hmmm... I find it hard to believe that they couldn't have fixed the old one?
What kind of chain could he have had that is so different from the newer ones?
And since vintage bikes seem to be the rage these days, there are a lot of places that specialize in vintage parts/products.
Hmmph. Sound to me like a greedy BS owner was trying to make a sale! I hate that!!
Sigh...
The other day I had a guy come in who had been here a couple of times checking us out. He converted an old frame to a fixie. Well he came in looking for a tool, but we didn't have it on the shelf. We did however have it in the service area. So I told him to just bring the bike down and he could borrow the tool. He did, it was no big deal, and he gave us 5.00 for our trouble.- Not that we were even going to charge him. It took him maybe 5 minutes to do what he needed to do.
Why did I just tell that story?? Heck I dunno. I'm rambling..
Wish I could offer some real advice. Perhaps his local craigslist will come up with something affordable for him. Actually- he should be watching CL and ebay anyway to see if the stolen steed shows up. Also have him take flyers by all the local pawn shops.