All bikes are collectable
 

Awful lot of snobbery in our little collecting world. From the top tier of millionaires who buy only Rene Herses or Masi (as many as they can get of the same bike) to MTB collectors who despise Peugeot UO fans and vice versa. And also there is as with all collecting, a "I'm a big spender" fix. As in "I'm worth more than you". Also a whole load of blinkers on which means that people read up on what's collectable, rather than looking at bikes and deciding whether, irrespective of what a bike is or isn't deemed to be by other collectors, they want to collect it or not. Forget it, that's not the way to go. Think you should just might want collect what you can afford, and step otside the beaten track to find incredible bargains. And get a load of diversity into the collection.

Hang on, whoa, I hear you say. He's gonna flash a bike, he's building up this spiel to link us to a find. No way. Honest Injun'.

It's here http://vieuxvelos.canalblog.com/

VERY nice....I also recently learned what the wood plug in the steerer tube is - a broom handle. Evidently racers put them in because they were a tight fit and if the steerer broke, not uncommon on the rough roads of the time, they wouldn't lose control and at least could stop safely.
Really nice find and nice blog.

Very true, though the reverse snobbery can be just as bad as the original version, IMO.

Also very true, though that "blinker" thing does seem to be a right of passage for many if not most of us. Of course, lots of folks never take the blinkers off.
Sometimes, too, the bike may be worthy based on history, even when the workmanship doesn't measure up. Of course, that's no excuse for pretending the Emperor is wearing wool when he's stark naked. The discovery of the under-the-radar builders - and understanding why they're underappreciated - is one of the things that makes the hobby really rewarding, or my name's not Picchio Special. ;)

(Lovely bike)

Buy what you know. Buy what you love. We'll never run out of bikes.

J

I just ride them.

I'll buy anything....I'll sell anything. I only collect 54's.

I agree.
And thats why I can never pass up lower end stuff when its in like new condition.
Where else can I go and see a new 1975 Sekine?
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b4...0/DSC01932.jpg

I just pass on bikes that don't fit my bill. But I [almost] always tell the seller that it would make a nice bike for the right person. :)

I don't buy that one. The wooden plug that is in my PX10's steerer tube is no more than an inch long and it was put there at the factory. It's not a tight fit. It can be moved up and down, but it won't come out.
A broom handle shoved into a steerer won't prevent a crash if the steerer breaks, but it will pevent the installation of a quill stem.

Collect them all.

I have drifted some in my collecting habits. Most recently it has been early MTBs. They are relatively cheap. And weird enough to be endless interesting. I am pretty sure no one but me would find my collection interesting.

jim

Get real, most old bikes need to be collected....like they are in the picture, then processed for new steel.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d1.../bicycles1.jpg

A lot of it is concentrated on your blog.

Either that's pretty dull satire, or you just came out of the Road forum.

-Kurt

Indeed - he should talk...

-Kurt

And I would say that it is remarkable how open-minded most of the posters are in this forum about all kinds of bikes.

Such a big chip on your shoulder. I don't know about you, but most of the bikes I buy as an adult are ones I wanted as a kid but couldn't afford. It's not an affectation designed to impress the bikeforum crowd. I post the same pics over at velospace where their lack of Deep V's and riser bars with Oury grips elicit yawns. They go unnoticed. But that's fine because I post pictures, both here and there, of bikes that I like. If that encourages others to post pics of similar bikes, so much the better. I don't have to own it in order to appreciate it.

As for your comment about snobbery, what prompted this? Has anyone on this forum who owns a bike with snob appeal denigrated anyone else's bike? As hobbies go, ours is not a particularly expensive one. It's not like collecting vintage cars or rare coins. Let's keep things in perspective. Even the most expensive vintage lightweight often costs less than today's high-end carbon fiber bikes.

Got it from an article about Tom Simpson's Gitane that was restored. Jean Stablinski was the one who mentioned the plug and the reason why it was there. Didn't have to go all the way up, just far enough that if the steerer snapped at the crown it would allow the rider to maintain control to stop for a bike change. That was his explanation anyway.

Snobbery ???
 

That's true ? Oh dear. The only snobbery on that blog is second degree fun poking at lovers of Italian bikes who think Masi is God, and poking a little fun at the brakeless fixie boys. If you mean the actual bikes, well, the total cost of those 4 to me is under 200 bucks. If liking nice bikes as well as some stuff people consider junk makes me a snob, great. I've always wanted to be snob but could never afford it :thumb:

Thx doc, you should charge big for diagnosis like that :) Actually, the snobbery isn't at bike forum, which is why this is the only collector related forum I like and belong to.

The version I heard is that the wood plug was a damper to avoid breakage, but as it seems nobody really knows, your explanation is as good as any other, and your source sounds good.



BTW: Why isn't there a Peace and Love Hippy smiley to use in the reply to thread form ?

I would. I think early MTBs are interesting for just the reasons you state - lots of variety, and you can watch the species evolve at a rapid rate - like tha Gallapegos of bikes. Some are beautifully built, too. Seems to me they have become a bit more expensive as a few folks have begun collecting them.

someone who says this(among other things) starts a thread mostly ranting about snobbery:

"The ever so juicy red strap is a Lapize, I wouldn't be seen dead riding a Christophe on a machine of this quality."

Interesting.

Being a snob isnt just about money you know. Clearly you're just pissed at someone who does and it shows in everything you've typed so far.

Anyway, that's your deal and good luck with that. Thanks for posting your blog! You've got some neat stuff that I've never seen before. I'd love to see more. Just can't say I'll read much of what you have to say, but that's my problem :)

The only blinkers I know about, have a switch on the column. I use them while driving through the flea market, on my way to the parking lot. If I spot something worthy of interest. I collect what I find, and not to sell if it fits me. The ones that don't get refurbished and sold to fuel the addiction. If people are impressed by what I find, then it's not any chest swelling thing for me. I am just plain amazed at what I find sometimes, and have to tell someone? This is the only place I've found them to be truly appreciated, hehe.,,,,BD

t

+1 I buy either what I think I can fix up, add value to, and sell, or something that fits and is better than what I currently have (and then I sell one of my keeper bikes.

I have no interest in collecting. I have collected a variety of things over the last 40 years or so. I am done accumulating, I have too much stuff already!

And I enjoy seeing what other find!

Last "personal" one
 

Exactly, couldn't put it better. That is exactly the way I feel.

Oh boy, why is humour so hard to convey ? A toe strap is a toe strap, a Christophe is as good as a Lapize, they're probably all made by AFA anyway... However, some people kick sand in your face if you have Christophe (lower middle class) rather than Lapize (decidedly Noble, or at least landed gentry). That's snobbery for sure. Saying I wouldn't be seen dead riding a Christophe is HUMOUR. It might even qualify as second degree humour. Must I just post pictures and no comments ? Please, let me know, I don't need aggro, life is full of it as it is.

Know what ? I had a dumb site with a top google rating on Alien landings and Elvis truth. All obviously humour. Blatantly obvious. Some kid took it literally, worked it into a obsession, couldn't sleep at nights, sent me fearful death threats. He had to be chemically disenabled by the health system in the end.

I have 9 bikes of which 3 are collectable non riders. A 1990 Basso Lotto w/ full campy record, delta brakes in pristine condition. A 1991 Schwinn KOM S9 MTB in showroom condition with a girven flex stem.
A 2008 Specialized London Langster with white Modolo speedy brakeset. Never ridden.

The rest I ride.