The used bike market is hurting pretty bad now, prices have dropped significantly over the past year.
While the Nottingham Super Courses are generally known as decent Raleighs made with Reynolds 531. This one is not that, it is made in the USA(?) from a cheaper tube set the 555, the thing weighs 23+lbs.
Can you put a new 11 speed groupset on it, yes.
Is it worthy of Athena 11, no way!
Personally I would pass on that bike and keep looking for a nicer frame. If you had to buy it no more than $180-200, that’s if you want to be nice to the original owner.
Also consider fit. This is a bike for a very tall person. My guess is 62 cm frame size or thereabouts. As to the weight of this bike: more like 27+ lbs.
You offered a very reasonable price, but as some mentioned the "local market" determines the price on these types of bikes. As an original owner, he has vested too many miles in the bike to part with those memories at less than "top value for an original vintage bike".
FWIW, I have an '84 Grand Course - one of the ones build in England (531 tubing). For THAT bike I paid $500 earlier this year and have been pretty satisfied, but the real value is in the hand-built frame with the quality tubing. Mine has a mix of older Campy Centaur, Mirage, and a DuraAce rear derailer and shifters.
For a US-built frame, I wouldn't have paid as much.
Hard to tell if you're being sarcastic or not, but I'll try to post pics soon.
Would I rather have a Sachs, Masi, etc? Sure! But this was a bike I found locally when I was looking, and it IS a nice frame. Reynolds 531C frame & fork, windowed lugs, Gipiemme ends.... Ride is quite nice. Did I over-pay? Maybe, but compared to your average, mass-produced Trek/Giant/whatever AL frame, it is a great ride, and I don't have any regrets.
How does it compare to my Trek or my Litespeed? That's another story.
All in all.. yeah, I'd rather have a classic Italian frame, but a hand-built frame from one of the better British shops? The ride has been worth the $$ I spent.
But can be stretched. My '84 Gran Course will take a 9-speed Shimano without too much effort, but something you may want to consider is that if stretching the rear out for a modern rear wheel, you may want to have a shop align the drop-outs to keep them square against the axel. Simply bending the frame outward may lead to some alignment issues, and I've heard a FEW cases of people complaining of broken dropouts or broken axels, but YMMV.
But can be stretched. My '84 Gran Course will take a 9-speed Shimano without too much effort, but something you may want to consider is that if stretching the rear out for a modern rear wheel, you may want to have a shop align the drop-outs to keep them square against the axel. Simply bending the frame outward may lead to some alignment issues, and I've heard a FEW cases of people complaining of broken dropouts or broken axels, but YMMV.
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