Newbie - old bike advice

[SkipdiverJohn]

I don't like to think of the Raleigh Pioneer Jaguar that I bought new in 1996 as "old", and it is certainly worth more than £5 to me.

1996 isn't old for a Nottingham Raleigh, it's just run in! My most modern bike is my 1995 Pioneer Trail, the last year of the lugged & brazed frames. The pub hack one dates from 1991. Pioneers are worth more as bikes than they are as cash. The proper ones aren't made anymore and the Factory they were built in is gone, just like the real Birmingham-built Dawes are no more. If you've got them, keep hold of them, if not and the right one turns up cheap used, grab it!

 

[BluesDave]

I briefly had a Raleigh Pioneer in blue and white. I'd put an adjustable pannier rack, lights, a horn, a sports saddle, strap on bottle cage etc on it.
It was stolen from outside a Bowls Club in Putney last July. I was going to put drop handlebars on it as well.
I regret it's loss now that I've discovered through this thread that it's good for touring so I curse the person who stole it to break their legs and keep breaking them until my bike is returned to the place from whence it was taken.

 

[MrBeanz]

I wish I had an old bike. I was asked by a guy we know if I wanted to buy a bike for $40. He said he was selling it so that he could buy a dept store mountain bike. Pretty dirty but functional. Turned out to be too small for me but fit my wife. She put 3,000 miles per year on it for 5 or 6 years. She had never heard the steel is real thing but she loved the bike saying it had a soul of its own.

Ended up buying her a new full carbon bike. She didn't want to ride it saying the steel bike was a nicer ride.

Finally got her to convert to the newer bike after a couple months only because it was a little more energy saved on 40+ mile rides. Btu she refused to get rid of the steel bike.

Put $500 into rebuilding it but was well worth it. Bianchi, 105 mix. I was actually broken hearted that it did not fit me.

I SAY BUY IT AND RIDE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT!

 

[raleighnut]

I wish I had an old bike. I was asked by a guy we know if I wanted to buy a bike for $40. He said he was selling it so that he could buy a dept store mountain bike. Pretty dirty but functional. Turned out to be too small for me but fit my wife. She put 3,000 miles per year on it for 5 or 6 years. She had never heard the steel is real thing but she loved the bike saying it had a soul of its own.

Ended up buying her a new full carbon bike. She didn't want to ride it saying the steel bike was a nicer ride.

Finally got her to convert to the newer bike after a couple months only because it was a little more energy saved on 40+ mile rides. Btu she refused to get rid of the steel bike.

Put $500 into rebuilding it but was well worth it. Bianchi, 105 mix. I was actually broken hearted that it did not fit me.

I SAY BUY IT AND RIDE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT!

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I'm not surprised she didn't want a plastic bike after riding that beauty.

 

[MrBeanz]

I'm not surprised she didn't want a plastic bike after riding that beauty.

I can't blame her! As I have straddled the bike making adjustments etc. One leg over and the thing wants to take off. The carbon bike is a meh OK feel she says.

 

[swee'pea99]

This is an important point. It's easy to buy a cheap bike to fix up and get a bit carried away over time fiddling with it, buying new bits, improving it here and there and generally having fun.

Don't get me wrong ... There's nothing wrong with spending a bit of money on your hobby. It's just that it's easy to take your eye off the ball and end up with a bike that's neither one thing nor the other - it's neither a "fixer-upper" nor a "best bike" - and when you add it all up it has cost you rather more than you intended.

Don't ask me how I know that.

Spot on. If it really is a case of just needing to fix the brakes, and you're up for it, I'd say go for it. But it's all too easy to get suckered in by a low entry price and find yourself paying out money hand over fist for something that ends up not being as good as all that money should buy. If it really is a case of just fixing the brakes then that bike should be well good enough to tell you whether you're still 'into' bikes. My guess is you'll take to it like a duck to water!

 

[12boy]

Spot on. If it really is a case of just needing to fix the brakes, and you're up for it, I'd say go for it. But it's all too easy to get suckered in by a low entry price and find yourself paying out money hand over fist for something that ends up not being as good as all that money should buy. If it really is a case of just fixing the brakes then that bike should be well good enough to tell you whether you're still 'into' bikes. My guess is you'll take to it like a duck to water!

You are, of course, correct......but the value of the learning which comes with this is not insignificant. I can't count how many POSs I found at the dump, garage sales and dumb friends sales which I joyously stripped, refurbished and gave away. Good times!

 

[ChrisEyles]

You are, of course, correct......but the value of the learning which comes with this is not insignificant. I can't count how many POSs I found at the dump, garage sales and dumb friends sales which I joyously stripped, refurbished and gave away. Good times!

Very true! I was always too scared to work on my bikes for years, since I relied on them for commuting and wasn't confident I could do much beyond adjusting the brakes and giving it the odd drop of oil.

A few years ago I bought a couple of old Raleigh roadsters which I did up (with a lot of help from the forum still got one now and love it) and it was a case of never looking back. Have done up eight or so bikes for myself and for friends now and will happily tackle any job (so long as it's not carbon - never owned one, don't want to break one!). From being scared stiff of basic maintenance, I now enjoy working on bikes almost as much as I enjoy riding them.

A £5 bike is surely the ideal project to learn how to strip down and rebuild, re-grease BB/wheel hubs/headset etc etc. As others have said above, you will probably run over budget to get it running to your satisfaction, but you'll have a nice bike at the end of it and it's totally worth it.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

I briefly had a Raleigh Pioneer in blue and white......
It was stolen from outside a Bowls Club in Putney last July. I was going to put drop handlebars on it as well.
I regret it's loss now that I've discovered through this thread that it's good for touring so I curse the person who stole it to break their legs and keep breaking them until my bike is returned to the place from whence it was taken.

Just go out and get another one; Raleigh sold bucket loads of them in the 1990's and there's still a lot around now even nearly 30 years since they first came out. Best of all, they don't go for silly money and there are some real bargain buys out there. I do more of my cycling miles on a Pioneer than on anything else; a rough looking old hack one for pub use and a nice 501 framed model for low-risk locations. .

 

[Gravity Aided]

Bikes like that are not highly sought after. They don't have wattage wasting, weighty suspensions that don't do all that much, they are made of good and proper materials, and have quality workmanship, so why would the general public at all be interested? A fine bicycle, enjoy it. Any work that needs done will provide you with good basic knowledge and experience.

 

[Gravity Aided]

I wish I had an old bike. I was asked by a guy we know if I wanted to buy a bike for $40. He said he was selling it so that he could buy a dept store mountain bike. Pretty dirty but functional. Turned out to be too small for me but fit my wife. She put 3,000 miles per year on it for 5 or 6 years. She had never heard the steel is real thing but she loved the bike saying it had a soul of its own.

Ended up buying her a new full carbon bike. She didn't want to ride it saying the steel bike was a nicer ride.

Finally got her to convert to the newer bike after a couple months only because it was a little more energy saved on 40+ mile rides. Btu she refused to get rid of the steel bike.

Put $500 into rebuilding it but was well worth it. Bianchi, 105 mix. I was actually broken hearted that it did not fit me.

I SAY BUY IT AND RIDE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT!

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Do you have a bicycle co-op in Ontario, or maybe Chino, or Rancho? They might have some bikes. I see some crazy nice stuff at ours, but I'm in Central Illinois.

 

[Boon 51]

If you want to get a bike and do it up. ( do it ) I have just got a couple of bikes and I'm in the process of doing them up and love every time I do a bit more too them.
Welcome to the forum.

 

[Mrs M]

First, just to say that I've only just found this site and how fantastic it looks. Thanks to all involved. I'm looking forward to more.

When I was younger I was really 'into' bikes. That was the 1970's and 1980's. Now I still ride and have lots of old bikes in the garage. I see the latest machines and they look like something from the future. Kind of like a mechanic trained on Morris Minors and VW Beetles might feel looking at a modern car engine bay. Where to start!

Anyway, I've seen an old Raleigh Pioneer with 18-23 tubing. Fairly good nick and I could probably fix the brakes and have a rideable bike.

My question is whether an old bike like that is any good, or worth bothering with? It's £5, which to an old fart like me seems ludicrously cheap.

Thanks.