Selling a bike that's too good for me
 

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...19888d7fbe.jpg

This LeJeune was my pandemic project. I bought the frame from BF member big chainring--being irresistably drawn to the lovely willow-leaf seatstay caps, among other things. I built it up in a more or less period-correct manner, as is my wont. It was my first venture into tubular tires since 1971. it's just my size, and a great ride.

The thing is, it's too good for me. It has what I regard as an absolutely perfect level of patina--a few chips on the decals, the odd minor scratch in the still-gleaming paint, not a trace of rust. I only rode it twice before it dawned on me that it would quickly get beaten up on the gravel roads around here, which would be make me very sad. I can't even stand to store it in the shed with my other bikes, so it's hanging up in my shop and and taking up too much valuable space. It's time to get it into the hands of someone who lives somewhere with better roads and more storage space.

I'm guessing that others around here have had the same experience, but I don't ever recall reading about it. When I get around to it, I'll post it in the "for sale" thread.

Mods, if it's uncool to mention a bike being for sale in a thread like this, feel free to move or delete this.

I understand if you want to sell it, but the idea that an object is too good for a person doesn't resonate with me. Nice work, BTW.

Yeah, it's an old bicycle. If you think it's "too good for you" then I think you have some more fundamental issues to spend time working on than old bikes! No one should ever look at an object and think "I don't deserve that." It's a lump of bits of metal stuck together.

Too expensive? Sure. I've sold some things that I couldn't justify keeping because I was in a financial situation that required me to prioritize. Not useful? Sure. I've built up bicycles that I realized I wouldn't ride much because local conditions were not favorable. Not enough space? Something has to go - but if you aren't in financial straits then it shouldn't have to be the "best" of what you've got - get rid of the worst first!

-Gregory

Price?

Nope, that concept does not exist in my world.

I would rather look at one of my bikes filthy, dirty and beat after memorable miles than pristine with shiny paint hanging in my office. The beauty of bikes is in the miles they are ridden IMO.

I'm not saying you're wrong, just not the way I think.

Very nice bike , and you did a great job building it up .Maybe "too good" is the wrong way to look at it. Perhaps it would be the wrong application , but not too good IMHO. Most of my bikes are well used and show their history but I have a couple that are very nice. They all get treated the same! I was out on my Colnago last year and was caught in one of our many rain storms that we have had this past winter. I don't like riding in the rain and usually don't have to even think about it in Southern California , but I got caught and I just continued on . This is a bike that I had sent out to Franklin Frame to be totally restored with the original orange color , it is my grail bike . After the ride , I cleaned it and waxed the paint , polished the shiny bits , and rewaxed the chain. It has been on dirt roads , a little bit of pebbly gravel and many miles of rural and city roads. It is a better bike than I deserve but it ain't too good for me! I'm gonna ride the heck out of it.

I remember this frame. It was seriously tempting me back then, but I had just bought a PX-10. Looking forward to you posting it in the Sales Forum.

When I buy a nice bike, I briefly have twinges of feeling unworthy of the bike. That passes pretty quickly after a few rides, getting the bike dirty and a few new scratches in the paint. It's my bike once all that happens.

jonwvara Sell it. If you are uncomfortable using it let it go to someone else.

I’ll skip my philosophical treatise on this topic since it boils down to letting go.

I say keep it.
A while back I had a fancy race bike. After a long hiatus riding other bikes, I came back to it. I hated it. Debated selling it. Himmed & hawed for a while. It sat unused except for Zwift for a few years. Eventually, after all that time on the trainer, adjusting the fit, bit by bit, I got it back on the road. Swift, effortless, fast. Everything I had bought it for. "Sparks joy" is the phrase that pays. Had I sold it, I would have deprived myself the opportunity of many happy miles. Now that this rim braked & quick release bike is almost 8 years old, the brand worshipping paparazzi that caused me to feel self-conscious & obligated has mostly subsided. The added pressure of what others think & judge has been removed. Now I just ride it, knowing the bike is special, to me. I'm glad I kept it.

I have another custom bike that, to me is irreplaceable. I don't ride it that much. (Read: ever.) It's price was about 6 months pay at the time I got it. It still sparks joy every time I do ride it. It lives on a hook as a prize possession. It's as much a work of art as it is anything. It's a great bike. It's more than a bike & I treat it as such.

Just because you don't actively use a thing doesn't necessarily mean it will be better suited to someone elses hands. They may not understand what it means to you. What it's worthy of. What it's worth. That's all the more reason to safeguard it. IMO.

I had a beautiful chrome Paramount that I just had to buy. After having it for awhile I realized that I didn’t like riding it because of the beautiful condition. And I just don’t have room for bikes I don’t ride. So I absolutely understand where your coming from.

The good news is that there is a fix for that. It is called therapy because all that is most certainly in your head.

Think about it; does this mean that you would never be able to ride a brand new bike? It would be in a whole lot better shape than this one, it would cost you the same if not more, and you would have to subject it to the horrors of the road just the same.

Tell you what; for a solution cheaper than therapy box your bike and send it to me here in Alaska. I'll put a few hundred miles on it down gravel roads until it has so much gravel marks that you won't have to worry about another one. If this is what it takes for you to start enjoying your bike it will be worth it.

If it's perfect and you like riding it except for the dings and scrapes of use, may I suggest Heli Tape (AKA polyurethane film tape)?

Rumor is that this or a similar product is applied to the leading edge of helicopter rotor blades to shield them from wear. Apply it to the downtube, bottom bracket, and drive side chainstay, and anywhere else you want to protect the frame, maybe the outside edges of the fork blades, the other chain stay, and the outside of the seat stays (those are more for scuffs and scrapes from leaning the bike, transport, etc). There are various thicknesses, but most come as a 3 mil thickness to provide cushioning for impacts. If you are flying through flinty scree, you might want a heavier tape.

If you've ever put a screen protector on a cell phone, you'd apply this the same way.

I like Lejeune’s very much. I now have four. Angst over one? My notes would be to move to traditional looking tires, a silver seat post and Red bar tape as was original.

Lejeune bikes are staggeringly underappreciated. Even BikesDirect apparently never made an offer for the rights to the name. Me, I'd spend half an hour reorganizing my bike storage and keep the Lejeune.

A set of fenders would help protect the paint. But just as it was your decision to buy the bike, it's up to you if you want to sell. Riding is supposed to be fun, and if you feel like you'd be worried about it, then it makes sense to sell.

I've got a bunch of project bikes that I'm intimidated by, because I don't have the time, money, focus and skills to do right by them.. And yet they keep sneaking in the garage......

I get it. I had an '87 Ironman in the Miami Vice colorway that I scored in as new condition. I rode it awhile and put a scratch in the top tube paint. I convinced myself to sell it before I dinged it up anymore.

If you are not already in sales, may I suggest a new career for you.

EDIT: Didn't really understand what you were saying when I wrote that; the bike is not "too good for you," it's too pristine and too easily damaged.

Hope you find your perfect ride. Really be sure you want to sell it, though, because you may miss it!

I can relate to this. I sold my Singer because it deserved to be in better hands than mine for the sake of its preservation.
It hurt a little to see it go but it went to a friend so I'm glad about that.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...d14327d7_b.jpgOn loan to Scott for Cino by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

Got one more bike in this same category that should go to a better home - one of these days I intend to sell it too. 1937 Hobbs of Barbican. I've just ridden it once in the past two years.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...078da79a_b.jpgThe Old Brit by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

Matt , I didn't know you sold that Singer. That is the bike you were riding when I met you in Paso Robles California ? I think it is . You looked so comfy on that bike when we went on that ride. 2016 , I think.

as always your bike, your feelings, your life, your choice :)

my approach is ride my "best" bike as much as I can. bikes are meant to be used and put smiles on your face. so i ride my Kirk for commuting and weekend rides as much as possible

so if you don't get smile on your face when you ride the Le Jeune, then maybe it should go, otherwise ride and enjoy (of course there are all the other conideratios, like space etc)

And all of this time, I've been assuming I'm just too good for my bikes.

Man, this Hobbs is awesome. Unfortunately, it's too small (but not too good), for me.

I knew I'd get busted for that seatpost! Hey, it was the first months of the pandemic, I didn't have a silver post the right size, and couldn't find one anywhere. And I had a roll of black tape, but no red. Also, I never managed to learn much about LeJeunes, or what the original specs of this model might have been, or what model it is, or the year of manufacture. Around 1973-4? In building it up, I relied on semi-educated guesswork, and what I had in my parts bin at the time.

I suppose I could have been clearer in my original post. It's not that the bike is too good for me, really--I consider myself to be a good person with a certain amount of patina--but that I have also been working on downsizing for several years. I've owned as many as eight or nine bikes at one time (which is nothing around here, I realize), but I set myself the goal of whipping the total down to three. I now have a modern touring bike (a ten-year-old Long Haul Trucker 26); a Univega Viva Sport with studded tires for winter use, and a paint-challenged Gitane TDF for the fun of it.

So the LeJeune spot is already filled by the Gitane, and I am happy with that because the Gitane and I have a history, and the LeJeune and I don't. Here's hoping it goes to someone who specifically wants it.