Second hand Dawes Galaxy advice please

[spoonranger]

Hi Folks,

I just saw a second hand Dawes Galaxy for sale outside a local bike shop for £250. It's pretty old and has got rust. Is this a massive bargain or a bit silly considering the condition? How can I tell if the rust is just surface or if there's a problem in the tubes?

Any advice would be very gratefully received.

Thank you!

Spoonranger.

 

[Danny]

Difficult to tell how bad it is without seeing the bike or knowing how old it is. Are you able to get some more info and/or post a picture?

If it is an old bike I would be as worried about the state of the components and wheels as I would about any rust on the frame. If you have to replace, or even service, most of these you could be into hundreds of pounds of extra expense - cost will depend on how much of the work you can do yourself.

Also if you want to get the bike resprayed you could easily spend another £100 if you go to a specialist company like Bob Jackson.

So in summary, I think this is unlikely to be a massive bargain unless the bike is in very good condition or you are capable of servicing and respraying it yourself. If you are really keen on the bike I would suggest you try to negotiate with the shop over price or see if you can get them to give the bike a complete service before you buy it.

NB As a benchmark I would expect you to be able to pick up a used Dawes Galaxy in reasonable condition on eBay for under £500.

 

[vernon]

I'd advise against making the purchase unless you are in a position to determine that the condition of the bike is satisfactory. It's hard/impossible to diagnose the condition from a computer terminal without having a range of detailed photos to help.

Like Danny says replacing worn components and upgrades could add an appreciable amount to the initial cost.

 

[Nigeyy]

As Danny and Vernon said.

Yes, you do need to find out more -it's impossible to give some sort of decent feedback without knowing more and seeing photos or being there and testing the drivechain. By the way, do you know if the bike the right size for you? (if it isn't, then it doesn't really matter how much the bike is -unless it's so underpriced and you can use the components and/or sell on to someone to make it worth your time.) Second thing to do if it is the right size is to test ride to get a better handle on if it fits and the state of the drivechain and whether it feels right for you.

If you are mechanically inclined, then even if the components are worn, you could replace them, but even then, components can be expensive. It's easy to rack up the money replacing parts very easily. If you are buying a used bike, my advice is almost always buy a bike with good condition components on.

You said it is old and has rust -that worries me (surface rust doesn't, but it might indicate it's not been looked after, and that's a red flag), and while I'm on the wrong side of the Atlantic, it does sound overpriced. Anyway, if it is a reasonable bike, you can always low ball and walk away. I'd think it would be difficult to sell a bike at that price with rust evident -and that might work in your favour.

 

[sidevalve]

As a lover [sad but true] of older Dawes bikes even I must agree with the above. The galaxy was a fine machine, well made and capable of many roles from commuting to hard touring and despite what some may say [who regard anything more than 24 hours old as just too old fashioned to be worth anything] as an all round bike still not often beaten.
All that said at £250 I would expect a fair looking well sorted bike in good mechanical condition ready to ride off into the sunset [or rain]. A few scratches maybe but that's about all.
For that money [or less] you can pick a good example on E bay,with no rust, and have cash left over for tyres or a chain maybe.
If you fancy a galaxy either half that price and do a nice rebuild or save you cash 'till a good one comes along.

 

[biggs682]

Hi Folks,

I just saw a second hand Dawes Galaxy for sale outside a local bike shop for £250. It's pretty old and has got rust. Is this a massive bargain or a bit silly considering the condition? How can I tell if the rust is just surface or if there's a problem in the tubes?

Any advice would be very gratefully received.

Thank you!

Spoonranger.

spoonranger you can have my 1992 Galaxy for that miney and mine is nice and tidy

 

[spoonranger]

Blimey, I forgot to log in for a couple of weeks and look what happened! Thanks for all your advice. I went back and had another look and aside from my worries about its condition (I was right - not good enough), it was too big, so I let it go.

@biggs 682 what size is your Galaxy? I'm struggling to find any that are small enough for me at 5'5"-5'6"ish

 

[srw]

@biggs 682 what size is your Galaxy? I'm struggling to find any that are small enough for me at 5'5"-5'6"ish

It's not his any more. It's mine. And it would have been too big for you.

On the other hand, in the "for sale" section of this forum you'll find my Dawes Sardar - also steel - which might be the right size.

 

[spoonranger]

I was just looking at that! Looks good. Where are you in Buckinghamshire? I'm live in Oxford but I'm in London for a day or two every week so could meet there. Would it be possible to arrange to have a look?

 

[Nigeyy]

No relation to srw or any interest in him selling his Sardar.... but I can tell you the old steel Sardars are great bikes. My touring bike is a Sardar in metallic brown/green with Avid discs on -love the thing -I've taken it on a few tours. A perfect touring bike in my opinion (well, I would move the rear disc brake mount so any old rear racks would fit, but that's a bit of a minor quibble). Definitely worth getting if it fits you and suits your needs, two thumbs up!

I was just looking at that! Looks good. Where are you in Buckinghamshire? I'm live in Oxford but I'm in London for a day or two every week so could meet there. Would it be possible to arrange to have a look?