actually, based on the photos involved, the ebay bike does look like the Pope's bike, except for the special dt graphic on the latter. The parts all look about right on the ebay bike.
I love these sellers who look for a sucker. There's something kinda charming about it, in a sleazy sort of way.
Let's see, now, we can all play:
1) if the story about the bike were true in every particular, maybe the bike is worth 5K plus. Depends on who's lookin'. Me? I don't find much of interest about it, to tell you the truth.
A molteni-team colnago one of Merckx's domestiques rode, now, that'd be interesting.
2) If it's a show-bike from the period with no particular association with the Pope's bike, maybe 2-4K?
3) If it's just a special-order item, not even a show-bike, 1-3K?
without verifiable paper documentation, one could say anything about it, couldn't one?
250K. I gotta hand it to the seller, he has real brass..no gold involved.. <g> gives the rest of us a bad name, though.
Charles Andrews
Los Angeles