mark289
Retro Newbie
Orbit 'America 105', Reynolds 653, road bike, Shimano 600/Dura Ace.
General
The road bike has a Reynolds 653 frame with Shimano 600 groupset with Dura-Ace rear derailleur, Mavic and Rigida rims. It was bought in 1989 for £560 and upgraded in the 90’s from Shimano 105 to 600/Dura-Ace. Adjusted for inflation, using the Bank of England inflation calculator, the 1989 bike value in 2023 money is £1372. The bike has had light domestic use and no daily commute. It has been cleaned and some refurbishment done.
Comparison with contemporary bikes
Groupset and frame material of the bike correspond to it’s price. At lower end, around £200, you get entry level group sets, like Shminao Tourney, and ‘alloy’ frames and some steel parts. As the price goes up, say £500-1500, you get Aluminium alloy 6061 frames (sometimes with carbon forks) and better Groupset such as Tiagra. At many 1000's you get carbon frames and top grade group sets like Ultegra and Dura-Ace (looking at Halford's and Evans-cycles website). Steel alloy frames are no longer used for road bikes but are still used for touring bikes as far as I can tell.
Postage
You are welcome to pick the bike up in person. I can also deliver in a 5 mile radius of Harrow, NW London but will cost £12.50 due to ULEZ
The bike can be posted using bikedelivery.co.uk for £32 (insurance paid by me) and a proper bike box from The Bike Shop, North Harrow. It is a next day service.
The bike will be well packed according to the Royal Mail instructions including removal of wheels and peddles, and flattening of handlebars.
If you require further information or would like to examine and test ride the bike first please post.
Spec
Colour: pearl white
Tubing: Reynolds 653 (frame and front forks)
Frame size: 60
Brakes: Shimano 600
Front deraileur: Shimano 600
Rear deraileur: Dura-Ace
Pedals: Shimano 600
Chainset: Shimano 600
Rear 8 cogs, fronts 2 cogs
Wheel rear: Shimano 600 hubs, rims Mavic Maxtals.6000 open pro, dark grey
Wheel front: Shimano 600 hub, rim Rigida, black
Tyres: National tyre co.ltd., made in Japan, 700x20C, Panaracer stradius sport, tour guard puncture protection
Saddle: Selie italia, flite 'titanium' with ally seat post
Stem: Specialised, aluminium
Handlebars: aluminium SR Road Champion
Gear shifters:Shimano 600
Brake levers:Shimano 600
Size:
Frame size: 60
Seat post to bottom bracket 60cm
seat post to handle bar stem 59cm
Fork length 36.5cm
Stem not incl Bearing 17.5.cm
Seat stay 54.5cm
Chain stay 41cm
Down tube 64.75cm
Top Tube to ground 84cm
Width handle bars 44cm
Weight 10.29Kg
(wheels 3.27kg, frame/gs 6.54kg, seat/post 0.48kg)
Modification: Bike was changed from Shimano 105 to 600 and Dura Ace
Cosmetic Condition - saddle wear. Frame paint has chips and abrasions. Front right fork repainted. The Rear brake cable casing has some cracks in the plastic coating.
Working condition: very Good - smooth, fast and light. Occasional weekly use, not daily commute.
Partial Refurbishment
Bike bought from Rohan's cycles, Rayner’s lane (now Kings cycles), 1989. Original new price was £560 (not including upgrade to Shimano 600). If the price is adjusted for inflation to 2023 prices using the Bank of England inflation calculator the price would be £1372 not including the Shimano 600 upgrade.
Things to do?
What is Reynolds 653 tubing?
Reynolds tubing is a Manganese/Molybdenum steel alloy. From Wikipedia - “Was a mixedtube-set with a non-heat treated 753 main triangle. Stays used 753rand fork blades were borrowed from the 531c tube set. “
“531- Manganese/Molybdenum. YS/UTS: 695/803 MPa (45-52 Tsi,100-130 ksi)(number quoted are for after (lower) and before (higher) brazing),density 7.85 g/cm3 ”
“753 -Heat-Treated Manganese-Molybdenum. Essentially 531 made with reducedwall thickness and heat treated to increase tensile strength. UTS:1080-1280 MPa (70-83 Tsi, 157-186 ksi) Complete tubeset of 11 tubes (Frame 8, Fork 3). 753 can only be lugged andfillet-brazed with an alloy of 56% silver below 700 degrees Celsius and sale is restricted only to approved builders certified byReynolds”
“ReynoldsTechnology is a manufacturer of tubing for bicycleframes and other bicycle components based in Birmingham, England established in 1898.”
Shimano 600?
Shimano 600 was the predecessor of Shimano Ultegra the second grade below Dura-Ace(topgrade). The name was phased out in 1997 (Shimano website history).
Orbit bikes?
Small volume UK producer based in Sheffield.
General
The road bike has a Reynolds 653 frame with Shimano 600 groupset with Dura-Ace rear derailleur, Mavic and Rigida rims. It was bought in 1989 for £560 and upgraded in the 90’s from Shimano 105 to 600/Dura-Ace. Adjusted for inflation, using the Bank of England inflation calculator, the 1989 bike value in 2023 money is £1372. The bike has had light domestic use and no daily commute. It has been cleaned and some refurbishment done.
Comparison with contemporary bikes
Groupset and frame material of the bike correspond to it’s price. At lower end, around £200, you get entry level group sets, like Shminao Tourney, and ‘alloy’ frames and some steel parts. As the price goes up, say £500-1500, you get Aluminium alloy 6061 frames (sometimes with carbon forks) and better Groupset such as Tiagra. At many 1000's you get carbon frames and top grade group sets like Ultegra and Dura-Ace (looking at Halford's and Evans-cycles website). Steel alloy frames are no longer used for road bikes but are still used for touring bikes as far as I can tell.
Postage
You are welcome to pick the bike up in person. I can also deliver in a 5 mile radius of Harrow, NW London but will cost £12.50 due to ULEZ
The bike can be posted using bikedelivery.co.uk for £32 (insurance paid by me) and a proper bike box from The Bike Shop, North Harrow. It is a next day service.
The bike will be well packed according to the Royal Mail instructions including removal of wheels and peddles, and flattening of handlebars.
If you require further information or would like to examine and test ride the bike first please post.
Spec
Colour: pearl white
Tubing: Reynolds 653 (frame and front forks)
Frame size: 60
Brakes: Shimano 600
Front deraileur: Shimano 600
Rear deraileur: Dura-Ace
Pedals: Shimano 600
Chainset: Shimano 600
Rear 8 cogs, fronts 2 cogs
Wheel rear: Shimano 600 hubs, rims Mavic Maxtals.6000 open pro, dark grey
Wheel front: Shimano 600 hub, rim Rigida, black
Tyres: National tyre co.ltd., made in Japan, 700x20C, Panaracer stradius sport, tour guard puncture protection
Saddle: Selie italia, flite 'titanium' with ally seat post
Stem: Specialised, aluminium
Handlebars: aluminium SR Road Champion
Gear shifters:Shimano 600
Brake levers:Shimano 600
Size:
Frame size: 60
Seat post to bottom bracket 60cm
seat post to handle bar stem 59cm
Fork length 36.5cm
Stem not incl Bearing 17.5.cm
Seat stay 54.5cm
Chain stay 41cm
Down tube 64.75cm
Top Tube to ground 84cm
Width handle bars 44cm
Weight 10.29Kg
(wheels 3.27kg, frame/gs 6.54kg, seat/post 0.48kg)
Modification: Bike was changed from Shimano 105 to 600 and Dura Ace
Cosmetic Condition - saddle wear. Frame paint has chips and abrasions. Front right fork repainted. The Rear brake cable casing has some cracks in the plastic coating.
Working condition: very Good - smooth, fast and light. Occasional weekly use, not daily commute.
Partial Refurbishment
- The bike had been cleaned and gears/chain lubricated. The bottom bracket, wheel axels and stem have not been touched but operate smoothly.
- Old mud guards were removed
- Bottle cage bolts were replaced
- Seat post bolt was replaced
- Finishing tape was used on the handle bars
- The frame paint was treated to reduced the appearance of scuffs and scratches. Chips where treated for rust and primed and painted. Pre-existing repainting was improved. A full respray was not undertaken to preserve decals.
- Replacement of old chain stay protector
- Replacement of peddle toe clip straps
Bike bought from Rohan's cycles, Rayner’s lane (now Kings cycles), 1989. Original new price was £560 (not including upgrade to Shimano 600). If the price is adjusted for inflation to 2023 prices using the Bank of England inflation calculator the price would be £1372 not including the Shimano 600 upgrade.
Things to do?
- It might be worth inspecting the stem, bottom bracket and wheel axels for maintenance purposes, though they do not appear to have any problems.
- The bike probably needs peddle, back/front and wheel reflectors, bikelights and a bell.
- Further improvement to frame paint
- New rear brake cable casing
What is Reynolds 653 tubing?
Reynolds tubing is a Manganese/Molybdenum steel alloy. From Wikipedia - “Was a mixedtube-set with a non-heat treated 753 main triangle. Stays used 753rand fork blades were borrowed from the 531c tube set. “
“531- Manganese/Molybdenum. YS/UTS: 695/803 MPa (45-52 Tsi,100-130 ksi)(number quoted are for after (lower) and before (higher) brazing),density 7.85 g/cm3 ”
“753 -Heat-Treated Manganese-Molybdenum. Essentially 531 made with reducedwall thickness and heat treated to increase tensile strength. UTS:1080-1280 MPa (70-83 Tsi, 157-186 ksi) Complete tubeset of 11 tubes (Frame 8, Fork 3). 753 can only be lugged andfillet-brazed with an alloy of 56% silver below 700 degrees Celsius and sale is restricted only to approved builders certified byReynolds”
“ReynoldsTechnology is a manufacturer of tubing for bicycleframes and other bicycle components based in Birmingham, England established in 1898.”
Shimano 600?
Shimano 600 was the predecessor of Shimano Ultegra the second grade below Dura-Ace(topgrade). The name was phased out in 1997 (Shimano website history).
Orbit bikes?
Small volume UK producer based in Sheffield.
