What Is Your Opinion On This Paramount For Sale $680

[mike1117]

Schwinn Paramount Waterford Bicycle USA Made - bicycles - by owner - bike sale - craigslist

Blue Schwinn Paramount Waterford bicycle for sale. Believed to be built in 1972 based on the serial number. I work in Santa Rosa, CA so for any viewing or exchange we can meet there. General...

sfbay.craigslist.org

For sale on SF Craigslist. Kind of worn out maybe but I am looking for something I can ride not show or display. I am learning a little about these bikes bit by bit but would not know if this is a $100 bike or a $1000 bike. Any opinions by anyone about this bike would be appreciated. I posted just 2 pics, there are a few more on SF Craigslist listing. Thanks.

 

[SLM]

Cool rider , it looks like a tall frame which are not very popular unless you have the inseam. If it all Campy and no dents in the tubes …$300 and ride it

 

[Iverider]

If it were my size and I could pick it up locally and I wanted to keep it, I'd offer $500 on it and probably have it in the car or settle for $550.
531 Reynolds is nice, and they're not making any more Paramounts with nervex lugs. Hell can you even buy nervex lugs loose anymore?
Try to buy a handmade lugged steel frame of this same caliber today and you'll be in for at least $2k to start.

 

[sworley]

It appears to be repainted and possibly poorly at that. Road bike market is way soft these days. I’d offer $300 tops if that’s your size. Minus $50 if those are sew-ups cause who wants to deal with that?!

 

[Schwinn Sales West]

1) Never mind that Waterford did not exist in 1974 when this Paramount frame was built. Why use the factory name in the description, AI?
2) The photos do not show very much about the condition or how the bike is equipped.
3) the only thing I can see is that it's a 1974 P-13 Frame (with fender/rack eyelets removed from the Campy fork ends.
4) From the poor quality and limited photos it looks like a "repainted" bike. The Dura Ace rear derailer is not original to a 1974 Paramount.
5) You never have stated what frame size bike you're looking for? This is a TALL frame, in the 25" to 26" seat tube range is my guess.

Really tall, or really small frame sizes are hard to resell because of their small potential buyer group. This drives the resell prices down. The sheer quantity of vintage 1970-80's steel framed road bikes drives the prices down and offers some great choices for buyers.

I see lots of high quality, very nice original condition "hand made" steel framed bikes listed every week at prices less than the cost of the "used parts" needed to assemble a bare frame set. By using a $1000 base line you will be able to have a wide selection of first class potential purchases.

The Bay Area CL has to be one of the most dense Road Bike areas in the nation.

John

 

[Iverider]

Looks like dirty blue metallic original paint to me on my desk top screen. Go look at it. Cash in person is far easier to make a bargain than asking for more pics and then sending a lowball offer.

 

[catfish]

 

[mike1117]

Thanks so much for the comments and all your help. I am 6 feet tall, but after riding my small Stingray bikes for so long I do not feel I would be comfortable on a tall frame like this appears to be. When I get on my 1967 Schwinn Varsity I still have which I got new in 1967 it takes a while getting used to a big boys bike like that after riding my small Stingray bikes the majority of the time. Santa Rosa is a 4 hour roundtrip for me (100 miles each way) and when I make a trip like that I usually am pretty sure of what it is I am going to see and have the deal pretty much wrapped up before making the trip. If this bike were maybe half that drive or less I would not mind making the drive to check out the bike. Gone are the days when I drive all day to just check out a single bike I am not sure about what I am going to look at and have had at least some discussion about price with the seller. In fact I do not recall going to look at a bike for sale that I did not end up purchasing, must have happened sometime in the past 30 years but I can not recall it happening. Now cars are another animal all together and I look at many cars that just do not for some reason or another do it for me when looking at them in person. I know very well it is easier to bargain/make an offer on anything when you are standing in front of it with cash in hand. But not being sure this would be the right bike for me I will probably be passing on it. Thanks again everyone for the help, this is what I really like about this site "INFORMATION AND HELP" more so than the buying/selling classifieds.