Originally Posted by
poetman
Based on these preliminary observations, could you all kindly recommend some brand/models for a vintage road bike that I can look out for on my local Craigslist. The aforementioned Raleigh and Centurion were in the low $300, and I am hoping to find something closer to $100 used.
I really appreciate any insights you all can offer!
Thank you
When it comes to 30+ year old bikes, your searches need to be brand and model neutral. For example, sitting there and searching for an '87 Miyata 912 will most likely be a fruitless search, given the age of the bike. Instead, just search thru ALL of your craigslist(and facebook marketplace) and look at options. If you do search for something specific, then search based on price or frame size. Just know that price is often a moving target and size is often mis-measured(which is why no search parameters is best).
There were excellent bikes made by Schwinn, Panasonic, Miyata, Fuji, Centurion, Nishiki, Novara, Lotus, Specialized, Univega, Trek, Motobecane, and many many more brands. By the mid-80s, these brands were all competitive with each other to where they all had a full product range of models at pricepoints to compete with bikes from the other brands. If you search for one specifically, you will miss out on many others that are of similar quality.
...or just buy the Centurion you tried, take it to a bike collective, and have the shifters moved to the stem. Thatll cost you 2 cables, some housing, and maybe $5 for stem shifters. If you donate the downtube shifters, you will probably just be able to swap them for stem shifters.