denaffen

I just picked up this very clean DB Ascent, intending to part it. But it really is in good shape. Am I being stupid, or is it just a mid80s MTB of no particular interest to anyone and I should feel free to part it?

himespau 

It looks to be decent quality (probably make a solid all roads bike if converted to drop bars), but I think the decision to go big box store in the 90's hurts the value of diamondback bikes in the same way that a lot of people can't see past big box store Schwinns when they see a vintage one. You considering this as a keeper or a flip if you didn't part it out?

bikemig 

Old MTBs have increased in value. You can maximize your return by parting this out but it's also a lot of work to sell parts individually. Personally I'd either fix it up to ride or fix it up to sell as a complete bike. None of the parts on this bike appear to be that valuable.

denaffen

If I don't part it, it'd definitely be a quick flip given the condition and what I paid. But the crankset and rear derailleur are pretty close to what I was looking for on another project, and it cost me less than those parts would from elsewhere.

bargainguy

I've spent the better part of my life trying to not part out bikes and keep them as intact as possible. But in the case of old 26ers, the parts can be worth 3-4 times what you paid. So yeah, go ahead and part it out if you want, no shame there.

bikemig 

If you need the parts, that's a different story. There's generally no better way to pick up old parts than a donor bike.

DMC707

That looks like it has the concave rims everyone is gaga for

wrk101

On middle of the line vintage rigid frame MTBs, financially, part outs yield the most money. Its not really hard to do either. Thumb shifters, triple crankset, wheels, and the frameset are all sellable. Derailleurs and seat posts sometimes have value. I include the seat post, headset and brake calipers with the frameset, unless the brake calipers and seat post are something special.

One other advantage of part outs is you don't spend additional money on consumables, and you avoid about four hours of work. On MTBs of this ilk, say I pay $100 for it. I put four hours work into it, and at least $50 to $75 into consumables. In my market, I could sell the completed project for $150. So if everything goes well, I lock in a $25 loss. Any surprises along the way and I lose more. I've done this several times for friends and family. Thats OK, and you have a good looking bike here! For years, I avoided rigid frame MTBs as it was a struggle to even break even on them. Now with the world of part outs, its hard to NOT make money on them. How things have changed.

Too bad it doesn't have original pedals, I often cover the price of one of these bikes by just selling the pedals alone.

On a part out, I could put about one hour into the bike on disassembly, cleaning, and writing ads. For this, I might get $350 to $400. So before fees, I'm making $250 to $300, after fees, $200 or more.

If the bike is a step up from this one, derailleurs start to have value too. I'm doing one right now. Got a deal at $25, was not complete, missing seat post, saddle, and derailleurs, rusty too!! To many it would look like: "you paid money for that piece of crap?" Should garner about $600 from the parts. If I completed it, I would lose $200 plus. Now for a keeper, sure, I'd consider it.

And many people who knock people that part out, in another thread will post: "where can I find this part?" Most of those desirable parts come from .... part outs.

Except for some really special bikes, rigid frame MTBs complete go cheap, and parts bring $$. When I look at potential bikes, the first thing I look for are thumb shifters. Second are pedals. A lot of the old school MTB pedals are desirable to the BMX market. Third is the crankset. Any Sugino triple is desirable. Then wheels. Often, the buying decision is made on thumb shifters or pedals alone. Look up pricing on early Deore XT pedals or better yet, Suntour XC II bear traps. Bought a Diamondback recently just for its XC II pedals. I'll end up restoring it, just for the fun of it. When it moves on, it will likely be dismantled. Realize if you sell one of these bikes complete, there is a fair chance the buyer will part it out....

My last four purchases (on a road trip) were early to mid 1980s MTBs: two 1983, one 1984, one 1986. I ran out of room before I ran out of deals on rigid frame MTBs.

denaffen

Yeah, that's pretty much my take. I probably could have done a quick flip on it and maybe maybe made $100. But the crankset and derailleurs were worth more than that to me for another project -- it would have cost more than $100 to source the parts for that project. So once I strip most of the drivetrain for my own nefarious purposes, I'm really left with a pile of parts to sell off. It's an awfully clean MTB to do that too, but whatever, if folks were knocking down the doors for DB Ascents, I wouldn't have gotten it so cheap.

ThermionicScott 

I think that must be an ‘86 or ‘87 model, the first couple years they made it. But it was still one of the lower models, with straight-gauge tubing, so that must hold down the value.

I wouldn’t feel any guilt parting it out...

VtwinVince

This is the dilemma I usually run into when I buy an old MTB. For instance, I picked up a '91 Scott Pro Racing from the original owner because it has a complete, early M900 XTR groupset on it in near-mint condition which I wanted to swap on to my Rocky Mountain Titanium. But when I saw how nice a state of preservation the Scott is in.......

wrk101

Happened to me as well on a full XT Shogun Prairie Breaker. Parts ended up on my 1988 Cimarron, which had totally, completely worn out parts on it. Its how it goes sometimes.

I had negotiated a price on the Shogun before I left the house. When I arrived, the bike was excellent. So I paid the buyer his original asking price. He looked at me strangely, saying "this is too much". I left with him still wanting to give me change. Fortunately, the Shogun was the wrong size. But a team issue, with Tange Prestige frame, it was really nice.

DMC707

Love this !

repechage

I considered one of these in the 80’s, out of my size and back ordered.
the color I was more familiar with was the turquoise.
if you keep the parts you need- send a message. Looks like a 17-18”?

Inusuit

Guy had three bikes for sale on Facebook Marketplace. One was a 1995 Specialized Rockhopper in pristine condition. He wanted $150 for all three. I had no interest in the other two. I offered him $75 for RH. When I went to pick it up, he threw in a Thule 4-bike receiver hitch carrier. I won't do anything with the RH except ride it.