BikePower

Hello friends, just bought this bike, it was actually free on facebook marketplace but i paid $20 to drop it off at my nearby location.

Anyway, i have been unable to find the Ross Paragon of my youth but when I saw this lost soul I couldnt help but become curious.

i soon learned it has the Shimano 600 SIS components and is as far as I can tell complete and all original.

My understanding is that Nashbar was a huge bike mailorder company that would have their branding put on the same bikes found in bike shops.

It has a 23 inch measurement from the center of the crank to the top of the seat tube. When I stand over the top tube it is comfortably touching my pubic bone. I am 5'11" and it seems this bike is the right size despite looking too small when I loaded it into the car.

The tires seem to be a type that is glued on which I have never seen before. Also there is no inner tube unless it is sewed into the tire. The valve stems are also of a variety I have never seen. The normal Schrader valve attachment for my air hose does not inflate the tires.

What tire options are available for these wheels?

On the bike stand it smoothly shifts through all the gears front and rear. The little gear wheels in the rear deralieur do look worn to my eye. I wonder if these are readily available.

I prefer an upright position and have decided to find some aluminum mustache bars and a different stem. The current stem is a Cinelli 120 with approx 22.2mm steering tube and 26mm clamp for the handlebars.

I saw this exact bike on ebay yesterday for $1100 but that cant be its actual value can it? After all it is just a Nashbar.

I found limited information on this bike online.

If someone can tell me about tire options for these wheels I would appreciate it. Also info on the handlebar conversion.

I wouldnt mind painting it but if it is some kind of rare valuable bike maybe I shouldnt.

I took a bunch of pics in case anyone is interested. Thanks


As found yesterday.

Sticker still on it but what does it mean?

BikePower

More pictures

BikePower

More photos

BikePower

Some more

What are the tire options for these wheels and what kind of air hose tip will fit.

National Tire Co LTD

daverup 

You might want to consider selling it and buying a bike you could use as is.
The parts alone will cost a bit, especially since you will be replacing the wheels. What you have are called Tubular or Sew Ups.

BikePower

Still more

billytwosheds 

That's actually a pretty nice little bike. I would regrease the bearings, get some new tires and brake hoods, and ride it.

Most likely a 1986/87 model, made of Tange 2 tubing. Full SIS is nice. You may be dealing with tubular tires, which some prefer but for practicality or commuting they can be more work. The valves are presta, different from your typical shraders valve but common today.

Why repaint? It screams mid-80's awesomeness.

The 1986 version from the Nashbar catalog looked like this:



More info: https://bikeretrogrouch.blogspot.com...ging-face.html

BikePower

Ok so it looks like the stem on mine is not original since the one in the catalog is black. Thanks for all the info. So the wheels I have can only take the tubular tires and there is no "clincher" type with a separate inner tube that will fit these wheels?

BikePower

A few more

daverup 

No, the wheels are tubular only

The gear ratios are a bit steep for most too

BikePower

Ok thank you Dave. Can I just put Sew Ups on it? Whats the disadvantage to them? Are they still widely available or is it a dwindling supply or $$$ for them? I really like the bike and I feel lucky to have found it so cheap. I havent been this happy in a while , been kinda down in the dumps until yesterday.

blamester

It's a good bike and might do you well.
Looks big for 5/11 but you have to ride it to see.
It will need oil and grease and inspection.
The jockey wheels are likely not worn, the bike has low miles.
​​​​​​Read the tubular threads here and decide. I ride tubulars daily and have for a long time so i am completely confident in them.
You may not want the hassle of learning more about them.
​​​​​​

daverup 

The Tubular tire section is at the top of the C&V forum, loads in info in there. They ride a bit smoother than comparable sized clincher tires with tubes. Still available, but require some effort. If you keep it, I'd just restore to original, it would be a waste to hybridize it.

billytwosheds 

If you want to keep the tubulars, you can get three tubular tires for $85 through Yellow Jersey.

https://www.yellowjersey.org/tt.html

As Dave said, the rear cluster is pretty tight, so it's not going to be great on hills. But for riding around town it'd be fine.

SurferRosa

BikePower

I just take it to the park and ride on the bike trail. We have very few hills here in Florida. Sometimes when going over a highway on an overpass there is a hil to climb. We do have wind here though, low gear is nice for that. Im not a distance rider anyway, I just go for 45 minutes, alternately sprinting for 60 seconds and then riding slow. I also like to rip around town on flat. I like accelerating from a dead stop and getting a pump in my quads. Top speed is fun too but not sustained. Its got a 13/52 and weighs 22 lbs, Im eager to see what it feels like on the flats. Do they offer a wider tube type tire? The ones on it are very skinny. I guess to solve all of that I could have someone rebuild the wheels with clincher rims and keep the hubs . I wonder what that would cost. I practically got the bike for free.

BikePower

heres what I was referring to. Is it actually worth that much?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/12507565113...mis&media=COPY

thinktubes 

Gearing is fine - Florida is the flattest state in America

BikePower

I hope you are right about low miles. I will snap a pic of the jockey wheels. Thanks.

SurferRosa

I was referring to your comment about painting it. Why the hell would you paint it? Have you ever painted a bike?

icemilkcoffee 

Great looking bike. It looks pristine! Don't paint over it! it looks perfect the way it is.

SurferRosa

You need to find a dust cap for the left pedal.

bboy314

Not even close, in my opinion. Try to find similar SOLD listings to assess value. Sellers can ask whatever price they want - only has any reflection on value if someone pays it.

Mr. 66

Tange 2 is good, many bikes made of it at the time. Under the radar, great performer, nice economical speedbike. I'm building up a Lotus made of it, older than your Nashbar.

BikePower

good eyes. I just noticed it today while taking pictures.