Hey Guys,

A couple of us are working on a new kind of website for bicycles.

I'll spare you'all the technical details but we are due to have our second demo version up on the web within a week or two. So you'll be able to see that and you'll understand our problem - which is we want more depth to the data on the parts for our project. For our next demo stage we are planning to switch from shallow data for some 7,000 parts to much more (and better organized) data for a few bikes.

!?The question for us is how to get started!?

Our best idea right now, I think, is to pick a few historical models of particular significance, take them apart ourselves, measure, weight, detail, document, photograph and then put them back together.... It could logically be part of the deal to clean and lubricate the parts before putting it back together.

There is this tricky issue of trust, that needs to be addressed so that the party lending his machine not only knows he will get it back, but also that it will be in equal or better shape.

I'm not sure what the answer to this issue is, but it seems to me that if you are in the mid-west, have a good dealer that we can trust, and have such a bike that we could possibly work something out with that dealer.

We really don't care to work with anything somebody feels is worth too many $thousands. I might be missing something, but it seems to me that "working bike" would be ideal - essentially you would get it back before spring totally cleaned, gone over, and lubricated at no cost to you. The model of bike should be "interesting" and appreciated as a collectors machine, likely also "popular", and recognized as a quality machine. (We love oddball bikes too, but this is not our goal for this project.) Also it will sure help us if the model is well documented, and that there is a maintenance manual available for it. I personally have a penchant for old Schwinns.... but I'm a programmer, not the Bike expert. Oh, and we are thinking Road Bikes to start with. The model being discussed the most is a Schwinn Paramount. The bike should also use well known, consistent, and documented component groups.

As I think about this, perhaps the best way to go will be to work directly with a dealer that has these models and would enjoy seeing the model featured on our website. Our website is going to be technical but sales is a part of the whole eventual package.

It would be great for us to work with somebody with multiple bikes, but one at a time, so we can work with just one dealer and not have to take too many risks ourselves. Also it would be best if this could be done somewhere in the Midwest in MN, WI, IL, or MI. Would somebody, perhaps, know of a dealer that would have such machines and likely to be interested in working with us?

This idea is still pretty new to us, but I'd sure like to get started on this project in not too many weeks, now that winter is upon us. The bicycles we'd work on will be guaranteed to be returned by spring - we are talking about 3 historical models at the most, significant new models will be considered, perhaps if they are brand new and still in the crate we could work with you to have it properly assembled by a quality mechanic?

Sincerely,


Michael