Vintage Schwinn Super Le Tour

[Miroslaw]

Hey there!

I've just recently got into biking - I'm right near Portola Valley in California so I've got some pretty good looking hills to enjoy.

I found this listing on craigslist for a Vintage 49cm Schwinn Super Le Tour bike for $440. It looks like a great entry-level bike.

Quote:A quality Schwinn bicycle made in Japan in amazing lightly used condition. Beautiful gloss black finish with white acsents with chrome fork ends make this a stunning bike to gaze at. Professionally serviced and set up with new tires, new tape, and new cables and housing. 4130 chromoly double butted frame tubes, Shimano 600 rear derailleur, alloy double cranks, alloy quick release front and rear wheels, and dia compe side pull brakes. Seat tube is 49cm center to top so it will fit riders from 5’1”-5’5”. Perfect for general road riding, long distance commuting, and sport touring. Frame has front and rear rack mounts with lots of room for fenders. Truly a beautiful example. This will make someone smile!

[http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/bik/2033455751.html]

can anybody give me any advice on the legitimacy of this ad and whether it's a good buy?

Thanks!
Teresa

[Alex Ramon]

That's a beautiful bike. Older Japanese chromoly frames are excellent quality. The components are also great. From the description and photos it looks well cared for. The price seems fair to me.

[KC-Steve]

Hi Teresa,

That looks like a 1981-82? Super LeTour. Chromed forks is what I am looking at there. The 12.2 model refers to the weight in Kilograms. I have a 1984 model and love it! Just a suggestion, you might make a counter offer and see if they will take a lower price. Good luck.

Steve

[GeorgeET]

Here is a link to the Schwinn catalogs. The 12.2 was made in about 1976-1978. The black color is late years.The 4130 is a good frame material, the bike was build most likely by Panasonic of Japan, they made some excellent bikes. After 1978 they used their own Tange frame tubes, excellent as the Colombus tubes used on high end Schwinn Paramount.The 600 series Shimano is good.

As Steve said 12.2 is kilo weight = 26.8 lbs .

In buying Schwinn's it is good to know the year made as the factory changed and different frame materials were used. Weight varied from 26 lbs, to 30 lbs when the 1020 tubes were used .

It is a nice bike in a small size. How tall are you?Thats a very nice bike, but IMO The price is high. I have seen one like that in LA for $200. Take your time and look around. Some excellent bikes from that period from Japan by Miyota, Fuji, Bridgestone and Panasonic others too.

http://www.trfindley.com/pg_schwinn_cats.htm

http://panasonicbikemuseum.info/archives/68

http://www.re-cycle.com/history/Schwinn/SwnB_Serial.aspx

[RobAR]

I have to side with George - the price is a bit high unless you are a collector and all mechanical parts are original. If wanted for a 'rider', you might want to wait for a similarly priced, newer model to show up. They are out there.

[nd456]

I have the same bike (just in red) but it rides great it is great bike for speed

[silvercreek]

I realize this is a lot late but I have a one owner for sale for a lot less. It has brand new tires. The only thing wrong with it is that one of the brake lever hoods has a small tear.

[GeorgeET]

Nice bike , great condition, a lot less is good. It has the correct single brake levers. If its the correct height for you its a nice bike , good frame.

[silvercreek]

(05-09-2012, 07:35 PM)GeorgeET Wrote:  Nice bike , great condition, a lot less is good. It has the correct single brake levers. If its the correct height for you its a nice bike , good frame.

It is all correct. The only things not original are the tubes and tires. I bought this bike new.