or RX100 is more likely. My reasoning behind the steel frame is that if you ever wanted to upgrade with some modern wheels it's easier to strech the rear dropouts than with an aluminum frame. The cro-mo, dt shifters and 700 wheels just point to something more performance orientated than 1020 steel, stem shift and 27" wheels.

teterider

I'm just going to give you food for thought.

A tiny local shop sells new Jamis Vertura Sport bikes for $400. Before I knew this my neighbor bought the same bike online as a new leftover from a shop for $350 shipped.

On the other hand, $165 most likely is going to get you an old bike with downtube shifting, worn chain/cassette/chainrings, worn or stiff from non-use bearings, worn out handlebar tape, and cracking tires. Now, with some long term patience and luck perhaps not - but probably yes.

What I'm saying is that $200 is a very thin margin between old and worn and brand new. Brand new everything with 2300/Sora will be better than 1988 7-speed 105 with internal frame rusting and seized spoke nipples.
Ah, but I just looked above and that's what you want. Well, be patient and look multiple times a day and something may come up. I like some vintage too, but good vintage takes some money.

pgjackson

Besides the bad cables, rusted chain, rusted cassette and derailures...sure, looks like a good purchase. There's a couple hundred dollars right there just in parts.

Lanterne Rogue

I disagree. Last year, I spent $150 on a Trek 1220 off Craigslist for my teenage son. (I was unwilling to spend more because he was unsure if he'd stick with cycling.) We did a week-long, 560-mile, mountain-pass-per-day credit card tour of Colorado, and both the bike and my son did great.

canam73

I wouldn't buy that one either, but it didn't take long to find these:

https://fortcollins.craigslist.org/bik/2274991782.html

https://stlouis.craigslist.org/bik/2276007515.html

https://syracuse.craigslist.org/bik/2276131896.html

https://indianapolis.craigslist.org/bik/2276545750.html
https://monterey.craigslist.org/bik/2275851765.html

https://stlouis.craigslist.org/bik/2276146392.html
All of which appear to be in better condition. So I still say that depending on where the OP lives, something around $165 could buy a decent, serviceable road bike.

SortaGrey

Sound plan... factor in the time and possible grief of an older model buy... this route makes $$ sense.

Thing is... getting back onto a BIKE<<<.