What a bargain...whoops!

[winjohn]

I was shopping online for a nice honey coloured leather B17 for the Mercian KoM and looking at SJS they are about £120. Now some might see that as a bit of a bargain for something made lovingly by hand by the trusty artisans of Smethwick in time honoured tradition passed down through generations of the stout yeomen of Birmingham but I winced a little at the price and decided to look further.

My quest led me to a beautiful slightly used example for sale locally for the bargain price of £150. Here it is:




"But wait!" I hear you cry, " Is that not £30 more than a brand new one?"

Yes, but look carefully, this one came attached to a whole free bicycle.



A retro looking Temple Cycles, Reynolds 520 frame, complete with Alfine hub, Mavic rims and XT front hub. (Very nice aluminium mudguards too, shame the rear one is half missing.) It has a rather beautiful minimalist stainless steel bottle cage too.



I'll swap out the saddle, stick a rack on it and use it for riding into town for shopping. OK, so I probably could have bought a second hand B17 for 50 quid but I'll ride this around for a bit and see how the Alfine hub gears feel, I've had a few Nexus 8s but never an Alfine. And I've never ridden a Reynolds 520 frame before either so I have all these new experiences for Xmas for me.

Look out for a lightly used Temple Cycle for sale in the new year for offer around £150!

 

[Iwasgoodonce]

A bargain. I’m sure we’ll all agree.

 

[KayOs]

Lovely bike! Always nice to find something like this

 

[MatBH5]

Fantastic find. I could rather use an Alfine like that to rejuvenate a Mercian I have here, frame fittings made specifically for a hub gear. This would fit so well. Let me know if it does come available. Thanks.

 

[greencat]

Nice catch. Shimano's hub gears are pretty sweet.

 

[grantoury]

Definitely a good deal. A Brooks saddle and grips new will be more. Enjoy it!

 

[FMJ]

Had a similar situation. Old GF messaged me that her bike was stolen so I was looking for something to replace it for her. Found an ad on Kijiji, "mountain bike. new Brooks seat, $140" (CAD ≠ £80) with a tiny grainy pic and the barely discernable but unmistakable slanted Serif font on the downtube. Called (was his GF's bike - she bought a new carbon MTB) , hopped in the truck, drove there. Turned out to be Brodie Bikes' same flagship steel Prestige frame they used on their Catalyst w. XT/LX mix. Handed him $140, no questions/haggling.

Swapped the B-17 and tires for something more bikepath friendly and shipped it to the old GF in the cargo hold of a Greyhound bus. Ended up giving the seat to my LBS guy when he mentioned he wanted a B-17 for a Surly he was building for himself.