fender1

Had a question for the Paramount experts here in C&V.

Are specific eras of Paramount's considered more "valuable" than others?

I had a conversation with a work friend who is interested in older bikes and he was of the mindset that the late 70's versions were less desirable vs. say, the "Disneyland Graphic" era bikes?

I understand the early eighties versions are rare because of the scarcity before production was ramped back up but are they more desirable or command more of premium than say and early 70's version?

I got me thinking about it and I was wondering if were actually based on something that folks think or just something that gets passed around as fact on the internet?

pastorbobnlnh 

IMO, it's all up to the person purchasing the Paramount. What tickles his/her fancy determines the value. Just because of scarcity, the 1930s-1959 Paramounts should have the most value.

Kabuki12

The Paramounts of the early to mid seventies are very nice to me . As far as value , I would think condition would be key , as well as originality . Ultimately it is up to the buyer’s discretion ( as Bob said ) as to what a bike is worth , especially in this market. A friend of mine picked up a 1973 P13 ,original paint and most of the original mech for $400 . It had the Campagnolo group and correct Cinelli bar and stem but it had Mavic wheels and hubs so not completely original .A nice rider that I thought was an exceptional deal. Joe

52telecaster

I like the early 70s too. The p10 and p15 have excellent clearance when mounting 700c.

merziac

IMO your friend is not wrong but only in the fact that they are actually fairly rare and scarce by the numbers, they also have some older less robust and refined components as well.

The later Paramount's, especially 70's are the opposite, again IMO.

They are very stout for what they are, they are workhorses, fairly light despite that and with the later refined versions of components they function extremely well with minimal futzing and fussing.

And being from the bike boom, they fully lend themselves to plenty of resto modding, a very good thing for us.

They are the ones you want if you're going to ride one, want to be able to rely on and enjoy it.

This is another case of the eye of the beholder, I love Paramount's, the history, the hype and tradition, I don't think it gets any better.

I have a 40's, three 50's and five 70's, so no 60's yet, it seems they are more scarce, especially big ones in my size.

Here's a cross section that you may have seen before.