1980 Joe Breeze Mt Bike For Sale on Craigslist

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/bik/2438733184.html

I am not selling this but came across on my local Craigslist. Interesting!
1980 Joe Breeze BREEZER SERIES II MTB history

Date: 2011-06-13, 4:02PM PDT
Reply to: sale-akze5-2438733184@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]


#24 VINTAGE HISTORIC 1980 MTB MT. BIKE JOE BREEZE BREEZER SERIES II #24

THANKS FOR READING ABOUT THIS PART OF AMERICAN and WORLD BICYCLE HISTORY...
THIS IS A RIDEABLE BIKE, BUT IT IS MUSEUM QUALITY PIECE...
AND IF YOU ARE THINKING THAT YOU MAY WANT TO OWN IT, KEEP THAT IN MIND, IF YOU MAKE AN OFFER...
WE WILL BE LISTING ACROSS AMERICA, ON MTB REVIEW, AND PERHAPS EBAY IF NO ONE UNDERSTANDS THE VALUE OF THIS BIKE...
WE WOULD NOT LIKE TO SEND IT OUT OF THE U.S...
WE ARE NOT IN A HURRY...


being offered here is a piece of bicycle history...
for those that are not familiar with the history of the modern mt. bike, Joe Breeze built the first 10 mt.bikes in 1977-79...
this is before the gary fisher/charlie kelley mt.bike store, and before tom ritchey had even thought about building a mt. bike...
joe followed the first 10 with the BREEZER "SERIES II", and the beginning of the brand name "BREEZER", in 1979-81...joe made 25 in this second run of bikes...
these were made before mike sinyard started making the Specialized mt. bike "Stumpjumper" in Japan...
those were closely followed by the "SERIES III" in 1982-83, which was a production run of 60...and the last mt.bikes that joe personally built...
so if you are interested in a bike that joe breeze designed and built, you have less then 95 chances to own 1...
joes bikes are in the Shimano museum in Japan, the California history section of the museum in Oakland, Ca., the mountain bike hall of fame in crested butte, co. and others...

Q: why does a "Specialized Stumpjumper" represent the origin of our mountain bike history in the Smithsonian Institute?
they were made in Japan, and came many years later then the first bikes that joe built here in the USA...

most of the SERIES II bikes were sold thru and built up by the Cove Bike Shop in Tiburon, Ca. owned by the Koski family...the Koski name lives on with mt. bike parts still around today...there was a spec sheet for the build kit and it included any options, although there were few in those days...I have a 2 page copy of the "original" spec sheet from joes typewriter dated nov.1980 and it will be included with the bike...we also have a copy of the original mechanical drawing for the Breezer II dated jan.1980, it will also go to the new owner if joe approves it...
joe breeze has always been known for his meticulous attention to detail and this hand built frame is a beautiful work of art...joe moved on to transportation bikes in the last decade and his bikes are setting a standard for the urban 2 wheeled assault vehicle...and more recently BREEZER bikes are available in mountain bike and soon there will be road bikes sportin' the BREEZER name again...check out joe breeze these days at breezerbikes.com...

this bike is an original owner bike and recently the older gentleman owner has decided to part with it...
the owner was in fact a bicycle store owner in Marin County, when he received this frame from joe...the store closed in the mid-80's, he also owned a shop on Stanyan St. in San Francisco in the 60-70's during that bike boom and the lovefest going on there...
this bike, #24, was not built up by the Cove...however, we believe it was built up with the help of another mt. bike legend and frame-builder extraordinaire Otis Guy (otisguycycles.com)...memories are a little foggy on that point...otis was working at the bike store as a second job at the time of the frame completion...
many of the early legends had worked at this store in 70's, including Marc Vendetti and that guy named Gary Fisher, among others...

when we received #24 for a potential sale it had just come from decades in a shed mostly in Nevada...it had in fact been ridden lightly in the early 80's mostly as a transportation/shop bike. . .the nickel plated frame and original decals were in great shape, the bike was coated in "stuck on dust"...
the "renovation" started from there...

#24 is also 1 of 3 smaller frames, 18" center to top frames, that joe made in this series II. . .in a discussion with joe 3 years ago when we renovated #22, he mentioned that only 3 of the smaller frames had been produced...in a discussion with joe recently to verify, he could not remember, so we will go with my intel from 3 years ago and say, only 3 smaller frames made...

this bike has been disassembled, detailed, and reassembled...
this is the original plating. . .this is an original bike, not a "restoration",
this is the bike as it was assembled in probably 1981, and it is totally rideable...and it is just as smooth on a test ride on pavement as they were in 1980, although you may want to put it on display in your place of business or a museum...

the original build/rebuild:
-wheels are the original Araya 36h 26 x 1.75 anodized silver, laced with DT spokes to the Phil hubs with the original allen head shouldered bolts...they have been trued, and they are very straight and round for 30+ years old...
-tires in the pictures are the original IRC Racer gumwall sided tires...
-T/A 26.36.47 chainrings show minimal wear, 170mm T/A cranks, T/A decal is present and in great shape on the non-drive side crank arm only...
-Suntour XC-II beartrap pedals, missing left side dust cap...
-Avocet Touring II saddle, which was popular on the early MTB's in Marin...
-original adjustable Hite-Rite seat spring from Breeze-Angell, OEM MTB industry standard in the early 80's...
-Specialized seat post QR (quick release) used in the day, not listed below...
-Joe Breeze custom built stub stem and handlebar shims to work with the Magura motorcycle handlebar used in the day, and the coin installed in the top of the stem which was an added custom touch at the time...
-Magura motorcycle short levers...
-Mafac cantilever brakes...
-suntour thumb shifters...
-the original Magura grips were tired, and have been replaced with a set of NOS Magura grips on the bike...
-new derailleur cables and housings were installed...
-the original heavy duty brake cables used, are still here and in great shape...
-front derailleur is the 1st generation "deer head" Shimano Deore MTB derailleur...
-rear derailleur is a rare Campagnolo Rally triple which was in the display cabinet at the shop when it came time to build the "new" bike, a tribute to the owners road bike roots...
-original Suntour 6 speed freewheel, 14-26...
-nos period correct chain has been installed...
-T/A copy water bottle cage...
-the few original parts that were replaced on the bike will be included...

-this build was different then most of the 25 Breezer II's, but that was the way it was in the beginning, as some of the bikes were purchased as a frameset and assembled by a few different guys...the Shimano Deore front derailleur was probably added a year or 2 later when Shimano introduced their first MTB parts...
many of the parts on the #24 bike are different then the original Cove Bike Shop spec. chart...
the spec. chart below is borrowed from firstflightbikes.com where you can go for more history of the mt. bike and other bikes...

note: the handmade hollow fork crowns on the Series II bikes were made by joe on the mill out of solid stock to fit the Reynolds 531 tandem fork blades that were used...
that took awhile, nice work there joe!


if you are interested in this piece of bicycling history, feel free to email us with offers that are fitting for a bike that is "not available" and you "can't buy"...

IF YOU THINK THIS IS VALUED LIKE A HIGH END MT.BIKE AVAILABLE TODAY AT YOUR DEALER,
SAVE US BOTH TIME AND DO NOT MAKE AN OFFER, I WILL NOT RESPOND...

thanks for looking, and keep pedaling...













Frame- Fillet brazed cro-moly, Campagnolo drop outs

Fork- Joe Breeze hollow crown with Reynolds 531 Tandem blades

Rear Shock- NA

Rims- Araya 26 x 1.75 alloy silver

Hubs- Phil Woods with allen head shouldered bolts

Spokes- DT Stainless steel laced 4 cross

Tires- IRC Racer

Pedals- SUNTOUR XC-II Beartrap

Crank- TA Cyclotourist triple 26/36/47 170 mm arms

Chain- unmarked

Rear Cogs - Suntour 6 speed freewheel

Bottom Bracket- Phil Woods sealed

Front Derailleur- Shimano Deore

Rear Derailleur- Campagnolo Rally

Shifters- Suntour Mighty thumb

Handlebars- Magura motorcycle bars

Stem- Joe Breeze stub custom

Headset- Campagnolo steel

Brake set- Mafac Tandem cantilever

Brake levers- Magura motorcycle

Saddle- Avocet Touring II

Seat Post- Campagnolo

Colors- Nickel plate

Size- 18.0" c-t

Serial #- J.B. B 80 24



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rthomer

Member
Any one want to take a stab at what a reasonable offer might be on a bike like this?
Over or under 10K?
 
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