I used to love rebuilding bikes. One year I had more than sixty for sale! Selling rebuilt bikes is a big hassle though, and eventually I started to focus on repairs instead. I have several bicycles left over from the good old days, bicycles so special I had to preserve them.

The bicycles pictured below, excepting the 1937 CCM and the 1980s Sputnik, have been fully-rebuilt with new tires, tubes, rims, chains, cranks, bottom brackets, brake pads, and often pedals, saddles, and other goodies. They are all fully-functional resto-mod antiques. While their performance and durability have been improved by an order of magnitude, they still weigh more than modern bikes and have fewer gears. They are cool because they are old: you need to understand that.

Remember the hassle I mentioned? Here it is: I need to limit the number of customers coming to my home because it is a residence, not a business unit. When we make an appointment to do a test ride, there is an opportunity cost to me. I will also have to take the bikes out of their relatively-inaccessible storage space, pump their tires up, carry them down a flight of stairs, and attend to all your needs as you decide. Therefore, I hope you will understand that when you arrive with your photo-ID I will be charging $50 at the door whether you buy anything or not.

$1250: This 1980s Italian-made Colnago is the pinnacle of the evolution of the classic racing bicycle. The distance from the top tube to the floor is 33": you need to be able to stradle this with your feet flat on the ground or else the bike is too tall.


$1250: I re-equipped this 1980s American-made Cannondale with a Shimano HT2 crankset and Campagnolo brifters. Top-tube-to-floor: 33".


$950: I upgraded this 1970 Schwinn Breeze with 3-pc crank on cartridge BB set and hand-build wheels with double-wall aluminum rims, stainless spokes, and Sturmey-Archer 3-spd hubs with drum brakes. Top-tube-to-floor: 29.5".


$650: My definition of a cruiser bike: retro style, swept upright handlebars, spring saddle, chainguard and fenders. This cute 1954 Raleigh also has a new set of MKS high-polish aluminum pedals. Top-tube-to-floor: 29".


$650: 1968 Philips. All my classic cruiser bikes are equipped with new CR-18 double-wall aluminum rims, stainless spokes, tires, tubes, Kool-Stop brake pads, cartridge bottom bracket, and aluminum track crank (the crank and cartridge BB alone are worth $200). Top-tube-to-floor: 30.5".


$500: This 1980s Peugeot-copy is one of two bicycles I have ever seen in Montreal which was made in the former USSR, in Kharkov, Ukraine. It has four speeds. Only decadent soft capitalists need ten. Top-tube-to-floor: 31.5".


$650: This 1970s Rapido from Czechoslovakia has also outlasted the country in which it was made. I kept the original chain on this bike because it had no measurable wear. Since the beautiful but UV-susceptible cherry-red paint has not faded at all, I can tell this bike has been indoors for half a century and barely ever used. Of course, I did the usual upgrades anyway. Top-tube-to-floor: 30.5".


$650: This CCM single-speed cruiser was built in Canada in 1937. 1937. I replaced the tires and chain and oiled everything up, so it is fully-functional, but otherwise I kept the original equipment and took an arrested-decay approach.