higgins617

Picked up a very clean 84 Trek 520 with similar vintage Blackburn rack on the back. Previous owner had paid for a tune up last year with new tires and cables, and then never rode it so decided to move it along.

Lascauxcaveman 

Woot! Pics of that one are absolutely required!

higgins617

I'll try to convince my roommate to snap pics for me, cracked my phone's(only camera) lens. Got me to class on time this morning, very stable ride even under my large frame.

PilotFishBob 

Saw this on the Memphis CL Sunday, it was still around Monday so I contacted the seller and went over to check it out that evening. His garage was dimly lit and we were inspecting it with flashlights - bike appeared solid, but covered in bird poop and filth - according to him it was his dad's, had been ridden a couple of times and then hung in his garage for 20 years. I got him to knock the price down a bit, I wasn't sure how hard it was going to be to get it ride-able again and I was worried about the posts sticking, but I had a good feeling.

Did an initial scrub on it this morning - wow. There was actually a bike under all the crud, the paint is almost perfect. Tange2 tubing, Shimano Biopace and Exage components, new-looking 700c Araya wheels. Not top of the line by any means but after more cleaning, lubing, etc, it'll be more than good enough to perform as my new grocery-getter.

It seems that I appear to have finally hit my (N-1)+1 number - I just sold my '83 Trek 620 over the weekend to a friend so of course this had to come into my life. I've found balance (if you can call it that).

As Found:

Cleaned up a bit:

3speedslow

^^ That's a tall one. You did good with this one, looks to be a fine randonee model.

AngryFrankie

That's amazing. Notice the "Moots Mount" band tightened around the chainstay, to mount the U-brake on. That is indeed a nice catch. Those show up very rarely.

guzziee

It originally had a fork with moot mounts too, but it was replaced.

PilotFishBob 

Thanks 3speedslow, for certain at 63cm CT it's the absolute max I can clear comfortably.

higgins617

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Here's the 520 I brought home yesterday, yes the housings are quite long.

higgins617

Also brought home this funky Yokota, ad had it mislabeled as a yohota which I'm sure helped it sit on craigslist with such a low asking price. Pic is as found before I could fix the questionable saddle position.

becave7

I got this 87 Trek 560EX Pro Series from a pile of bikes under a tarp outside a friend's VW shop. Replaced the rear wheel with the correct hub and freewheel, all cables, and tires. Still need to find some small aero hoods and pedal cages (600EX 3 screw triangle) and have blue bar tape waiting. The only real cost was a used Brooks saddle, bar tape and the freewheel. I have a feeling the brake hoods will cost the most, haha.

2cam16

Sweet find!

due ruote 

My attempt to thin the herd isn't going so well. Stopped at the LBS yesterday to grab a box for a bike I need to ship, and came home with the box and an A-D Michelle mixte for $25. Not a top model, but it's pretty cute and for the price I couldn't leave it there. I'll post a pic when I start cleaning it up.

2cam16

My $30 gem: HARDLY used '97 Trek 7000. Stored since the year it was bought! A real storage find. Just need to cut off the Kryptolok. And how am I suppose to get rid of bikes with something like this? lol

RiddleOfSteel

$50 for this 22"/56cm 1983 Centurion Pro Tour 15 in excellent shape. Fine light dust and cobwebs, some easy rust on the chrome that should take two seconds to erase, with BB and hubs spinning perfectly smooth. Rims are also true (front) or darn near it (rear). Since the wheels have Suntour hubs, I will be employing those for my Suntour-equipped Paramount build. I will work to get 700s to play nice with the cantilever brakes and am thinking about barcons and perhaps upright/swept back bars. The frame is too small for me as I ride a 25"/63.5cm frame, but it will be fully gone through and made ready for the riding season for a new owner!

Sans seatpost:


Grubby, with some light rust on the exposed chrome:

jet sanchEz

I snagged this Miyata 1000 today, it has been sitting since 1999 and it shows but I think it will clean up nicely. It appears to be totally stock, it even has the original leather Miyata leather toe straps from 1985.

The saddle is an Ideale, I really hope I can get it back into shape with some Proofride as I think the colour is really nice against the grey/blue of the frame. The generator light on the front seems to work but is it worth keeping? It has been wired through the frame, which is kind of neat, but it seems kind of archaic

curbtender

Nice score Jet. You get the bags too?

PilotFishBob 

Nice, internal wiring a big plus. I like the Sanyo Dynapower dynos, I'm finishing up a randonee with one and have installed a light similar to what you have though I've pulled the halogen bulb out and put in an LED - more light and less current draw (and less drag when the dyno is engaged, I hope) Your keeping it or not depends on the look you're aiming for.

jet sanchEz

Darn, I shoulda thought to ask....any recommendations? The front racks are Blackburns and they seem pretty beefy, I think most of my work stuff will fit nicely into a medium sized pannier.

I'll send him a text anyways and see if he has the panniers lying around


An LED is a great idea, once I have the tires sorted out I will do this, thanks

rjhammett

I got a call from my daughter asking me if I wanted a couple of bikes that were in the dumpster of her apartment. One was a Gary Fisher that was a bit rough so I stripped it down for the components. The other is a '96 Specialized Ground Control A1. I did a complete overhaul. It turned out very nice.

juvela

Thanks for sharing; should clean up just fine.

Luv the casual rimstrip BTW; not the sort of thing one encounters ever'day...

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juvela

Great find!

So be this a Miyata product?

Know some Novara are but do not know if all were...

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Lascauxcaveman 

Great score on that one!

I think your best bet on reshaping the saddle is:
1) back off the tensioner
2) soak it in water until it's soft (a day, 3 days?)
3) wipe it dry so it's not dripping
4) jam some rags or bunched up newspapers between the leather and rails until it's the shape you want.
4a) wrap/tie it into shape with velcro straps or strips of terry cloth to hold shape
5) put it in a warmish dry place (not your oven) for a week to fully dry in its new shape
6) reset the tensioner
7) THEN maybe some Proofide.

I did this on an old swayback Brooks pro and the results were pretty good, although I wish I had been a little more aggressive with the shaping.

Also consider lacing it.

PilotFishBob 

Hi Juvela (sorry, got the handle wrong earlier and fixed) I'd never heard of the Novara before I saw the CL ad and did a quick lookup before I got it. A bike series made for REI, I believe it's a '93 since from what I've found on the Randonee. I don't know who manufactured these for REI but probably a Japanese company considering the year and the Tange tubing - I guess it could be Miyata - I don't know if they built frames for 3rd parties.

Actually I was looking for a bit of a beater that would live outside and I'd never worry about parking anywhere. So of course this one turned out to be a lot nicer than expected and I'll get to worry about it when I leave it outside to grab groceries. Poor me.

juvela

Thanks very much for the response PilotFishBob.

REI created the Novara badge about 1977-78. It was their first house brand bicycle. Prior to that they sold a variety of product including Raleigh, Crescent, Cilo, Mondia, Sekai and Kobe.

Bike looking great already. If you made any additional "before" pictures it would make a fine addition to the "before & after" thread.

Many happy miles,

R
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