90s REI Novara- worth $250?

[13thcyclist]

I am looking for a good commuter bike to ride to school & for general errands because I want to get rid of this ugly rack on my nice, new Giant road bike and I also do not want to risk such a nice bike getting stolen, too.

Found this old REI Novara bike on Craigslist going for $250, here is the post:
REI Novara Road Bike - 54cm - $250

I emailed the owner for more info, and apparently this bike has 12 speed Dura Ace on it. Going to meet her on Wednesday to confirm that, but based on the info given already, would this be a decent buy for $250? It's also been on the market for awhile now (Dec. 3), so I may be able to haggle it down if that would be better.

[Dave Hickey]

It's not a bad price considering the prices of old steel lately.... I'd probably pay that if it were local

[Scott in MN]

I think a 12 speed would be more 80's. 90's started out with 7 spd cassettes.

[Dave Hickey]

I think a 12 speed would be more 80's. 90's started out with 7 spd cassettes.

I thought about that too.....6 speed Dura Ace went away around 1986...

I might be mistaken but I think Novara was an independent brand before REI got a hold of them....

That frame looks like a nice quality steel frame...

[frpax]

I think it's WAY worth $250.

[13thcyclist]

Well, I checked out the bike today and it seems like a real deal. It's a Novara Trionfo with Tange steel frame. The RD, shifters, and I think FD (didn't really look at it carefully) are all Dura Ace, and the gears look to be in good condition. The cassette is 6 speed, so I think that means it is from the 80s rather than 90s. Seller says she only put around 200 miles on it for triathlons, and before that her Dad was using it for an unknown amount of mileage; though I think overall mileage looks to be low since I could only see a little daylight poking through the biggest cog with the new chain on it.

The only problems I noticed were the frame being a little small and no eyelets for a rack. The first problem, I noticed that my neck was straining a bit while trying to look up at the road ahead. Also felt that I was a little too cramped/hunched over, probably due to the short, downward stem, downward pointing bars, and raised seatpost. My normal road bike is a 56cm with compact (sloping TT) geo, this is a 54cm with traditional (straight TT) geo, so maybe it's too much of a leap to try to compensate the size difference with longer seatpost/stem? And, if I find the 6 speed cassette to be inadequate for the hilly area I live in, how easy would it be to find a compatible >6 speed cassette given the older RD & FD? On top of that, would I be able to change the DT shifters to bar end shifters? I hear barcons should work well for that, right?

The second problem, I am researching workarounds and p-clamps are often suggested, though I doubt the stability of that solution for all four mounting points. Mostly, I just don't want to spend more money to buy another rack, so I just want some sort of adapter(s) that would make my standard eyelet-using rack work with this bike. How would a seatpost adapter plus a QR skewer adapter work? I will be carrying a backpack full of books weighing in around 15-30 lbs along with a hefty mini-u lock, so I want something rather secure.

Here are a few closeups I got of the componentry of the bike. Oh yeah, she mentioned that she got one other offer from a guy trying to save up $200, so apparently she might be willing to lower the price from $250. Also, the C-List posting expired, but aside from the details I've given already, pretty much she had the bike tuned up and replaced the cables, chain, tape, etc FWIW.

[High Gear]

Gee Wizz, lets see some better pics of the frame...

[13thcyclist]

Gee Wizz, lets see some better pics of the frame...

Helpful much? It basically looks like this guy's Novara, plus a few scratches in the paint

[josephr]

for $250?? you did very well my friend!!!

[kjdhawkhill]

The theme of this board => If it doesn't fit, taint worth it.

If you'll ride it say, [insert IRS formula 55.5 cents per mile business purpose / 14 cents per mile in service of charitable organizations for miles driven] and feel that you didn't get ripped for $250...and it fits... $250 might not be a bad price... What do you feel is a fair price per mile for your riding if it doesn't fit?

[13thcyclist]

So I pulled the trigger, guys. $200 out of my pocket later, and this Novara Triono is mine! Hopefully, I won't have to spend even more to try to make the slightly smaller frame fit. But just angling up the handlebars helped a ton with alleviating the aggressive riding position. A nice, long riser stem should complete the deal, but I might need to drop even more money for a men's saddle (this one is women's), setback seatpost, ehhhtc...

But you gotta admit, $200 is not bad at all when you consider this was a top of the line >$1000 bike back in the 80s.

Here are a couple crappy cell phone pics

[icemonkey]

terrific bike, nice find.