dawes galaxy

[donnieban]

Hello to u all from a newbie,

Looking for some advice on this prospective Dawes Galaxy prior to forking out £310 plus about £80 quid in fuel.

I think its a late 80's or early 90's 21 speed in brg with the cabling thru the top tube, bike looks very clean.

Just want a nod that I'm not buying less than I expect for the money!

Cheers
Donnie :?:

 

[hamster]

Nice bike, seemingly in a tidy condition. The price is a bit steep IME, you can buy a new Galaxy for £850 if you look around a bit. A Claud Butler Dalesman also has a similar frame and is around £700.

Personally I would be thinking more like £250, assuming the drivetrain is OK (chain newish and not skipping on cassette or chainrings).

I would try to get the seller to box it and a courier to pick it up for £15 or so.

 

[donnieban]

Thank's Hamster,

I similarly think the price is high, given the bike price when new was about £500, but the detailed photos (not listed) all suggest the bike has led a pretty charmed life...

As far as real time courier costs go, we cant get anything much bigger than a large jiffy bag delivered to the Isle of Skye for £15 sadly.


Cheers

 

[hamster]

Oops, sorry, I didn't see the Skye bit.

Still, you have the compensation of living in Skye, I spent some of my childhood years on Benbecula.

It's a nice bike with a decent frame. In the end it's bickering over 50 quid, which in the bigger scheme of things...

 

[donnieban]

Stunning place to live, but sadly, our roads have declined to third world status. Uist and the outer Isles are very good in comparison, but I digress...

So back to the Galaxy, I have offered the asking price £310 and just needed a bit of comfort that my money was being spent wisely. I think you have answered that one for me.

What do you reckon as to the year? :?:

 

[hamster]

I'm pretty sure it's around 1994. My Kickback Two tandems have almost identical decals.

I'm not sure if they tweaked them slightly in the years each side. A bit later and they went to 8 speed.

It has low-profile cantis, which means earliest 1992, but again probably a bit later.

 

[donnieban]

The decals suggest 1993, but the 93 colour options appear to have been black or blue jewel? British racing green was available in 94.
The brake set is deore lx and the front and rear mech are similarly deore with shimano groupset.

Give or take a foot, it matters very little I suppose.

 

[hamster]

I agree - what's important is condition.
For what it's worth, the older wide profile cantis like MT60 are way superior due to better leverage and being less finicky to set up. You can usually pick them up here for £15-20 for a bike's worth.

 

[donnieban]

Cheers for the advice on the brakes, I did wonder, how old school brakes would compare with my 3 year old TREK roadie.

I think I should give a big thumbs up for all involved with this site. There is a wealth of info available here.

 

[Dead Rats]

I would say comparable in power but not feel... I was surprised by how sharp modern dual pivots like 105 are, but older cantis have more feel as well as great leverage. And of course loads more clearance for 'guards! Second that the price is a bit high, but looks good regardless.