mrv 

thinking about getting this. I have a 420 I like, but it's a bit small. This should be a better size for me. But that fork looks off.



bent fork?

Salamandrine 

Yes, it's been front ended.

shoota 

How can you tell from that angle? It doesn't look all that off to me.

mrv 

yea... that's why I thought I'd get a couple more opinions. If I draw an imaginary line along the head tube, it looks like fork is bent back. I'll probably ask for a couple more photos.

shoota 

If you look at where the wheels are in relation to each other on the ground you can see the front end is just slightly to the left of center, which means the fork is turned ever so slightly to the right. This would definitely make the fork look "off" if you think you're looking at a perfectly straight on side shot.

Aubergine 

Salamandrine 

Yeah, I've seen a lot worse. It should be repairable for someone with a fork jig. I think these used hi ten forks.

seedsbelize 

I'm with shoota

bikemig 

It looks bent but what the heck, pretty much every fork we see looks bent. There's just something about pics online that make forks look bent. It must be the gods of bike forums doing this to mess with our minds,

ryansu

I would look closely at the areas below the head tube lugs on the top and down tubes that is where you often see paint issues as a result of the front end crash

SurferRosa

If the fork is bent, it's slight and can usually be repaired.

For me, the bigger question is, are the wheels a matching set? No one wants mismatched wheels, which might indicate a front end collision. When I've purchased a bike with mismatched wheels, I've always been prepared to acquire a matching set for it, even for those I flip.

seedsbelize 

Some of us don't care a whit if our wheels match.

mrv 

i got additional photos. I think the turned wheel was the reason it looked odd. the opposite side ford was visible, making the angle of the fork look wonky.
As far as the wheels go, I can't quite tell if they match or no. But looking at the '83 catalog, it would have had QR hubs, not these bolt on thingys.
1983 Trek Bicycle Brochure Part I - Racing Bikes

Probably I'll make an offer - see if he has any wiggle room since I'm a big whiny baby and don't want to drive 45 min one way.
It would be nice to size up from the TREK 420 I have now. And it looks to be the same frame material (mangalloy from Japan).



ahhhhh. .. that's better!

The Golden Boy 

I really dug my 84 420.

mrv 

It's a first world problem - up sizing my old lugged Japanese TREK frame - I like that these frames clear 37mm tires (just barely!) , 32 w/ fenders, probably.
I personally would like to have less stem showing.

cudak888 

Go see it and check for ripples at the headlugs, then eye the fork in person.

Remember, depending on the company, the blade taper could go anywhere. Some Raleigh Grand Prix models have blades that taper backwards from the crown, as the rear taper of the blade was made flush with the crown. Looks terrible, but that's how they were built.

-Kurt

jetboy 

it looks perfectly fine to me. and $100 forget about it and buy it.

SurferRosa

What about front and rear derailleurs?

Brake levers?

Shoes?

mrv 

I know exactly what you mean. I did that to two frames - a Schwinn Paramount during a criterium, the other a light weight Jamis mountain bike.

@jetboy - seriously thinking about it. It's an inch bigger than the one I have, which would be nice. I'm always amazed these nicely made, Japanese lugged frames don't sell for more and for faster, but I'm biased..... of course. It's the C&V forums! ha!

seedsbelize 

In my case it is rare that derailleurs are the same front and rear. Brake calipers can vary too. Shoes and brake levers tend to match.

shoota 

I knew it was straight. Go get it