Binky

I picked up this Vagabond RX-500 a couple of days ago, looking very grim.
My wife didn't want me to put it on the bike rack.
It was on its way to the dump.
I should have taken a few pictures before the soap and water, just to amuse you all.
I am not sure whether Vagabond was the house brand for Kresges or Zellers.
I think that these sub entry-level bikes probably sold for about $63.00 Canadian.
Assembled in Canada with entirely Japanese (no Chinese) drive parts.
Anyway, the filth was water-soluable and once it was hosed off and wiped down this bike is what was under the dirt.
Even the tires look good.

So.... Whats it worth where YOU are ?

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himespau 

Due to Covid, that $63 price sounds like it might be doable. Hell, my wife sold her big box store Schwinn "mtb" (ranger?) in a couple hours at a garage sale for $20 and it was all rusty and had a torn saddle (I wanted to give it away). You never know what people will buy.

ClydeClydeson

It's in very good condition, but is a very basic low cost bike. I think someone might pay $100 for it, but I would feel guilty asking that. Get the original $63 out of it and call it even.

ClydeClydeson

IIRC Vagabond bikes were sold at Home Hardware or some similar establishment - Maybe Beaver Lumber?

Binky

I will put it on the local buy and sell today for $150, (about $110 US) and likely get an offer or two.
I am living very close to a large city where it is possible to bike all year round and even students and under-employed people have to pay about $1,720.00 per year for a Presto pass to ride the TTC buses and subways.
With a modicum of care the bike should last a few years.

ClydeClydeson

Probably not. WIth chromed steel rims and pressed steel hubs, and the absolute cheapest of everything else, a single year of trouble free use would be a miracle.

DMC707

Students is the magic word for getting $150 for this bike. For as long as i remember, its been hip and smooth to go retro. From the clothes, the shoes, - even basic campus transportation

The kids will pay a little more to project an image that says "I care so little about style, that im stylish !"

Binky

Here is the competition in Toronto, for my old Vagabond...

https://toronto.craigslist.org/oak/b...360227473.html

Binky

No. Proximity to "The City Drake Made Famous" are the magic words.

Imagine being under-employed, or a student, in Toronto and shelling out $145.00 EVERY month to rent a transit pass... about $1,700.00 every year.

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DMC707

Who's Drake ?

ClydeClydeson

He's known as the hip-hop artist that Degrassi st. in Toronto made famous.

I think his most well-known work is appearing in the following meme:

seypat

Not much...............but, my local CL is loaded with similar bikes that are overpriced. They keep sitting, day after day, month after month.

I'd look for a homeless, jobless drifter to buy it. That's a match made in heaven.

SoccerBallXan

You’ve got this for free and know it’s best use will be a student looking to stay out of poverty. Why not list it for $50 and go buy you and the wife a nice dinner?

One mans trash, another mans treasure I guess… Seems like you’re inheriting the small fortune that’ll come with the hassles of selling this bike. Ever wonder why it was on the way to the dump?

Binky

You are right. I'll do that.
Obviously to me, I know exactly why it was on its way to the dump: It was dirty.
The owner saw it as just a piece of garbage.
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alcjphil

Well, it cleaned up really well. I doubt that the bike has more than 50 km on it. If you were to give it a going over repacking wheels, bottom bracket and headset along with lubricating the cables you could ask $125 with a clear conscience. One should keep in mind that these would be Canadian dollars, so less than $100 US and that in a very hot bike market even in non COVID times. One other thing I would do whether you do an overhaul or not would be to lower the stem about 1 cm. As it is, the stem looks as if it is a touch above the minimum insertion line. The bike presents very well, basically not a scratch on it. I showed it to my girlfriend and she thought that it was beautiful.

Binky

Well, your girlfriend OBVIOUSLY has good taste in men and bikes.
The handlebar quill is quite long and the minimum insertion line is buried in the head tube.
Of course after I cleaned the grime off the bike I did the usual frame checks and put new bearings and fresh grease in the BB, and fresh grease in the bearings in both of the wheels, greased the pedal and head tube bearings, put on four new brake pads, and two new derailleur cables. Truing the wheels took all of ten or fifteen minutes because, as you noted, the bike was so very close to being unused.

I often find young womens 10-speed bikes from the 1970s & 1980s in this condition but very few young mens bikes.

I am a retired maintenance mechanic (millwright / machinist) and its all just fun anyway.
Some of what I find is laughably bad but the satisfaction is always there.

Below is an old 12-speed AllPro from a few years ago of which I am particularly proud.
Original paint: Only the pedals were actually rusty. The rest was vegetation and barn grime.

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