Are they trying to rip me off?

leperisland
leperisland Posts: 28
edited February 2008 in Road beginners
Hello,

I saw this gorgeous repainted dawes frame. It's nice & light and just my size plus it's orange which is my favorite colour. Thing is they want £300 for it - are they just trying to rip me off or does that seem fair?

thanks,

Caroline

Comments

  • Felix-da-house-mouse
    Felix-da-house-mouse Posts: 801
    it depends on model and finishing kit etc,
    felix's bike

    pedal like you stole something!!!
  • leperisland
    leperisland Posts: 28
    They don't know, it's vintage 80s apparently. Here's a photo, don't know if that's any use orangy.jpg

    Thanks!

    Caroline
  • Bronzie
    Bronzie Posts: 4,927
    £300 for an unknown 1980's frame does seem very steep...............you could pick up something similar on Ebay for peanuts and get it re-sprayed yourself in any colour you like for £100.

    Unless there is some sort of proof that it's a rare or high quality steel frame worth £300, I'd look elsewhere. They may have found it in a skip last week! Do you know the shop well enough to trust what they say?
    It's a Lifestyle! -+-+- Coggan Training Levels
  • leperisland
    leperisland Posts: 28
    Isn't a professional paint job more expensive than that?
  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    leperisland wrote:
    Isn't a professional paint job more expensive than that?

    £100 is about right.

    http://www.argoscycles.com/www/renovation-pricelist.htm
    I like bikes...

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  • meagain
    meagain Posts: 2,331
    Bronzie wrote:
    £300 for an unknown 1980's frame does seem very steep...............you could pick up something similar on Ebay for peanuts and get it re-sprayed yourself in any colour you like for £100.

    Unless there is some sort of proof that it's a rare or high quality steel frame worth £300, I'd look elsewhere. They may have found it in a skip last week! Do you know the shop well enough to trust what they say?

    Couldn't put it better. Well over the top unless something very special AND you can be absolutely sure that structurally sound. Resprays always make me wary. Have bought (cheaply!) frames on which folk have spent much money but actually were little better than scrap! Like a flashed over car.
    d.j.
    "Cancel my subscription to the resurrection."
  • leperisland
    leperisland Posts: 28
    It is definitely a dawes though, it's inscribed.
  • Bronzie
    Bronzie Posts: 4,927
    leperisland wrote:
    It is definitely a dawes though, it's inscribed.
    So is this. And this. But I wouldn't pay £300 for either of them.

    If the shop can't tell you what the model is or what steel tubing the frame is made of, walk away. If they got it re-sprayed, they must know what frame stickers it had on it before the re-spray! If it's a decent Reynolds quality steel tubing, then it may just about be worth £300, otherwise they are selling you a pup.
    It's a Lifestyle! -+-+- Coggan Training Levels
  • blackhands
    blackhands Posts: 950
    As this frame has mudguard eyes its most likely to be either Reynols 531 or 531ST (if its decent tubing) so worth no more than about £150 tops if you can find out what its made of.

    It depends what you want it for whther or not its worth buying at all - from the head tube length it seems to be about 56 cm which would suit someone 5'10" to 6'0" ish.

    Frame resprays are not that expensive - see here:

    http://www.bobjacksoncycles.co.uk/resprays.php
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    A single colour paintjob of that quality - £40, particularly as it lacks the transfers. A respray can hide all manner of evils - £300 for what is a secondhand frame is massively overpriced. The most I've paid for a used steel frame is £100 - it was from a reputable marque & was only one of 200 ever made - not some Brummie-built gas pipe special.
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • Smokin Joe
    Smokin Joe Posts: 2,706
    I'd value a 1980's Dawes at around £30.

    They're having a serious laugh at that price.
  • geoff_ss
    geoff_ss Posts: 1,201
    If that's worth £300 then I shudder to think what my immaculate (resprayed) 1949 Mercian with pencil stays and Nervex lugs is worth. It's been in my loft for over 5 years dry and warm since its respray and new top tube.

    Dawes made/make sound, good quality mass-produced frames but nothing very special that would make a 20+ year old frame worth £300.

    Geoff
    Old cyclists never die; they just fit smaller chainrings ... and pedal faster
  • giant_man
    giant_man Posts: 6,878
    Walk away Caroline, the paint job doesn't look that good to me have to say, a rip off in the making. It's only a Dawes anyway.

    You can get a new steel frame for that kind of money elsewhere.
  • Sea_Green_Incorruptible
    Sea_Green_Incorruptible Posts: 431
    Agreed. Type 'frameset' into ebay to see the kind of things around. There's currently a 1990s Merckx Corsa and a 1980s Pinerallo Treviso for sale, both in Columbus steel, both for (currently) less than £80...
  • leperisland
    leperisland Posts: 28
    Thanks everyone, i won't bother with this :)
  • graham_g
    graham_g Posts: 652
    Can we name and shame? They are seriously having a laugh there - my old LBS sells shot blasted and powder coated (i.e. cheaply done) steel frames that are normally either 500/501 or 531 for around the £60-70 mark!
  • OnTow
    OnTow Posts: 130
    Just to "compare and contrast" - Ribble are doing a deal on their horizontal top tubed winter training frame made of Deda. aluminium tubing - About 120 quid ..... With carbon fork!!
  • giant_man
    giant_man Posts: 6,878
    Just for instance Caroline, Thorn are offering this steel frame:

    http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/audaxmk3.html

    Frame and fork kit £299 (Inc headset, seat post and BB) which can't be bad for the same money as you were gonna shell out for the Dawes.

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