Bridgestone RB-1, minus the cult price
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Bridgestone RB-1, minus the cult price
Hi all.
I'd love to get me a 1991 or so Bridgestone RB-1, but man, those prices for a 30-year-old bike are nutty. I hear they ride really nice, and, full disclosure, I'm a full-on Bridgestone cultist (I ride an XO-2 I love considerably and I've had several others over the years). But I'm also a Not Spending Huge Money cultist as well. Does anyone have recommendations on steel, lugged, light, far less expensive frames and/or full bikes equivalent to the RB-1?
Thanks in advance,
Keith.
I'd love to get me a 1991 or so Bridgestone RB-1, but man, those prices for a 30-year-old bike are nutty. I hear they ride really nice, and, full disclosure, I'm a full-on Bridgestone cultist (I ride an XO-2 I love considerably and I've had several others over the years). But I'm also a Not Spending Huge Money cultist as well. Does anyone have recommendations on steel, lugged, light, far less expensive frames and/or full bikes equivalent to the RB-1?
Thanks in advance,
Keith.
#2
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 17,158
Mentioned: 481 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3810 Post(s)
Liked 6,693 Times
in
2,611 Posts
This might not appeal to your cultist tendencies, but I often see RB-2s for sale on CL at reasonable prices—or reasonable compared to RB-1s.
#3
Forum Moderator
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Kalamazoo MI
Posts: 20,650
Bikes: Fuji SL2.1 Carbon Di2 Cannondale Synapse Alloy 4 Trek Checkpoint ALR-5 Viscount Aerospace Pro Colnago Classic Rabobank Schwinn Waterford PMount Raleigh C50 Cromoly Hybrid Legnano Tipo Roma Pista
Mentioned: 59 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3090 Post(s)
Liked 6,595 Times
in
3,781 Posts
Centurion IronMan, numerous Trek 600 or 700 series
#4
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Seattle
Posts: 1,072
Bikes: my precious steel boys
Mentioned: 8 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 438 Post(s)
Liked 603 Times
in
359 Posts
High end Japanese bikes which weren't Bridgestone - Miyata 912/Team/Pro (though those have been getting pricy), Centurion Ironman/Prestige, High end Panasonics, high end Univegas (someone in Seattle is selling a Competizione with Superbe Pro that looks gorgeous).
Also late 80s Japanese-built Schwinn (excluding Paramount) - the Japanese built frames with Columbus Tenax tubes, like the Peloton, Premis, Prelude are good and can frequently be gotten cheap. I especially like the Premis which came with a funky paint job and trendy white Suntour Cyclone parts. Same with Japanese-made Bianchis.
e) forgot one- they've been getting expensive lately, but you can sometimes find lugged steel Specialized Allez bikes for a good price as well.
Also late 80s Japanese-built Schwinn (excluding Paramount) - the Japanese built frames with Columbus Tenax tubes, like the Peloton, Premis, Prelude are good and can frequently be gotten cheap. I especially like the Premis which came with a funky paint job and trendy white Suntour Cyclone parts. Same with Japanese-made Bianchis.
e) forgot one- they've been getting expensive lately, but you can sometimes find lugged steel Specialized Allez bikes for a good price as well.
Last edited by sheddle; 07-05-20 at 10:48 AM.
#6
Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Port Angeles, WA
Posts: 7,922
Bikes: A green one, "Ragleigh," or something.
Mentioned: 194 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1627 Post(s)
Liked 630 Times
in
356 Posts
Numerous late-80s Schwinns, like Tempos, Pelotons, Circuits.
__________________
● 1971 Grandis SL ● 1972 Lambert Grand Prix frankenbike ● 1972 Raleigh Super Course fixie ● 1973 Nishiki Semi-Pro ● 1979 Motobecane Grand Jubile ●1980 Apollo "Legnano" ● 1984 Peugeot Vagabond ● 1985 Shogun Prairie Breaker ● 1986 Merckx Super Corsa ● 1987 Schwinn Tempo ● 1988 Schwinn Voyageur ● 1989 Bottechia Team ADR replica ● 1990 Cannondale ST600 ● 1993 Technium RT600 ● 1996 Kona Lava Dome ●
● 1971 Grandis SL ● 1972 Lambert Grand Prix frankenbike ● 1972 Raleigh Super Course fixie ● 1973 Nishiki Semi-Pro ● 1979 Motobecane Grand Jubile ●1980 Apollo "Legnano" ● 1984 Peugeot Vagabond ● 1985 Shogun Prairie Breaker ● 1986 Merckx Super Corsa ● 1987 Schwinn Tempo ● 1988 Schwinn Voyageur ● 1989 Bottechia Team ADR replica ● 1990 Cannondale ST600 ● 1993 Technium RT600 ● 1996 Kona Lava Dome ●
#7
Senior Member
Buy once, cry once. Everything else is just an imitation.
__________________
My bikes: '81 Trek 957, '83 Trek 720, '85 Trek 500, '85 Trek 770,'81 Merckx, '85 Centurion Cinelli, '85 Raleigh Portage, '92 RB-2, '09 Bianchi
My bikes: '81 Trek 957, '83 Trek 720, '85 Trek 500, '85 Trek 770,
Likes For nesteel:
#8
aka: Dr. Cannondale
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 7,733
Mentioned: 234 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2155 Post(s)
Liked 3,404 Times
in
1,205 Posts
Agreed. The 87 Tempo in particular is a spectacular bike at a bargain basement price. Find an original one in your size and you won’t regret it.
I’ve owned several Bridgestones and never felt that the ride/performance was up to the hype/price. Nice, but...not memorably nice.
I’ve owned several Bridgestones and never felt that the ride/performance was up to the hype/price. Nice, but...not memorably nice.
__________________
Hard at work in the Secret Underground Laboratory...
Hard at work in the Secret Underground Laboratory...
Likes For J.Higgins:
#11
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 546
Bikes: colnago titanio oval master, pinarello treviso es, centurion prestige, tomac ti 26er, lemond buenos aires, mbk 753, vitus 992 and zx1, rocky mountain hammer disc,bd century titanium, specialized venge expert
Mentioned: 5 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 130 Post(s)
Liked 39 Times
in
20 Posts
Just my observations:
My best riders are late 80s early 90s steel from Concorde, Centurion, MBK and Lemond. Any bike made from Columbus sl, slx, tange prestige, Reynolds 531, 653, 753, and 853 will ride well if properly sized. Lots too choose from, but the marquis names always command marquis prices.
I don't care about what groupset a bike comes with... Shimano will be signicantly cheaper than campy equipped.
Toronto prices are usually higher than elsewhere, and this year they are astronomical.
My best riders are late 80s early 90s steel from Concorde, Centurion, MBK and Lemond. Any bike made from Columbus sl, slx, tange prestige, Reynolds 531, 653, 753, and 853 will ride well if properly sized. Lots too choose from, but the marquis names always command marquis prices.
I don't care about what groupset a bike comes with... Shimano will be signicantly cheaper than campy equipped.
Toronto prices are usually higher than elsewhere, and this year they are astronomical.
#12
Senior Member
I came here to find out what to do with my RB-1. You guys are not helping.
Likes For Wileyone:
#14
Extraordinary Magnitude
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Waukesha WI
Posts: 13,646
Bikes: 1978 Trek TX700; 1978/79 Trek 736; 1984 Specialized Stumpjumper Sport; 1984 Schwinn Voyageur SP; 1985 Trek 620; 1985 Trek 720; 1986 Trek 400 Elance; 1987 Schwinn High Sierra; 1990 Miyata 1000LT
Mentioned: 84 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2608 Post(s)
Liked 1,699 Times
in
935 Posts
Is that like "buy Kohler or Moen, or pay for Kohler or Moen?"
__________________
*Recipient of the 2006 Time Magazine "Person Of The Year" Award*
Commence to jigglin’ huh?!?!
"But hey, always love to hear from opinionated amateurs." -says some guy to Mr. Marshall.
Commence to jigglin’ huh?!?!
"But hey, always love to hear from opinionated amateurs." -says some guy to Mr. Marshall.
#15
Phyllo-buster
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Nova Scotia
Posts: 8,847
Bikes: roadsters, club bikes, fixed and classic
Mentioned: 133 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2298 Post(s)
Liked 2,054 Times
in
1,254 Posts
Likes For clubman:
#16
Bianchi Goddess
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Shady Pines Retirement Fort Wayne, In
Posts: 27,858
Bikes: Too many to list here check my signature.
Mentioned: 192 Post(s)
Tagged: 2 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2930 Post(s)
Liked 2,923 Times
in
1,491 Posts
Look for a late ‘80s Bianchi Brava. Nice Tange frames and 105 for ‘87/88 but the 89 had GPX. The Limited from ‘88/89 was pretty good too a bit nicer frame and 600.
a nice Nishiki or Panasonic or the Takara Elite are likely to be flying under the radar. Frankly there were lots of great bikes from that time period and I never understood why that RB1 commanded such a high premium
a nice Nishiki or Panasonic or the Takara Elite are likely to be flying under the radar. Frankly there were lots of great bikes from that time period and I never understood why that RB1 commanded such a high premium
__________________
“One morning you wake up, the girl is gone, the bikes are gone, all that's left behind is a pair of old tires and a tube of tubular glue, all squeezed out"
Sugar "Kane" Kowalczyk
“One morning you wake up, the girl is gone, the bikes are gone, all that's left behind is a pair of old tires and a tube of tubular glue, all squeezed out"
Sugar "Kane" Kowalczyk
#18
Master Parts Rearranger
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Portlandia's Kuiper Belt, OR
Posts: 4,403
Bikes: 1982 Trek 720 - 1985 Trek 620 - 1984 Trek 620 - 1980 Trek 510 - Other luminaries past and present
Mentioned: 221 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1556 Post(s)
Liked 2,024 Times
in
989 Posts
Schwinn Prologue for that Tange Prestige goodness. A lot of other suggestions people have had. If you want an apex predator that's actually still comfortable, get a Davidson Impulse. I realize it's more west coast than east coast with regard to awareness and availability (you'll have Spectrum Cycles with Tom Kellogg), but the Impulse is a dragon slayer, especially with the right wheel/tire combo. Part of the time, they sell for a lot cheaper than they should--I got a bizarrely good deal on my (very used) frameset. Maybe it's a poor suggestion. I'll echo late '80s lugged Specializeds in race geometry (Allez, Sirrus) as being very, very well sorted bikes/geometries. It may not be the super ultra lightest frameset out there (few frames are), but the numbers are bang-on and they never put a foot/tire wrong. There are enough out there that a few will fall through the cracks for a good price and you can scoop them up.
#19
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: La Habra, California
Posts: 788
Bikes: Italvega Super Speciales and Superlights
Mentioned: 33 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 355 Post(s)
Liked 345 Times
in
174 Posts
You could always sell it to the OP for half the price and include shipping cross border. He gets his RB-1 at a bargain price and you've done something with your RB-1. See how helpful we are?
__________________
Italvega and Torpado Enthusiast
Italvega and Torpado Enthusiast
#21
Senior Member
In the meantime, I've been researching tires and am thinking that the harsh ride I experienced on that last ride was maybe due to the 700x23c Gatorskins I had just installed on the wheels. So maybe I should just get better tires and ride the Bridgestone again. You know, as a spare bike.
#22
Senior Member
Likes For DeadGrandpa:
#23
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 2,321
Mentioned: 35 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 767 Post(s)
Liked 1,898 Times
in
889 Posts
Hi all.
I'd love to get me a 1991 or so Bridgestone RB-1, but man, those prices for a 30-year-old bike are nutty. I hear they ride really nice, and, full disclosure, I'm a full-on Bridgestone cultist (I ride an XO-2 I love considerably and I've had several others over the years). But I'm also a Not Spending Huge Money cultist as well. Does anyone have recommendations on steel, lugged, light, far less expensive frames and/or full bikes equivalent to the RB-1?
Thanks in advance,
Keith.
I'd love to get me a 1991 or so Bridgestone RB-1, but man, those prices for a 30-year-old bike are nutty. I hear they ride really nice, and, full disclosure, I'm a full-on Bridgestone cultist (I ride an XO-2 I love considerably and I've had several others over the years). But I'm also a Not Spending Huge Money cultist as well. Does anyone have recommendations on steel, lugged, light, far less expensive frames and/or full bikes equivalent to the RB-1?
Thanks in advance,
Keith.
https://newjersey.craigslist.org/bik...154023067.html
#24
Phyllo-buster
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Nova Scotia
Posts: 8,847
Bikes: roadsters, club bikes, fixed and classic
Mentioned: 133 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2298 Post(s)
Liked 2,054 Times
in
1,254 Posts
Don't know the market for these, nor what your price range or size is, but I just saw this for sale:
https://newjersey.craigslist.org/bik...154023067.html
https://newjersey.craigslist.org/bik...154023067.html