6 reasons you should get a vintage road bike!

[@kajkob]

Road biking never appealed to me, but because I found an 1989 Cannondale bike in great shape for $75, I discovered I actually like riding in the right environment. I would never have discovered this new hobby if I had to pay hundreds / thousands to try a new road bike

[@BruceChastain]

kind of the same for me, I started off with mountain biking and then went to vintage road bikes later. I've actually never had a newish road bike.

[@komoonkh]

Exactly the same with me

[@drmitofit2673]

There’s nothing better than going on a group ride and breaking away on a vintage bike. Mine is an ‘87 Schwinn Paramount with 7 speed Dura Ace downtube indexed shifting.

[@MacThreinfhir]

I have a 1985 centurion ironman master and a 2001 LeMond Zurich. I’ve owned the LeMond since new and it is my primary ride. It rides so nice… the fit, ride, and handling are excellent. The “limitations” of rim brakes seem so overstated. I’ve been riding bikes for over 50 years and I’ve never not been able to stop or slow down as needed with them. I have no qualms with discs, btw. Great video and solid points. The values that you can find are incredible. I recently found a LeMond Chamberry for a friend. Full ultegra. Like new condition. $250.

[@richdubbya]

I'm a fan of the 90s road race bikes. I agree, they're the sweet spot. Especially Italian bikes.I'm a huge 90s Ciöcc fan. I have a soft spot for Bianchis too..

[@wavefanatic7384]

I have an 85 Peugeot and 87 Bertoni. I love riding them. I don't even use my Fuji carbon bike anymore. I'm a bit partial to 80s steel bikes since I love using downtube friction shifters. Compatibility issues don't become an issue on friction shifters. Great vid to promote vintage road bikes, so thanks for your efforts..

[@BruceChastain]

yeah I like DT shifters too, actually I like both :) and thank you!

[@JeffreyWilliams-dr7qe]

Which Peugeot, big era in marketing for them. Groupset, drive train? Mixed bag as I remember. Thanks!

[@wavefanatic7384]

@@JeffreyWilliams-dr7qe I believe it it was a frame from an Iseran. Still had the 501 pro sticker on it. I put a more modern drive train on it, with a new fork (ritchey carbon) since the original did not come with the frame. Did a cold set on the rear dropouts, and installed 10 speed gearing for climbing. Yes, its been bastardized, but its more functional now for my riding.

[@JeffreyWilliams-dr7qe]

@wavefanatic7384 Thanks alot!

[@SlingsAxes]

I agree. Yesterday I rode a new to me bike with downtube shifters and while it was different to shift, the bike itself was super light and a fast ride. I greatly enjoyed it.

[@BruceChastain]

Right on!

[@juliuscaesar4802]

I’m 26 Bought a 1988 bianchi when I was 22 for 200$ ever since I own 4 bianchis so far all second hand but in celestial color ❤

[@CarloFromaggio]

Great video! Vintage 90s steel bikes are a great place to start. They're affordable, relatively easy to find (depending where you live), most original parts are easy to find and new upgraded "modern" parts are eventually relatively compatible with 90s tech. The mechanicals are easy to learn and fix. And I can't stress affordability enough....I'm lucky to have the space and I have a quiver of 8 pre 1998 bikes. The total cost to acquire 6 of them over the last 15yrs was sub $1200.

[@paulmcknight4137]

Downtube shifters have relatively short cable runs, so shift positively. When the cable starts to break at the casette shift lever, rider feels it with his right hand. Lugged steel frames are stiff at the joints but nicely shock absorbent along the middle, providing good response and comfort at the same time. Flat fork crowns are natural shock absorbers, appreciated on mile 85 on a century ride. Rim brakes are easily centered with a single Allen wrench. Toe clips and straps on gossamer rat trap pedals allow riding with a variety of shoes on the same bike, and are cheap to replace. Threaded BBs are coming back because they don't creak and groan. I could go on, robust cup and cone bearing, replaceable rims on the same hubs. Have two now 'vintage" bikes since '85, a DeRosa "Professional," the last bikes Eddy Merckx raced, and a custom build with rack and fenders, and never looked back, 75,000 miles on each and counting.

[@newoldsteel]

100% with everything! That is all I ride and am interested in. I think some of the new stuff is cool, but there's just something about the older bikes/tech that is so pure, simple, budget friendly, and DURABLE! Also, this was way before my era so I'm not looking at it with a bias nostalgic view, I genuinely discovered these older steel bikes after owning a modern one, and I will never go back unless the modern bike is all steel (including the fork) and 100% mechanical. Great video!

[@BruceChastain]

thank you NOS!

[@byronspencer8101]

I have a 97 waterford I found used. Bought it from the original owner. It is an amazing bike and I love riding it.

[@DJ-pp9yg]

Love the Bianchi. Your bike looks like it has a little more relaxed geometry than my steel and Ti Lemond’s from 2001. I am old now and would need something comfortable. Always wanted a Celeste Green Bianchi and if they tend to be more relaxed I am in. Thanks for the video.

[@Mgrant8163]

I have an all original 1982 Bianchi that I purchased from a collector that fell on hard times financially and was selling his collection. Original tubular tires, all Campy group set including the toe clips. On my first ride I was amazed how stiff the Columbus steel tubing was and how fast the bike was. The bars are a bit narrower than my regular CF roadie but felt amazing. Downtube friction shifters took some getting used to and now I know why they call them "friction" shifters. You need to have the nut tight for it to stay in the lowest gears. The first hill pointed that out to me. Not sure I like that part of the ride but I'm spoiled anyway with Di2 on my other roadie. Everywhere I go someone comments about how beautiful she is.

[@TallmanSE]

I have roadbikes from the 50s 80s and 90s. My favourites are my two merckx bikes from early 90s.

[@juliuscaesar4802]

Whenever I see that Columbus steel or Reynolds sticker I know it’s some quality stuff ❤😊

[@fergusonto-2032]

Great video Bruce & I totally agree, I had a Nishiki Olympic 12 & a Nishiki Ultra Tour several years ago , i sold both of them & have regretted it ever since , I now have an older Peugeot .

[@glace5620]

That bike looks great, I'd ride that thing with pride.

[@joewickie2376]

I bought Jack Taylor when I turned 18 in 1977. Somehow we have both turned vintage as we continue our journey.

[@bikeyclown4669]

Great information. I agree with you in that steel bicycles from about the 80's through the early 2000's provide a great ride. I would encourage people to be careful when purchasing aluminum framed bicycles as aluminum alloys are more likely to fatigue and fail compared to steel frames, particularly, if they have been ridden a lot and ridden hard. As you suggested, not all bicycles from that era had mounting points for racks (or fenders). I would encourage people to make sure they are there. I raced on the road during the 80's, and none of my racing bicycles during that era (or the bicycles I desired) had eyelets to mount racks or fenders. Such mounting points were/are considered unnecessary and undesirable to most road racers. If people want to ride a vintage road racing bike, there is nothing wrong with that, but mounting racks and fenders will not be as easy and may be impossible in some cases. There are ways to do it, but usually you can't carry as much weight and you oftentimes have to clamp things to the frame to mount things.

[@maryharrington8983]

I found out there are racing bikes that are geared for speed, and there are touring bikes with granny gears for hills. Important distinction depending on the terrain where one rides.

[@bikeyclown4669]

@maryharrington8983 That's true. There are good touring and sport-touring bicycles from the 80's and 90's that have mounting points for racks and/or fenders, and they usually had low gears for that era.

[@Taliesin-cymru]

Great vid, and in support of your recommendation to purchase 90s bikes it was in the late 80s and early 90s that the transition was made from 126mm rear dropouts to 130mm which is still pretty much standard on road bikes allowing for far more options regarding drivetrain, the rear dropouts can be cold set to 130mm but it’s just another hassle. Another a thing to note is that 8 speed rear cassette bikes have a freehub that will accommodate up to a 10 speed cassette whereas 7 speed freehub won’t and in some cases 7 speed rear gearing will be a thread on freewheel rather than cassette, further limiting your options. I’m 51 so I do have a few of my bikes from the 80s but if I want to keep them original 7 speed at the rear and 28 big cog is it. In further support of your thoughts regarding 70s bikes they were often 120mm rear spacing which does not like even going out to 126 let alone 130mm via cold setting less options there past 5 speed on the rear. I’m a bike nerd so I have bikes from all periods from the 1920s on and I love them all but your vid is top notch advice for someone that just wants to get an older bike and be able to service/modernise it with very few incompatibility issues spoiling the fun.

[@BruceChastain]

yeah good points about the rear spacing, I also didn't mention the wheel sizes.

[@Taliesin-cymru]

@@BruceChastain All good, still a great vid that hopefully may help save some great bikes from the scrap heap.

[@oswaldconsultancyltd3150]

Cheap, reliable, simple, light. Great bikes. I have a 1929 bicycle, it’s about 2lb heavier than your “vintage” steel bikes. Nice video.

[@BruceChastain]

thank you!

[@jasonlassen7599]

One tip for those that are put off by the high gearing of vintage road bikes is to look for one with a triple front chainring. That's how they solved the problem back then.

[@TESTA-CC]

Vintage For the win 🤙🤙I've got a Peugeot Perthus Pro 753r 1987 Down Tube Shifters & Rim Brakes 8.3KG & Vitus Dural 979 Duralinox 1984 Rim Brake & DownTube Shifters 8.5KG

[@BruceChastain]

Oh man I love peugeot, would love to get one in the shop on day.

[@KarlosEPM]

Great video, and I share you opinion and reasonings. I will only add another warning: Campagnolo components are no longer made for 8 speed drivetrains, wheras Shimano still has Claris as a retrocompatible groupset for 90s bikes. So choose wisely according to your budget and knowledge level... and enjoy!

[@BruceChastain]

I've actually never messed with any Campagnolo parts, but thanks for that info.

[@komoonkh]

I agree with everything you said. It also feels great to ride your dads old bike. It has something to it. I always think about how my pops rode it back then😂

[@fatrobdouble]

I've had my share of vintage road bikes in my time, and i love'm. Just the other day I picked up a mostly-original 1986 Panasonic DX3000, black and yellow, for $85. I bought it from the original owner. First year those had indexed shifting, 2x6. Yes, it needs some work (mostly just needs new cables/housing/brake pads/tires and all the bearings repacked) but it rides nice as-is; tires are scary-old though. I plan to build new wheels for it and then ride the snot out of it.

[@BruceChastain]

That's what I'm saying the deals on these vintage bikes are amazing

[@fatrobdouble]

@@BruceChastain oh yeah, absolutely outstanding deals. I've been looking for this exact year and model for a while, mostly for the colorway, and I've missed out on a few in that $200 range. You know the drill you send the message. When can I come take a look at the bike? They say oh it just sold. Well this time I got lucky and I saved like $100 at the same time. I'm stoked on the bike. Been getting into retro late '80s mountain bikes lately Panasonic's my favorite and that's what led me to revisit my love for '80s Roadies. I also have a '70s fillet brazed Schwinn super sport, which is, of course, an entirely different animal

[@glace5620]

This is an excellent video. 🚲

[@BruceChastain]

Thank you very much!

[@ayoCanada0921]

Vintage road bike is my kind of bike. I really like to shape and styles of such bike. I hope they keep produce this kind of bike years to come. I have collected 2 already. Bought one in 1998 its a Monte carlos . The others one my boss gave me for being a good employee 😊

[@eltamarindo]

Pay attention to tire clearance on road vintage road bikes. There was an era in the 1980s when steel road bikes were expected to use only 18mm-23mm tires and might not be able to accommodate 25mm or larger tires. Bikes before and after the 1980 generally had better tire clearance. Look for fender mounts on the fork and and at the rear dropouts. If a frame has these fender mounts, it is likely to have reasonable tire clearance. Also, if you are planning to use a rack and panniers, either avoid downtube shifters or retrofit them to barend shifters. Bags will sway and will make it harder to take one hand off of the handlebars to shift gears.

[@RadlerMannheim]

There are quite a few pros for classic roadbikes especially when you want to use them as a commuter, too: they allow wider tires, they often have mounting points for racks and fenders (by the way: yours has mounting points - why didn't you screw your rack there? Would look much better...), the threatened headset allows an easy adjustment of the hight of the handlebar and if you want to you can equippe them with modern parts. And they don't get stolen because - it looks like an old bike...

[@BruceChastain]

I was thinking about using the side mounts for the rack but the rack was already setup with the center mount from the last bike, but maybe I will switch it up. I didn't really consider the looks. Good points, but wider tires? That's the one think I do feel vintage rode sort of has problems with, from my experience usually the widest you can go is between 25 to 28mm. I do think there are some touring bikes out there that can go wider, but I don't see these bikes so often. Also I guess if you can find an old CX bike.

[@HarveyWallbanger-ho2cq]

1-by was a great choice

[@josepheads5589]

High end steel framesets from the 80s make the best riding road bikes. I use vintage parts on mine - Dura Ace 7400 on my 1983 Gitane Super Corsa and Dura Ace 7700 on my 1995 Masi Volumetrica - but modern components and wheels can be used for a race-ready bike.

[@JC-fo4hw]

Oh man, if you bring a frozen seatpost into your LBS, be prepared to tip your mechanic. And maybe don’t have young ears around while the job is being done. Better yet, just go get that tip we were talking about because you don’t want to see this kind of surgery. Great video, thanks. I miss my ‘80s Guerciotti. Currently trying to find something similar from the 80’s/90’s but haven’t had much luck finding the smaller size frames (52ish). Anyone have suggestions on good marketplaces for these bikes? Cheers

[@BruceChastain]

Yeah for sure, I damaged a frame trying to get a seat post out. As far as markets, for me it's always facebook market place, in fact I'm getting a cool old Trek today.

[@SHWELL11]

The geometries we saw in the 90's was Aesthetically the best era in my opinion. Im restoring an 84 Trek 400 because I can... Just biting my time until I find the right Cannondale CAAD MTB frame to build an Adventure bike out of.. I may be getting exactly what I want SUnday, we shall see.

[@BruceChastain]

yes agree, I didn't touch on that, but the geometry is beautiful.

[@fergusonto-2032]

I hope you can get it , let us know how you come out .

[@CoachJimJacobsen]

A couple years ago I bought a 1977 Bianchi Sprint frame and fork. I had a set of mid-80s Mavic wheels I installed with Contiental Ultra Sport tires. I picked up a mix of new (Suntour downtube shifters) and age appropriate parts (Shimano 600 derailleurs and 6 speed freewheel). I splurged on a vintage Campagnolo 3x crankset. The bike is super fun to ride.

[@BruceChastain]

nice!

[@glace5620]

Excellent idea, not trying to bite your style, but I had similar ideas myself! 😎. Can't do it this year, but might be a project I try next year or beyond

[@davidburgess741]

Got a '79 Dave Moulton as it's original owner. Restored and with the original 126mm spacing, my customized hub slides right in without any cold setting! That's 9 speed! The '73 Campy derallier doesn't care with friction shifters! The cassettes and chains were the most important tech advances. Nobody rides Campy pedals and tubular tires anymore including me. Too bad about that stupid Campy headset! Modern is WAY more servicable. Rim brakes with non aero levers and modern non compression teflon housing is really a big improvement. Disk brakes are my choice though! Still calipers stop better than my fixed gear track bike!

[@BruceChastain]

had to look up Dave Moulton, looks like a cool builder. And interesting, I never heard of 9 speed on a 126mm. Sounds like a very nice setup.

[@johnharrington2400]

well, some people still use Campy pedals on vintage bikes.

[@HarveyWallbanger-ho2cq]

Old bikes and young women, yes!

[@vadymvv]

I had a dilemma to buy a new chinese carbon or go for some used road bike. So i got 2007 Basso. I can use any bikepacking bags not afraid to scratch something.Also I already had two crashes(one on a race, and one with a car), and I think carbon bike would be dead by now.

[@gusnuk68]

Yes 90's bike IMHO is the best

[@Not_Sure_]

Are vintage road bikes easy to convert from a quill stem to modern stem ?

[@BruceChastain]

the go-to for that is a "quill to threadless adapter". I'm yet to decide if I like them or not. I mean they work, but not sure about the looks.

[@jered2177]

Ride good but my 10 speed gearing isn't great on hills

[@BruceChastain]

yeah exactly. They had it hard back in the day, 39x25 :|

[@splashpit]

I ride a 80s Alan cyclocross

[@ariffau]

If they can’t squeeze in 28 mm tyres, I’m not interested. Roads here are rough 😂

[@BruceChastain]

I'm sort of like that too now

[@NewyorkieDog]

I was able to just barely squeeze in 32mm tires on my mid 80s roadbike so it is possible!

[@ariffau]

@ 32mm on the box or measured?

[@NewyorkieDog]

@@ariffau on the box. they are pumped up to the recommended pressure so I presume it would be quite close to accurate. I will get them measured next time I visit my bike shop

[@ariffau]

@@NewyorkieDog they can run smaller or wider than what’s labelled on the box depending on the rim/wheels you mount them on.

[@daniellarson3068]

Reason #7 - Less chance of someone stealing your old "vintage" bike. My bike may be "vintage." I remember it when it was "new."

[@BlazejTymowicz]

First :D and I totally agree :)

[@BruceChastain]

thanks Blaze!

[@HarveyWallbanger-ho2cq]

Wait, collecting mail?

[@johnharrington2400]

i think it's clear you never rode or owned a classic Italian SL full Campy super record bike.

[@BruceChastain]

this is true

[@0li_vi_er]

“Vintage” means that the gearshifts are placed on the downtube, not indexed into the brake levers. 😋 I guess it's generational, for people born in the 2020s, a vintage bike will be a non-electric bike....

[@jeffhildreth9244]

That BIANCHI is NOT a vintage bike.. nor desirable, there are no "lugs". We have different standards. My Girardengo(sp) is vintage, My 1983 SOMEC is Vintage, My 1981 MIYATA AREO Pro is vintage. My prison built, chrome frame, Pinarello is VINTAGE. Though not Vintage.. my Rivendell Hunqapillar and Cheviot are in the image, and construction, of proper lugged, steel framed "vintage" bikes. I appreciate what your message is and agree to some extent, but those of use "who were there" do not consider anything from the 90s "vintage"' nor tig welding "vintage".

[@BruceChastain]

I get where you're coming from, but I guess it depends on your experience, to me 1999 is vintage.

[@johnharrington2400]

@@BruceChastain he's right, that bike is not vintage.

[@johnharrington2400]

100% true. I was there, and you are right, with one slight exception. A Charlie Cunningham mountain bike or a 80s Klein Road bike might be included on my list. Both tig or fillet brazed. But mostly....you are 100% right. and a Bridgestone RB1 8 from 1993 is certainly a very nice vintage road bike. Possibly a vintage "cut off" date would be 94. I love my Rivendell too!!!

[@MacThreinfhir]

If he likes it, it’s desirable. That’s subjective and personal preference. Perhaps not desirable as a collector, but that’s not what this is about.

[@hcw199]

The hoods look totally wrong on that bike!

[@BruceChastain]

what do you mean? the way they are positioned? I believe They are original.

[@HarveyWallbanger-ho2cq]

Disc brakes suck for me, lousy feedback

[@Pinhead101]

8:02 "vintage brakes" Ok zoomer

[@BruceChastain]

Lol thought about that too

[@deanpesci8484]

I have a 1996 De Rosa Replica '57 Columbus Especiale thin tube, 8 speed Record equipped. Rumor has it that Ugo himself built these lugged frames for the Replica series. That bike and I are as one.