I had some random guy on craigslist build me up a 1973 Mercier road bike, and it so far seems like a nice solid frame. Does anyone have any wisdom on vintage road bikes, and if or what the advantages are of a more modern bike?

Keep in mind I am very new to serious road biking, as I purchased the Mercier about 3 weeks ago and am now putting in about 85 miles a week on it.

As a teenager, I had a pretty nice 19 inch Trek mountain bike, but that was my last experience with biking. Luckily I don’t crash as much as I used to on that crazy thing. It might have something to do with a decreased desire to constantly catch air on my road bike

It is definitely due for some paint, which I plan on doing shortly, but I am a bit skeptical about my ability to completely disassemble and reassemble (properly) an entire bicycle.

Microfoam,

Can’t tell you much about the Mercer, but looks like a lugged steel frame.  The brakes and shifters are old school, probably consistent with the frame.  If you’re riding 85 miles a week, you’re getting some good riding.  It looks in the pictures like the real wheel might be rusted where the spokes go into the wheel.  Keep an eye on that, because if it is rust it will get worse and you could pull out spokes.

The advantage of a newer bike would be weight, gearing and ergonomics.  Old steel frames ride well but are heavy compared to todays frames.  Your Mercer probably as a 5 speed rear cassette.  New bikes have 9 or 10 which gives you a bigger selection of gearing to match your pedaling pace with the conditions. 

The reality is though, if you enjoy riding this bike that’s great!  Keep on riding.  As you become more proficient and more interested, visit local bike shops and talk to the people there.  They are mostly great people who like cycling and like to share their knowledge with you. They can steer you into a bike that suites your budget and riding needs. 

Here a great web site for old bike stuff and information.  New stuff as well http://www.sheldonbrown.com/

Taking the bike apart depends on your mechanical ability.  Nothing super sophisticated.  The crank and bottom bracket would be the most technical part and you might want a bike shop to do that if you don’t have the tools.

Good Luck and Good Riding

Thanks for the info pedler. I think the back wheel is okay, I just had to downgrade the quality of the image to comply with the 75 kb maximum attachment size. Upon close inspection, the spoke insertion points appear to just be a bit grimy. I may end up replacing the rear wheel sometime soon anyway though, as it is a bit untrue and nothing too special. I know that my the bike has the Simplex components towards the rear end and a few different Suntour shifting components, with Mafac Racer brakes.

The link to the Sheldon Brown site is great, thank you very much. I learned about proper braking (which I have actually adopted naturally), but I definitely recall going over the handlebars a few times on my MTB as a result of mistaken brake lever grabbing. I don’t really ever feel like I’m going to pitch over on this bike when using the front bake though, which is nice.

Does anyone out there have any special opinion on whether it is better to set up your braking with the right hand controlling the front brake and the left controlling the rear? It seems like an extremely sensible rearrangement to me, especially when it comes to signaling a turn while attempting to slow down.

I just had my chain replaced yesterday, which solved an extremely obnoxious chain “jump” every time I started from a stop. I think I got a decent deal on the entire bicycle, but I am seeing the need to replace some parts that are not quite up to snuff, as my builder threw this thing together from a variety of spare parts.

I have been reading a lot about the jittery feel of newer road bikes, seemingly a result of being built for racing on ultra-smooth courses, and am thinking that I at least have got a nice, clean vintage frame that has pretty nice road feel.