eBay is one of the best places to find a vintage road bike. There's more choice than any local market, and most sellers are clearing out a bike they or a relative rode for years. Most of what goes wrong comes from sellers who don't know the bike well, and from shipping. A few questions before you buy sort out nearly all of it.
The model in the title isn't the model in the photos
Sellers often name a bike from the most famous model the brand made. A boom-era ten-speed becomes a race model, or a bike gets the name of a better model that shared its paint. Sometimes it's the other way around, and a good bike is listed under a plain name.
Check the listing against what the model should have. The tubing decal is the best clue, because it's hard to argue with. A bike sold as a 531 race model should have a Reynolds decal that says so. Our Reynolds decal guide shows what each one means. Then look at the parts the model came with. Every model page in our catalog lists the tubing, the threading and the parts where period sources confirm them.
Ask for the frame number. It won't always date a bike on its own, but it lets you compare against catalogs and owners' records, and a seller who sends it without fuss is usually a seller who knows the bike.
Mixed parts
Old bikes get ridden, and ridden bikes get new parts. A 1970s bike with a 1980s derailleur is normal. Swaps matter when the price is set by originality, or when the swaps hide a problem.
Things to look at:
- Parts from different decades. Index shifters on a bike from before the mid-1980s, or brake-lever shifters on a bike from before the early 1990s, are usually later swaps. That's fine on a rider and wrong on a bike sold as all original.
- Standards that don't match. A French-threaded bike with an English bottom bracket installed has either been re-tapped or the seller has the threading wrong. Ask.
- A modern wheelset. It may ride better, but ask whether the original wheels come with it, and check the rear spacing matches the frame. Our wheel guide covers this.
Parts that are missing or wrong can usually be found. Our sister store components.allbutnew.com covers vintage derailleurs, wheels and other parts, so price a bike knowing what you'd need to add.
The size in the title
Treat the size in the title as a starting point. Makers measured frames in different ways, center to top or center to center, and sellers measure in their own ways too. Some list the wheel size, or a size taken from the seat to the floor. Ask for these three numbers, with a photo of the tape if you can:
- Seat tube, from the center of the bottom bracket to the top of the seat tube.
- Seat tube, from the center of the bottom bracket to the center of the top tube.
- Top tube, center to center.
With those, you can compare it to a bike you already ride. Our first bike guide explains what each one means for fit.
Repaints sold as original
Original paint is part of what a collector pays for, so a repaint sold as original is the most expensive mistake on this list. Most sellers who list a repaint as original don't know it was repainted. Look for:
- Paint that's too glossy and perfect for its age, while the parts on the bike look their years.
- Paint inside the threads of the bottom bracket or on the dropout faces.
- Decals that sit on top of the clear coat, or decals in a style from later than the frame. Replacement Reynolds decals are often a more modern design than the original, and in the late 1980s it issued some marked "Renovated" for repainted frames.
- Lug edges that look soft or filled, where the original showed crisp lines.
A good repaint is fine on a bike you'll ride. Just don't pay original-paint money for one. If you're unsure, ask who painted it and whether there are photos from before. Our frame inspection guide covers what a repaint can hide.
Shipping
A bike that's badly packed can arrive with a bent derailleur hanger, a dented tube or a bent fork. Before you buy, ask how the seller will ship it.
- Boxed. A bike box from a shop, with the front wheel, pedals and handlebars off, and the bars tied along the frame.
- Protected. Padding on the tubes, a spacer in the fork and the rear dropouts so they can't be squeezed, and the rear derailleur taken off or wrapped and tied inside the frame.
- Insured. Insurance for the full price, and tracking.
- Photographed. Ask the seller to photograph the bike in the box before it's sealed. If it arrives damaged, that photo matters.
Some sellers will have a bike shop pack it, which is usually the safest route. Open the box carefully when it arrives, photograph everything before you unpack it fully, and check the frame and fork before you ride. If something is damaged, contact the seller straight away with the photos.
Names that trip sellers up
Some of the bikes we cover are misnamed all the time. A Milano decal doesn't prove a Masi Gran Criterium was built in Italy, because the Carlsbad shop used the Italian decals too. Italian frames have a size stamp but no serial, and US frames are serial-numbered. The Bianchi Specialissima name covers 1970s race bikes, and the X4 is a different, later limited model. Motobecane reused names, so a Grand Touring from 1974 and one from 1984 are different bikes. And a Peugeot P8 listed as Reynolds 531 should make you ask, since Peugeot's catalogs list its own Carbolite 103 steel.
Questions to ask before you buy
- How did you measure the frame size, and what's the top tube length?
- Can you send a close photo of each tubing decal and the frame number?
- Is the paint original? If not, who painted it?
- Which parts are original, and which have been changed?
- Do the seatpost and stem move?
- Has it been crashed, and are there any cracks, dents or rust you know of?
- How will you pack and ship it?
Most sellers will answer, and a clear answer tells you a lot. When a listing checks out, buy it. A sound old steel bike that fits can be ridden for decades, and there are plenty to choose from. Brands like Peugeot and Raleigh sold so many that you can afford to be picky.