Lou Deeter's post brings up a very interesting point. A restoration
(according to Lou's post) is classified as "REB: Rebuilt/repainted".
If no modifications are made to the frame and the restoration is done
in the spirit of "as close to the original finish, minus blems", then
where does value now fall on Lou's list ??
> NIP: New in original packaging.
> NOS: New, unused, old stock.
> NEW: New, unused, recent production.
> EX: Excellent, virtually unused or unblemished.
> VG: Very Good, minor wear or blemishes.
> G: Good, moderate wear or blemishes.
> F: Fair, significant wear or blemishes.
> P: Poor, incomplete, non-functional or very blemished.
> REB: Rebuilt/repainted.
I think it depends on the bicycle brand and restorer. For a MASI painted by a MASI painter, my impression is that the value might be somewhere between EX and NOS.
For other bikes (like a Raleigh) painted by a master painter, with good decals, value might be higher than NIP (perhaps this is wishful thinking on my part...)
For other items, such as a Schwinn Paramount painted by repaints-r-us, maybe the value falls to somewhere between G, F, and P...
Interesting to contemplate.
- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA