xblairp

IT SEEMS I AM NOT ALLOWED TO UPLOAD PICS OR LINKS UNTIL IVE MADE 10 POSTS?

I found this one in a pawn shop I was doing some work for. Paid nothing for it, found it was too big for me thought I would restore refurbish and sell. I restore 18th, 19th, and MCM Lamps and furniture so antiques and have always maintained and upgraded my own bikes. Been flipping a few lately.
Condition - good component, frame and fork wise. No appreciable rust (pulled seat stem and handle bar stem). The biggest detractor is the paint - I look like a very nervous rider rode it through a metal coat-hanger factory. The port side chain stay and fork are littered with scratches.
Components - all orig. 105, wobbler rear tire. Not so: front wheel, handlebar (Rincon) and stem (FX Sakae), seat (Sella Italia).

Questions:
1. Part it out?
2. Restore to original condition. I find this particular paint scheme hugely boring. Would it kill the value to paint it the other color available that year Red and Classic White? I restore antiques part time but have never done a bike paint job but I keep looking it up on YouTube) I kind of like what someone else did and do modern components?
3. What would be a fair price to ask? As is? And restored to original condition say an 8 on a 10 scale. Paint myself have a pro do it?

Thanks in Advance.
​​​​​​​

Jeff Neese

I would sell it as is, and let the new owner decide what they're going to do with it. Or, part it out and sell the frame separately, as-is. That's a somewhat classic bike and the new owner may want to paint it, but maybe not the technique or color that you would pick out. If the frame is intact (straight and no dents), it will still sell for decent money even if the paint is scratched up.

xblairp

Thank You Jeff. Unfortunately I think I have to agree with you. Since I really can't ride it for any period of time it rally would be better for the owner to make the decision.

base2 

Do you have any idea of the size?
Measure from the center of the crankset to the top of the seat post clamp in inches.
Measure from the center of the seat clamp to the center of the top tube/head tube junction in centimeters.
What tire size does it have?

I ask because I have entertained thoughts of owning an RB1.

Jeff Neese

I have the same question. What size is it, where are you located, and what do you think you'd be asking?

xblairp

I live in Fort Worth. Sorry the measurements were in the pictures. This is a 59cm 23.25" (seat tube). sheldonbrown.com/bridgestone/1988/pages/bridgestone-1988-30.htm 2nd to last row large or xl are the measurements.

xblairp

Thanks for your help Jeff and base2. I can't receive private messages until I have 10 posts.

xblairp

Wheel size is 700c running 700x23 tires at the moments. I believe I read you can go up to 28mm?

TugaDude

You can upload pictures to your gallery and then we can view them there or someone can copy and post them within the thread.

Very desirable bicycle, but obviously condition is going to hurt the value. If the components are in good working order, not too worn or scratched up, that would be a positive.

Bridgestone bikes, especially the higher end, of which this is one, have a real following. That also helps.

base2 

Ah man.
I don't know if I'm wise or stupid but after studying the geometry chart, it pains me to admit that the 59 very likely is one size too large for me.

I did find a higher resolution catalog scan with readable numbers, if anyone else is interested.
https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3186...d42cb8ed_o.jpg

xblairp

I am still searching for the value. Does anyone have an idea, I have loaded pictures to my personal album. Thanks for all help in advance.

SoCaled 

Not seeing pics in your profile? Make a few more posts and you will be able to put them up. Pics will help a lot with value. Agree with other posters, probably best to let buyer choose paint, component swaps, etc.

Mr. 66

base2 

I was thinking I would offer $500 in as-is condition. Which I think is fair & I'd have let you keep everything that is not frame/fork to sell/dispose of in any way you saw fit. Doing so would drastically cut shipping & allow you to better monetize your find.

The plan for myself was to hit the parts bin & replace the wheels with tubeless PowerTap/Velocity A23's, an EDCO monoblock cassette, and GP5k's, cold set the rear to 130mm, install a Velo Orange 11 speed downtube shifters, & nix the Biopace crankset for a polished Ultegra 6800 & run a joejack Innicycle headset & nice modern 31.8 compact carbon bars.

It is a race bike after all & deserves modern advances in tech with a nod to the old, IMO.

You could probably get 1.5-2x the amount I was thinking (for me) to the right buyer if the bike was in pristine condition.

Good luck. I know you'll have no problem selling it.

3alarmer 

.
...I would not do a repaint on any bicycle I planned to sell. A good paint job, with appropriate decals, will cost way more than you can hope to get back on the sale of it, even if you do all the work yourself. And it is a great deal of work. Thee show up every now and then on the San Francisco Bay Area Craigslist. the RB 1 at one time commanded premium prices. Much higher ROI than some of the high end Italian bikes. For some reason, lately, the asking (and presumably selling) prices for all steel framed road bike with DT shifting seems to be down, with the possible exception of some famous maker customs. And even those are lower than they used to be.

I know I've seen $700-800 asked for them in the past. Lately, I think it would be difficult with your description of the paint to sell for much over $500, if that. But the market does experience seasonal variations, and it's the hottest part of the year here right now.

This guy has been trying to sell this one for $1750 for quite a while now. I don't see it happening, but maybe that's just me. I'm going to be advertising a few bikes of my own for sale. I have to remember that "time capsule" line.

Bridgestone bikes, on the whole, can be hard to figure out, because they used so many different model names and configurations over the years. Here's a pretty nice one, local to me, for $550, with Suntour Superbe components (rather than the more trendy at that time Dura Ace ). The RB-1 somehow got the press, and there's a mythos associated with it. So you have that going for you.

I think it's also possible to pull up a search engine that does national Craigslist searches. But I haven't done that in a while. As you might expect, used bike pricing varies with locale.

plonz 

The bike looks nice in the fuzzy photo. If the paint is as scratched as OP states, it will hurt value. The stem is also not a good fit for this bike.

I follow Bridgestone listings. I see RB-2s list $300-$400 but don’t seem to disappear until they fall into the $200s. RB-1s are a different league and pretty darn scarce. I usually see these list for $600+. Hard to dial in on what they actually transact at. I’ve never owned one but have always felt they were overvalued at those prices.

Personally, I’d go after the $500 offer above and call it a day.

Jeff Neese

Swapping parts and "modernizing" it is one thing, as long as you save all the old parts for the next owner. But once you start bending the frame (cold setting the rear) it's no longer an original and unmolested frame as it came from the factory. I trust the quality of any frame that came out of the factory with the Bridgestone name on it. After being bent by some guy in his garage with 2x4s and some string? Not so much. Even if it's done by a professional framebuilder with all the correct alignment tools, it's still never going to be original again once you start bending it. It could never be restored to original, or even period correct, without bending it again. Personally I would never buy a bike that has been cold set, or at least I would not pay the same as one that was still original.

If someone was set on needing an 11 speed, then they should just accept that this is not the bike for them. I have no problem if people want to cold set a Schwinn Traveler or something like that, but this is a frame that deserves to be left alone.

base2 

I do have the tools.
If this bike were 753 or something heat treated or whatever, I could see your point. Something's are just not meant to be. But this bike, as revered as it is, is cro-mo & thus worth the "risk" bringing into the modern age.

I also have boxes & boxes of 11speed stuff. I would need to go out & find or buy 8, 9, or 10 speed that would still need the 130mm OLD. Though, you have me thinking if not 11 speed, the decade old 10 speed SRAM Red gruppo I have in the garage would look quite dapper & cost exactly the same zero dollars.

To remain 6 speed @126mm, in my mind, would require a new tubeless rim be laced on a freewheel hub. (What a strange build that would be?) I'm not keen to do a superfluous wheel build when I have a pile of 130mm tubeless wheels already floating about. I mean: How can a bike even be brought up to "modern" with out at least the capability of tubeless? It's tech that's been in the bike world for better than 20 years.

I rebuild freewheel wheels with bent axles a few times per week. This bike deserves better than that.

Jeff Neese

Who says it needs to be brought up to modern standards? In your mind is a classic/vintage bicycle only useful to you if you modernize it? It's perfectly fine as a 6-speed, with conventional tires. Again, if you're looking for 10+ speeds, tubeless, etc. then just buy a frame that was built for that. You don't have to bend up a classic and valuable frame. Once you've done that, it can never be original "as built" again.

base2 

I entertained the thought of buying it & laid out the actions I would take if I were to do so.

A bike that is used is loved.

Would it be better to have a time-capsule wall-hanger? I think not. Especially when I have all the relevant components to restore it to former glory in milk-crates for single-digit prices? Ha! No. The past 35-odd years have been kind to the bike world. It would be tremendous respect to see that it gets the attention it deserves so that it can have a new second life in modern times.

It's all moot. It is not meant to be. This bike is one size too large for me anyway. You're welcome to it.

xblairp

Love the debate. I keep all antique furniture I restore original with minimal interventions BUT if the piece has say been refinished or is vintage not antique and isn't that collectable I will and feel free to reimagine or do anything I like to it. I would lean to restoring to original upgrading the components to 600 tri-color or dura ace if I could find 7400 cheap enough. I strongly wantz to change the color to a at least the other available color that year, Red and Classic White or even more so blue and yellow of the '93. But "as is" it goes...

It's listed on eBay and Facebook Marketplace for $399 OBO + $100 handling for a new box. (Ready Now). See how we do.

Thank You
Chris

3alarmer 

The Cult of the Bridgestone RB-1

...RB-1 is mostly famous because of Grant Petersen. You should mention his name in your ad.

Jeff Neese

I definitely agree about not turning any bike into a wall-hanger. Are you implying that unless you upgrade things to "modern" standards, that's all it's good for? The RB1 was a great bike to ride when it was new with only 12 speeds, and it's still a great bike to ride now, with only 12 speeds. For those of us that cut our teeth on 10-speed Schwinn Continentals, 12 speeds and friction shifting is just fine. That hardly defines how much fun a bike is to ride or how well you will perform riding it.

There's nothing wrong with upgrades, but if it's a classic bike like this that has some value, save all the original parts, and above all, don't hurt the frame. Bending it is hurting it, and it also devalues it as a collectible (if that matters to you). Someday someone may get their pulse racing because they see a Bridgestone RB1 for sale in their size, but then after reading the listing they say to themselves "Bummer - somebody spread the rear triangle. No thanks."

xblairp

I mentioned Grant Petersen and referred to it a cult bike! Everyone loves a good cult where you don't drink the cool-aid.

xblairp

I think it's interesting that in the 1988 Bridgestone Catalogue the RB-1 was optioned with the Shimano 105 and that Petersen was not a fan (I read it somewhere, I will look for the source). The very next year the Rb-1 was optioned with the Suntour GPX Group.
Ad copy 1988 "Shimano's105 group seems to be everyone's favorite these days so it was a logical choice." Slight shade? A ringing endorsement?
Ad copy 1989 "SunTour's new GPX group works as well as any competition group on the market"