MNBikeguy

I had a Schwinn Lemon Peeler that I sold in mint condition for $50 back in 1971. (I was OCP back then too)...
To add insult to injury, I had a Mickey Mantle rookie card that found it's way to the rear spokes via the clothespin method. Ya know how much money I peed down the drain there?
Anyone else with similar stories of bikes long gone?

CrossChain

My long gone bikes were no collector's item , but were a couple of cheap, typically indestructable bikes. My growing-up bike was a Schwinn coaster fat-tire. Abused, never "oiled" except with 3-in-One, dropped on the driveway when too lazy to kick the kickstand. It was ridden in the rain and left out in the rain, ridden on gravel and dirt, its tires skidded for the hell of it endlessly, ridden barefoot, curb jumped, and generally thrashed and mistreated. Didn't worship bikes then...just used 'em. And could they ever be used, abused, and then re-used. Cost about $40, weighed about a ton, would last about forever.

The bikes I worship now really can't fill that niche nor would I want them to. Yet, I remember every square inch of that old maroon & cream Schwinn. Kind of like a parent you ignore until they're long gone.

maddmaxx 

The only bike I ever had as a kid. The indestructable Schwinn "english". Metalic red, 3 speed internal hub with a generator that kicked in to run on the side of the tire/wheel. Cars came early though and bikes weren't fast enough till after I had qualified for 50+

Jet Travis

Not bike-related, but I spent my childhood chasing baseball stars and getting their autographs--on balls, on baseball cards, on photos. I had the Mick, Willie Mays, Ted Williams, and many others. When we moved, my mother threw them out.

leob1

Yeah, a BSA. Made in England, 3 speed, steel luged frame, Brooks saddle(the most comfortable saddle), 26 inch wheels, but it was a 'girls' frame. I didn't care, it was a BSA, and it had the Brooks. Don't really remember what happened to that bike, but the Brooks saddle lived in my fathers garage until he moved out of that house, about 20 years later.

old and new

Lemon Peelers,maybe they're a bit more valued than the crates,don't know.My LBS has 8 or so crates,I'm not at all impressed.Schwinns have there own appeal,that market too will deflate,as baseball cards already have. Your card IS impressive.More than the bike,partly because you got paid alot for the bike,a brand new Schwinn was less than 100 in '71,not all, most though. I had a 1953-54 Firstone,it looked like a Motorcycle,small 24' tires though,I don't miss that.My mother tossed cards,comic books,who's didn't? The bikes I most regret parting with,I gave away to be generous to friends and family too.It's funny,say what you will but I gave several bikes to individuals and BECAUSE they were free,these individuals "let them" get stolen. I ought to have kept them to have or to give them to those that cared more.

Terrierman

I got a brand new Candy Apple Red Schwinn Stingray for my 11th birthday in 1963. It had a white fake roll and tuck banana seat, no sissy bar, ape hanger bars, matching white grips with red and white streamers. I was the envy of the neighborhood. It was a BIG deal, that was the first new bicycle I ever had, and our family did not have a lot of money. I'm sure my mother gave something else up to get me that bike. I wish I still had it, don't remember ever selling it, it probably just was given away when I was in the Marine Corps and nobody had a clue that it would be a classic collector item. I could not begin to estimate the baseball cards that bike helped destroy.

guybierhaus

A Schwinn was the only brand bike I knew as a kid. While I certainly wanted one, I had to settle for what my Pop could afford. In 3rd grade, Christmas 1953, other then some shirts and the usual underwear from Mom, I got my bike. A RollFast. I've only recently read a history of the company and can understand why Pop got that bike. There was Rollfast factory in Reading, PA, and bikes were sold at his favorite auto parts store, Pep Boys. I also came to love the store, but only while it was actually owned by the Pep Boys, Mannie, Moe and Jack. I painted and repainted the bike a few times. Had everything apart a number of times. Thought I rode alot, but 4 blocks to school and back, maybe 3 times a day probably only yielded 5000 miles in 10 years. I took bike to New River Marine base to get around the base. A couple of Marines with a few too many, were not happy with bike chained to stairs in barracks, and proceeded to jump on bike. I took one look and left for 2 week leave and figured I'd access damage when I returned. Bike was gone when I returned. Probably a good thing. That was pretty much the end of my cycling till 3 years ago. It's a fond memory, but can't say I miss a single speed, balloon tired, steel tank.