old bikes still good?

[bluejay931]

Hey,
I got into biking a little over a year ago until a car hit me and the bike has been out of commission ever since. I've decided to get back into it this summer and have been looking at a road bike to purchase. I've noticed that 1970 era Schwinn, Raleigh and even some French brands are plentiful and cheap on craigslist. are these bike to be avoided? or, if properly maintained, are they as good as they ever were?

 

[oldbobcat]

Originally Posted by bluejay931
I've noticed that 1970 era Schwinn, Raleigh and even some French brands are plentiful and cheap on craigslist. are these bike to be avoided? or, if properly maintained, are they as good as they ever were?

Only if you don't intend to put a little work and money into getting them working right again. Think about it. When these bikes were new, bikes this old became scrap metal for the war effort. Also, be prepared to dicker on price. While these bikes are quite serviceable, a Raleigh Grand Priix, Peugeot UO-8, or Schwinn LeTour is not classic, despite what the ad says. Do the research. Also understand that there have been considerable improvements in ergonomics, comfort, handling, and overall quality over the last 40 years.

Be prepared to order parts such as brake lever hoods, brake pads, hub spindles, 27" tires and rims, etc., online, or have your bike shop order them.

 

[jhuskey]

In my opinion these bike are great....... to hang on the wall but if you want to be more than a neighborhood cruiser look for something newer that can be fitted to you.

 

[CAMPYBOB]

What JH said and what OBC said.

The old gas pipe Schwinns and lower line European bikes from the 1970's and even the early 1980's are simply wall-hangers or around town pleasure cruisers. Heavy duty trainers or rain bikes, at best.

Parts are getting more difficult to find for the old 'semi classics' and faux classics. Not 'impossible', but definitely more scarce. For the 1970's French bikes, they are getting close to impossible to find.

Now, if they are 'cheap' and plentiful in your area, you can go out and buy several bikes for fixing up and a couple more for spare parts. There's not a damned thing wrong with that concept...as long as...you realize these bikes are going to be no more than decent training machines for 10-20 mile rides to maybe for doing the occasional century/longer charity ride.

I clearly remember those days of yore when Raleigh Records and Grand Prix were found by the hundreds on tours and charity rides. Hell, I did my first 210-mile TOSRV on a 38-pound Schwinn Continental! While riding the AO-8 or UO-8 Peugeot or Schwinn Sports Tourer 100 miles is infinitely possible, buying a modern $300-$500 well cared for used bike will put you light years ahead in comfort and functionality.

 

[alfeng]

Originally Posted by bluejay931
Hey,
I got into biking a little over a year ago until a car hit me and the bike has been out of commission ever since. I've decided to get back into it this summer and have been looking at a road bike to purchase. I've noticed that 1970 era Schwinn, Raleigh and even some French brands are plentiful and cheap on craigslist. are these bike to be avoided? or, if properly maintained, are they as good as they ever were?

Conditionally, yes ...

If a vintage bike is properly maintained, then it will be as good as it ever was ....

And/But, that's the dis-/advantage.

So, YOUR expectations (and/or wallet) are the limitations ...

The 27" wheels can be a nuisance ... but, that is often more of a state of mind for non-competitive riding ...

You can use the same inner tubes as you would for a 700c wheel ...

WalMart & KMart used to carry 27" tires ... I presume that they still do.

TREK bike shops used to carry 27" Bontrager tires, so maybe they still do.

The vintage components can be problematic ... but, some 3-in-1 oil (or, equivalent) & patience will go a long way toward rejuvenating whatever is a sluggish. Greasing the cables will be VERY beneficial since vintage bikes typically had galvanized cables.

Expect to pony up $40 +/- for tires/tubes & some "household" oil beyond the cost of the bike.

If you can DIY to get the bike back into shape AND if your anticipated rides are going to be less than 30 miles long, then 'I' say "Why not?" as long as you don't expect to keep pace with riders who are riding their fancy-schmancy bikes.

BUT, if you cannot DIY or if you lack the inclination, then buying a vintage bike can be a dubious purchase which will, indeed, be relegated to "wall art."

FYI. Older Road bikes typically have more "relaxed" geometry ... THAT's not a bad thing & can actually be thought of as a good thing most of the time ...

Older Schwinns often had proprietary threading ... vintage (pre-1985) French bikes will typically have French threading ... the Raleigh Record had proprietary threading until the mid-80s, too ...

The invasion of Japanese bikes in the 70s solidified British threading as the de facto "standard" ...

The non-standard "threading" only relates to the BB & fork's steerer, so it can be overcome if one has the inclination ...

The 70s vintage Raleigh Grand Prix (and, better models) & Schwinn LeTour (and, better models) had "standard" English threading, so if one were inclined to change any components, it would not be too much of a hassle (IMO).

Vintage components CAN usually be replaced with contemporary components, so there is absolutely no need to match and/or search for older parts unless you are truly inclined to maintain the look of the bike ...

I modified a set of MegaExo External BB cups to fit in a frame which has a French threaded BB shell just because I could!!!

 

[bluejay931]

Thanks for the help, I decided to go ahead with a vintage bike because of your comments on reliability. I only plan on doing short rides for a while and I think it'll do fine. the 25 inch frame also fit me perfectly, maybe in a year or two i'll start looking again.

 

[CAMPYBOB]

Holy mother of inseams, Batman! <cough!> Can't figure why the seat is slammed...

It's a 1980 (or there about) gas pipe Ross! That thing looks almost new.

Drop the handlebars! That stem is out way past the minimum safe insertion point.
Check the tires and tubes carefully for dry rot. If in doubt, replace with new.
Re-pack the bottom bracket, wheel hubs, headset, pedals and rear derailleur bushings with fresh grease.
Clean and oil the cables and derailleur pivot points.

Get yourself a spare tube, patch kit and CO@ inflator or mini pump and go enjoy that old girl! Proudly built in Allentown, Pennsylvania by Americans that never had to peddle up hills!

 

[oldbobcat]

Originally Posted by CAMPYBOB

Get yourself a spare tube, patch kit and CO@ inflator or mini pump and go enjoy that old girl! Proudly built in Allentown, Pennsylvania by Americans that never had to peddle up hills!

I like the "proudly built" part.

Is there enough CO2 in a 16g cartridge to inflate a 27" x 1.25" tire?

 

[CAMPYBOB]

Quote by OBC:
"I like the "proudly built" part."

As long as you read it with Billy Joel singing, "Oh, we're living here in Allentown...and it's hard to keep a good man down!", playing in your head!

16 grams will get it to around 90 PSI...probably too much for a 40-year old Schwinn 'Puff' to withstand and enough to make a Gumwall shudder in fear.

 

[oldbobcat]

Originally Posted by CAMPYBOB

16 grams will get it to around 90 PSI...probably too much for a 40-year old Schwinn 'Puff' to withstand and enough to make a Gumwall shudder in fear.

Yeah, but all that volume . . .

Having blown a few off those hookless steel rims with an 85 psi compressor, I concede. Better use a 12.

 

[CAMPYBOB]

Heh! Truth!

 

[swampy1970]

Buy a real frame fitting pump and give the namby pamby mini pump and CO2 nonsense a miss.

Continental still do a 27" tire - the Tour Ride. It's big and gnarly but it'll last for years.

 

[Froze]

Personally, and it's just my opinion, I would stay away from French bikes because their frames were noodly, and the mid to lower end ones used very poorly made French components that didn't last long and shifted like ****, not to mention odd threading and difficulty finding parts. Japanese, English, Italian and American made bikes parts are plentiful to find, sometimes expensive though especially the high end components and Italian bikes and components. Japanese components, especially the Suntour were bullet proof and the Suntour was the best shifting stuff of any manufacture back in the day.

By the way I have several vintage bikes that I ride once in awhile but I would not be afraid to ride any of them long distance from home, they are very reliable more so than modern stuff today in my opinion and are easier to fix in the field. I do have a 2013 bike and that bike now gets ridden the most now but I tour on a 85 bike!

Pump wise, most vintage bikes look really nice with full size frame pumps because that's what they came with back in the day. There are a couple of pumps that are very vintage looking still being made today; the Silca Impero comes in a wide variety of colors, see: http://www.yellowjersey.org/silca.html these were very popular in the day because they were the lightest frame pump ever made even to this day. Zefal HPX or the Lapize (that one uses pump pegs to hold the pump in place) and the standard HP, but both those were heavy but you could beat a dog senseless with it and it won't break...I know because I had to that years ago! The Zefal will last longer than the Silca due to it's all aluminum construction vs the plastic body of the Silca, but I still have my Silca from the early 80's which saw quite a bit of use back then, though I don't use it any more and is on display in my library. Silca's were known to break but that was because people would be pumping and not be pumping it straight up and down and would instead be at a slight angle on the down stroke when higher psi was going in and the force required to push the pump in would off center the rod if one wasn't conscious of what they were doing and crack the plastic, I was aware of this issue so I made sure I didn't do that.

So pump wise it depends on what you want, lighter weight color matching or color contrasting pump like the Silca, or a durable virtually indestructible but uglier and no color selection other than silver pump like the Zefal series. If the bike has pump pegs front and rear (one small one and one L shaped one) you'll need the Zefal Lapize but that is one heavy pump made of chrome steel! If the frame just has a single small peg then either of the others will work.

Otherwise you may need to shop E-bay to find a true vintage pump. Don't forget with frame pumps you do need to measure the top tube from seat tube to headtube, unless the pump peg(s) are on the seat tube then you need to measure from the top tube to the top of the bottom bracket shell. If the bike has two pegs (the small one and the L one) you'll need to measure the distance between those two if you want to use those pegs.

 

[Damien Lee]

Vintage bikes are fine if you're willing to put in the time, money and effort for maintenance. You probably won't break any speed records with these but I'm guessing that's not a priority for you. I also don't recommend a vintage bike for newbie cyclists, as these may be beyond their scope to maintain and eventually put them off cycling altogether. It's better to start off with a modern but affordable bike, it will be a safer and more enjoyable cycling experience overall.

 

[Corzhens]

I have no bike at the moment for another reason and I am planning to buy. What I have in mind is a brand new bike that I would test drive. And when the size doesn't fit me then I would try another and another until I would need to go to the next bike store. It's not a good idea to buy a used bike because you may have a problem in sourcing out parts when the need arises. With a new bike, you get a warranty and you can even try it for size so that problem of bad parts has an instant remedy.

 

[kmars]

Hey I'm sorry about that accident. It's good that you have not allowed the situation or fear to keep you from getting back on the road. With that said, I would advise you to just get a contemporary bike. An expensive one at that. Cheap does not always work well but if they are vintage or old they might serve you for some length of time.

 

[kmars]

Personally, and it's just my opinion, I would stay away from French bikes because their frames were noodly, and the mid to lower end ones used very poorly made French components that didn't last long and shifted like ****, not to mention odd threading and difficulty finding parts. Japanese, English, Italian and American made bikes parts are plentiful to find, sometimes expensive though especially the high end components and Italian bikes and components. Japanese components, especially the Suntour were bullet proof and the Suntour was the best shifting stuff of any manufacture back in the day. By the way I have several vintage bikes that I ride once in awhile but I would not be afraid to ride any of them long distance from home, they are very reliable more so than modern stuff today in my opinion and are easier to fix in the field. I do have a 2013 bike and that bike now gets ridden the most now but I tour on a 85 bike! Pump wise, most vintage bikes look really nice with full size frame pumps because that's what they came with back in the day. There are a couple of pumps that are very vintage looking still being made today; the Silca Impero comes in a wide variety of colors, see: http://www.yellowjersey.org/silca.html these were very popular in the day because they were the lightest frame pump ever made even to this day. Zefal HPX or the Lapize (that one uses pump pegs to hold the pump in place) and the standard HP, but both those were heavy but you could beat a dog senseless with it and it won't break...I know because I had to that years ago! The Zefal will last longer than the Silca due to it's all aluminum construction vs the plastic body of the Silca, but I still have my Silca from the early 80's which saw quite a bit of use back then, though I don't use it any more and is on display in my library. Silca's were known to break but that was because people would be pumping and not be pumping it straight up and down and would instead be at a slight angle on the down stroke when higher psi was going in and the force required to push the pump in would off center the rod if one wasn't conscious of what they were doing and crack the plastic, I was aware of this issue so I made sure I didn't do that. So pump wise it depends on what you want, lighter weight color matching or color contrasting pump like the Silca, or a durable virtually indestructible but uglier and no color selection other than silver pump like the Zefal series. If the bike has pump pegs front and rear (one small one and one L shaped one) you'll need the Zefal Lapize but that is one heavy pump made of chrome steel! If the frame just has a single small peg then either of the others will work. Otherwise you may need to shop E-bay to find a true vintage pump. Don't forget with frame pumps you do need to measure the top tube from seat tube to headtube, unless the pump peg(s) are on the seat tube then you need to measure from the top tube to the top of the bottom bracket shell. If the bike has two pegs (the small one and the L one) you'll need to measure the distance between those two if you want to use those pegs.

Thanks for providing this whole database of information. Very in depth and informative. Kind of you to spend much time to give us this information. Thanks for the links as well.

 

[Mr. Beanz]

My wife has an 84 steel Bianchi (a poster told us it was more than likely an 88). Either way some guy my wife worked with knew we cycled so he asked if we were interested in buying the bike. He wanted to sell it then put the money toward a dept store mtn bike. WHAT! I was hoping it was my size but turns out, it fit my wife. <_<

He only wanted $40 for it. It was dirty, gooey and whatever other awful words you can use to describe it but I gave him $80 that I had in my pocket because it was a Bianchi! I cleaned it up, polished it, chased down a few parts for it. It was partial 105 originally and luckily I found some super deals like 105 calipers for $30. Ultegra front wheels for $30. Wife liked the rim color so I bought 2, tore down one of them and used the rim to rebuild the back. Pus some low cost STI on it and changed it from 6 to 7 speed. Took a few bucks but it was worth it. She rode it for about 10 years. 2,000 to 3,000 miles per year.

She loved the bike but I talked her into getting her newest bike. Full carbon road bike. It was nearly $3,000. Before it even hit the road I put the best Continentals tires on it, She took it our of the first 40 mile ride then I said, "see, now isn't at a much smoother better ride than the Bianchi?". She said," NO!". :huh:

She said the steel Bianchi was a much nicer ride overall. She did admit that over some distance she feels the newer bike is lighter in the later miles but still says the Bianchi is a much better ride. She said the bike feels alive and like it has a soul of it's own. She had never heard the saying "steel is real" so I was a little surprised in her description of the ride but figured it must be true. I sat on the bike once just to see what she was talking about. I swear I barely put my foot on the pedal and the thing just about out from under me as if it wanted to go!

Funny but she has done her fastest ride times on the 40 miler on the Bianchi. Could be that she was younger but either way, it didn't slow her down. We rode with some guys on modern high end bikes that had a hard time keeping up with her on the Bianchi. It was funny watching them make excuses. :lol:

There were times we would stop at bike shops after a ride with the bikes racked on our car. Guys from the shop came out to look at her bike. They would say how beautiful a bike it was and how nice the lugged steel is crafted. A few other people at shop, on rides and on bike forums have asked if she was interested in selling it. He response, "HEEEELL NO!".

 

[LinB]

Generally speaking, items which are being made now a days are not as strong as days gone by. We still want to buy the more modern ones though because we don't want to look out of order. It's your choice to make but I think the vintage bikes are stronger.The newer bikes have a more convenient design however. You find them more comfortable.

 

[Froze]

I don't think newer bikes are any more, or less, comfortable than older bikes, it was all about finding a bike that would fit right which is the same as today. Of course Titanium bikes will be the most comfortable riding of any other material on the market, but TI has been around a long time, since the 60's, it's just rare to find a vintage one because back then TI was horribly expensive.