trekee

Hello there- I have a 1971 Schwinn bicycle that I am looking to sell at a flea market. Don't know a whole lot about it other than it is copper brown in color and has the narrow bike tires. Anybody have a round a bout price they think that I should ask for it? I figure you all would know more than me. Greatly appreciate your help! Thanks-Ben

Noah Scape

Check this site... it should tell you what model schwinn you have. That will also help you determine its value. If it turns out to be a Paramount with a 26" frame give me a holla!

https://www.geocities.com/sldatabook/models7074.html

seely

Copper sounds like a Varsity/Le Tour/Whatever... so its probably not worth too much (to me anyways) and fairly common. Bikes like that at our shop, after we have gone through them and made any necessary minor repairs we ask about $50.

wangster

so what sort of value would u put on a 65' supersport, radiant coppertone, with all original stuff except for seat and post?

stumpjumper

<i>so what sort of value would u put on a 65' supersport, radiant coppertone, with all original stuff except for seat and post?</i>

If its nice, about $100~125 to someone who knows what it is. To the common public, ablut ten bucks. No one seems to know those were fillet-braised in the Paramount factory, albiet with lower class components.

What size/condition is it? I may be interested. I have a purple '65 now, am always interested in fillet braised ss's and sports tourers.

wangster

sorry, but i'm not looking to sell, i love that bike, just wanted to know what the ball park value is. It's in great condition with just the usual scratches on the frame, nothing really noticeble considering it's 40 years old. I've actually been offered more than 125 for it, but it's too great of a classic for me to let go, even though i used it for commuting, it's my favorite.

stumpjumper

I can beleive that. Brooklyn is a bit more bike saavy than Dayton seems to be (sad to say). People look at the ashtabula crank and pie-plate chain guard ans assume its another flash-welded piece of junk.

If its about 60-61cm and you ever decide to sell it, drop me a line.

zbicyclist

This sounds like the sort of bike that goes for $30 at Working Bikes Cooperative in Chicago, where they collect old bikes and sell off this type so they can fix up / send others to Africa. That's about their minimum price, and includes some minimum tune up work so it can be ridden (probably not as extensive as Seeley describes).

It depends somewhat on the condition: two years ago I paid $120 on Ebay for a practically mint 1976 Schwinn Super Le Tour (and quite a bit more to replace all the rubber and overhaul it). But I'm guessing this bike has steel wheels (rather than aluminum), and is heavy. It may use 27 inch tires (getting harder to find), or what might be worse, the proprietary S6 Schwinn tires.

These old Schwinns last forever, and so the bike is probably quite serviceable for commuting use, but it's sort of like an old car that still runs -- no Blue Book value. But, as another poster wrote, find out of the model name and try us again.

VicsDaughter

How can I figure out what model I have - based on the serial number I found a site that said it's a "Chicago Schwinn" but I can't tell if it's a Varsity, Le Tour or, etc. I am not experienced to know the difference. I wish I could show you a picture because you all could probably tell right away. I'm only on my 2nd meaningful post. Any guidance on what I should be looking for to figure out the type?
Thank you!
Erika

TMonk

moved to appraisals

Jeff Wills

The serial number will give you the year it was produced. From that you can look through the Schwinn catalogs online and match up equipment with model. Waterford Bikes maintains scans of many decades' worth of Schwinn catalogs:
Schwinn Catalog Scans (waterfordbikes.com)

A bit of warning: Schwinn parts were pretty interchangeable. When I worked in a Schwinn shop (40 years ago) it wasn't unusual to customize a new bike to suit an owner's whims.

daverup 

The best thing here would be for you to get your post count up to 10. However, if you try to post a pic, it will upload, but you will not be able to show it in the thread. If you searched through your user gallery, you or anyone else could see the pics. A regular member could link the pic.
Your gallery,
https://www.bikeforums.net/g/album/20779928

This thread where you asked the question was 16 years old, possibly a new thread would help.
Your bike does appear to be a varsity

juvela

-----




the Varsity model was the bottom of the range for Schwinn's "drop bar tenspeeds" at this time

"as is" at a flea market: $40-$60 tops

caveat: values and salability can vary widely by location

for example, Portland, Seattle & Vancouver are "hot" markets while Topeka not so much...

-----

oldroads

Really need at least one photo.
Does it have fenders?

I've seen a lot of Schwinn Suburbans in that color, so maybe this will help:

https://oldbikeguide.com/p_query_ful...value=SUBURBAN

juvela

-----



see posts #12 & #13 above


-----

oldroads

I saw the pics were not from the OP so I thought it was someone else's bike.
Yeah. It's a Varsity, so:

https://oldbikeguide.com/p_query_ful...qvalue=VARSITY

VicsDaughter

Thank you for the help! I don’t know how you got the photos, but you’re amazing! I looked at the catalogue but I can’t tell the difference between some of the models : | I’m a nube... I figured drafting off the same topics would at least get some I put from those of you knowledgeable in this area.

This bike is actually in San Diego. If we worked on it to clean it up and refurbish is some, what kind of value can a bike like this get? My mom likes to refinish things and maybe would do this as a hobby and as an honor to my dad. He just passed away 4 months ago from a sudden heart attack and we’re all working through our grief.

Thanks again for all the help,
erika

Clang

The problem with refurbishing a Varsity in this condition is that it has a low price ceiling. After buying and installing new rim strips, tubes, tires, chain, cables, bar tape, and other expenses that crop up, it's easy to get "upside-down" on your project.

I'd say sell it as-is as a project for someone else. My estimate would be more like $20-$40

There are cheap ways to shine it up a bit though. Give it a good soap and water bath, then hit the rusted unpainted steel and chrome parts with some wadded up, water-wetted aluminum foil (it's normal for it to turn black and crumbly as you use it).

VicsDaughter

That sounds like a good reco. Thank you!