capnjonny 

I'm just finishing up a cleanup on the bike then it goes in the shed at the Bike Exchange for sale.

It is an virtually unused example with almost perfect paint with showroom gloss. It is all original, with the 40 spoke Araya Wheels in back and 36 spoke in front. It even has the original water bottle(pictured in the catalog). I stripped it then cleaned and waxed the frame,re greased the bottom bracket and head set bearings, and cleaned and polished the bright work before re assembly.

It currently has the Shimano Deer Head derailleurs which are in new condition and Suntour bar end friction shifters. I swapped out the Suntour 5 speed freewheel for a 6 speed Shimano hyperglide unit. the rear drop outs were set at 124mm so It was easy to stretch them by hand to accept the wider Freewheel.

I am having a lot of resistance in the rear derailleur and it is not shifting well. I am going to get rid of the original open wire cover and use regular spiral wound 5 mm with the plastic liner and see how it shifts. If that doesn't do it I will install a Suntour Vx GT and see if it makes things any smoother. The only other change I am making is to remove the foam Bar covers and install regular black cork tape.

The bike is in Mtn. View Ca. It is 54 cm.

So what is she worth?

The bike is truly in showroom condition.

oddjob2

You know the drill, pics are essential.

Bianchigirll 

Is the resistance present if the rear wheel is not mounted? So are we talking cable friction? How are the cables run? I never had good luck running barend all the way under the tape.

If the friction is more like hard shifting what is the position of the rear wheel to the RD? You want to try and get the rear axle over the jockey pulley in the RD.

Yes pics are a must!

wrk101

Have you cleaned and lubed that RD? Its 34 years old. Just because it looks brand new on the outside, its really common for the main spring to get sticky. Ditto jockey wheels. Are you using old original cables? Original tires? All of that stuff is old. Rock hard foam bar covers don't age well either. These items are consumables for a reason. Even sitting in storage for 34 years unridden, this stuff will age out and need replacement. I have found that that coiled SS housing does not like stainless cables. It seems to perform better with new, cheapie galvanized cables.


I've owned and sold a handful of Miyata 1000s. IMO, the late 1980 models were much better than the early 1980s stuff. But all of them are very nice! Deerhead derailleurs bring good value, but they don't hold a candle to a Suntour Vx GT, which can still be found for less.

While a Miyata 1000 is a fine bike, its not something that buyers want to put in a display case. Its still cheap enough (say half of a new Trek 520) where people want to ride them.


In my market, you can't get FMV out of a Miyata 1000, I've tried. Since eBay has all the fees and shipping, I'll try to sell bikes locally for about 30% less than my eBay price. If they don't move, I then go to eBay. Plenty of sold history on eBay. The good news for me is I can buy them locally at a discount, as long as I am willing to hold my nose and sell on eBay. Parts of course go straight to eBay, no market here for them at all.

Chombi1 

The "open" spring wire cable cover for the derailleur shifter cables you mentioned is actually preferred by a lot of C&Vers, as it gives a classic period touch to the bike. They can get gummed up from dirt entering the spring, but with just some regular cleaning and just a little bit (not too much so it does mot attract too much dirt) lube. they work very well, so try to just servicing it and retain it on the bike, as every little bit of originality helps realize maximum potential value when you sell it.
Removing the foam bar covers is on the other hand, a good move....

trainman999

I have taken the Teflon liner out of modern cables and inserted it in the spring housing to make it shift better. You can also run the cables over a block of paraffin to lube them doesn't attract dirt like oiling them.

coolkat

That original bare housing for bar-ends is horrible. Basically impossible to get good shifts with that garbage.

Gets me a little more cash when i'm selling barcons though so that's nice.

capnjonny 

Yesterday I took the bike in to the Bike exchange(Open shop day) and replaced the shift cable covers with lined 4mm straight wire (not spiral wound ) covers. The front derailleur shifts very smoothly and the rear , while still a little stiff, shifts much better. The shift cable exits the bar wrap just before the brake levers so there is a nice loop before it reaches the down tube cable stop. I checked the size again and it is actually 51 cm so that may affect value. This bike was only ridden a few times. The original Brake pads show only very slight wear and the wheels show no wear or scoring on the braking surface. I have been looking at the SF bay area Craigs list for comparables and am a little discouraged about getting anything close to $600. I am now thinking We should just take it to the swap meet and put $400 on it and see if there is any interest at that price.

Next Saturday I will try moving the rear axle back further in the dropouts to see if that affects the shifting any. Currently the set screws on the rear dropouts are screwed almost all the way in.

wrk101

This is why reluctantly I have sold top of the line bikes like this on ebay. $400 should be an average vintage touring bike, like a Trek 520. A special one like a Miyata 1000 has a lot of value, but getting it locally can be a challenge. Figure $650 to $750 on ebay, but then deduct all the fees/have to pack it/headaches.

I'd throw on a Vx GT RD just to see if it does better. The good news, if it helps, you can always sell the Deerhead for more than what a Vx Gt sells for. There are just a handful of derailleurs that I "hoard". The Vx GT is one of them.

One of the Miyata's I sold was a 51cm BTW.

oddjob2

Benchmark for you.



Pristine Six-10 sold last year in Detroit for $425 with new Paselas, bar tape, mild overhaul/tune-up. Water bottle not included.

samkl 

Thanks Oddjob, at least we have one pic of a gorgeous Miyata touring bike in this thread. Show us the Miyata 1000, OP!

capnjonny 

I left it at the shop last weekend. I will be sure to take some pics this Saturday when I go in.

capnjonny 

Darn, I forgot to take pics of the Miyata. Saturday I even brought my camera.

I got to the shop at 8:30 to set out bikes for the days volunteer session and found that the other guy who does set up couldn't make it. So started an incredible day. We had over 100 people show up to volunteer! a new world record! Normally on a work day we get 30 people plus about 10 regulars. Every one was buzzing around like bees.