My mom would have gotten this in the mid-late 70s. She rode it through Europe for her honeymoon. It hasn't been ridden in probably 20 years, although it's been kept in the garage as long as I've been around. I don't ride anymore, so I'm looking to sell it. My question is, would it be worth getting it cleaned up/rideable before trying to sell, or should I sell it as-is?
by kaylynstar
34 Comments
You’ll get more if you give it a wash and polish up the metal bits a little. It will look A LOT better. Emphasize that it’s “original, original owner”.
If the tires are really bad you could put new tires. Otherwise, fixing it up won’t earn a return as an investment. It’s definitely worth fixing up to ride, but whoever buys it can do that.
Monetarily is it worth overhauling? Not if you have to pay for the service.
It would be worth pumping the tires in case someone wants to test ride. Wipe off the dust with a soft rag. Shift through the gears once.
Measure the frame size from the bottom bracket center to the top of the seat tube and include that in your ad. Alternatively, mention her standing height.
Clean it up and sell it as is. But just so you’re aware, The crankset on this bike is pretty sought-after. It’s a Super Maxy Triple crankset which a lot of people like. There’s a lot of old school cool on this bike and a lot of people in my area of the country would pay a lot for the parts on it.
Some really nice components on this bike, Mom knew what she was doing! Might also mean you’d get more money selling it as parts (cranks and shifters in particular)
You could use white vinegar and aluminum foil to wipe the surface rust. It’s such a beautiful piece of history. I’d hang it on my wall. If not just clean it up as best you can. The service would probably cost what you would sell it for.
You may have a local shop in your area that restores vintage bikes that would buy it if some one here doesn’t scoop it up.
Many old school bikes like this may not fetch much monetary value, but are often well appreciated. Your best option might be to clean it up and sell it as is. As has already been said, if you pay someone else to do anything to this you may not get a return on that investment.
Mom had great taste. Why don’t you keep it?
OP, where are you based? I bet a lot of folks here would want it!
I probably wouldn’t fix anything on it, as you rarely will recoup that in the sale and some of the common parts to replace such as tires, seat, bar tape can be personal choices that the buyer may want some choice in.
But yes, definitely give it a good wash and take nice pictures from all sides.
What part do you live in?
If you’re in the northeast there would be a lot of people interested including me. That thing is old school cool.
When all cleaned up and shiny, I would sell something like that for probably $120. I sold quite a few late 70s /early 80s road bikes. Too bad the Nishiki down tube decal is not in better condition.
It’s really hard to sell something like that for its value in parts unless you advertise the individual parts on eBay.
Just be careful with harsh cleaning chemicals on that paint because it will dull and loose it shine really fast. I would probably only use hand soap in water .
To shine up all the faded paint once it’s clean use a dab of motor oil on a paper towel or old sock. You can also armor all the paint, but that will only last so long. Wax will most likely not work, just make it more dull and get stuck in the nooks and crannies of the lugs.
The chrome can be cleaned with maguiers chrome wheel cleaner sold at Walmart and auto parts stores. Wet the whole bike before you apply this to the chrome and don’t let it dry. Use an old toothbrush on the chrome parts like the headset and derailers then wash off.
For degreaser I use totally awesome from the dollar store. RJ the bike guy uses it so it’s good enough for me – works just as good as and not as harsh as simple green..
Since I also have an inventory of used parts, I very seldom put new parts on a used bike.
I would love to hear about your mom’s honeymoon adventures. That is a dandy ride. The type of cyclists who love such a classic will be able to wrench on the machine, so don’t bother putting any money into getting it tuned up. Just brush off the dust, air up the tires and find someone who will enjoy riding those gem.
WD40 and aluminum foil is gonna make the shiny bits shiny. Furniture polish and a microfiber is surprisingly fast at cleaning and polishing a frame in one step
As far as Japanese steel frame bikes go, it’s a classic!
Clean it, and hang that sucker on a wall.
Beautiful bike. I say sell it as is and let the buyer have the experience of bringing it back. Unless you think that restoring your mom’s bike would be cathartic.
That’s a sweet bike.
It’s 100% worth cleaning up. If you plan to sell it afterwards though.
This bike is in beautiful shape and will shine up beautifully. I think I’d hang it on my wall and enjoy the memory forever.
https://www.gearpatrol.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/04/harness-bicycle-loft-playhaus-design-093406-1641333739-jpeg.webp
https://ikeahackers.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Frosta-bike-wall-mount-2.jpg
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/c5/e2/8d/c5e28df283f6b49e3bca26c05d3e4e8d.jpg
A good wash with a gentle detergent followed by a protective coating of pledge furniture polish on the painted surface and Boeshield T-9 on the mechanical components.
That bike will shine right up like you wouldn’t believe.
If you add a generous amount of extremely well shaken Slime tube sealant and spin the wheels for a while, those tubes will hold pressure. You might even be able to ride it briefly if the tires don’t have any bulges.
I think the worn tires tell a story honestly.
Decent photos would probably be enough. 😉
The frame has beautiful lus good shifters and crank. Why sell it
Beautiful bike, clean it up but keep it original
Driveside and horizontal photos would be a start. Looks like nothing special. Charity
At the end of the day, a full tune up (even if you do it) will cost more than the bike is worth. Heck, just tubes & tires are probably pushing it on the value. We sell bikes like this at our shop for around $120, but largely because I can use take-off tires and used tubes. I usually cable it with galvanized cables to save money there, too. Even at $120 they are kind of a money loser, but they are good bikes and I hate to see em go into the recycling pile.
It’s always worth a few minutes of washing before you sell.
OP if you’re on IG, send a message to BikeJerksYardsale, he might like what you’re offering
I will disagree with most and say the person who buys this bike for what it’s worth wants to do the cleanup themselves. The grunge layer says this thing is untouched and I get to rescue it. I get to uncover the finish and repack the bearings and make it new. That’s the kind of stuff I scour marketplace for. This is a nice enough model I wouldn’t touch it. If it was stem shifter with lower spec, yeah wash it and air the tires yadda yadda.
If this bike were properly restored to it’s original condition then I guarantee you could sell it for several hundred in the right college town. Or at least you could have circa 2010.
In your place I would clean it and keep it… Otherwise a quick clean and put it up for sale. It’s a nice bike, very nice.
You should part it if you need the money, otherwise sell it to someone who would appreciate the history and restore it, not retrofit it. If you you do post it out I’m interested in the saddle.
Yes.Anything you can do to make it look better (shy of touch up paint) will help sell this quicker. Keep it original. Be patient, it might take awhile to find the right buyer. Super rad bike though. 175’s for someone 5’2!! How long were her legs? I’m sorry to hear that she had to deal with that, it had to make things so much harder. She must be super strong!
As I said, this is a classic, your mom’s bike. The components alone are worth a small fortune. Especially since she was on her honeymoon in Europe with it, it says a lot
Just because of the memory of your mom and the honeymoon, you may still have photos of it that show what has already been done
Yes