I keep reading in here how much you guy,s pay for bikes and parts,you seem to have a big resurgence in retro (C+V) esp in the big "Union", but here in "OZ" no one really cares except a few of us nuts ,nearly all of my bikes have been scavanged from the local tip,ppl here throw out complete Italian bikes and the like (can u believe it?) my Casati being a prime example,my garage and shed are starting to look like a bike shop,I realise that in your eyes you are prob thinking (why is he complaining?)believe me I,m not, I just cant understand why the "Retro Bug" has,nt hit Australia yet ? --- Gary Fountain would you agree with this ?

Sounds like you are just five-ten years behind. People here used to toss out nice bikes, too. Hold onto them, build a bigger garage, you're sitting on a gold mine.

1. Gather up discarded vintage lightweights.
2. Fill shipping container
3.**********??
4. Profit!

You might want to start cleaning them up a little and selling them on EBay.

Yep, I think the bug is just taking a little longer to reach down under. It's only a few short years ago it was like that here too. It's still just a few of us nuts but I guess enough of us to have begun to push the demand ahead of supply and drive up the price. Realistically, at a recent organized night ride here in town that keeps a fairly easy pace on an easy, less hilly, route there were probably 1500 riders and I'd bet there were 1200 mountain bikes, cruisers, city bikes, commuters and the lot, 299 modern road bikes, and me on the only vintage bike in sight. Ok, I made up those numbers but you get the idea. It's not like everybody here is cruising up and down the road on vintage steel either.

yep.
3. ship to g-funk in Bay Area

you guys are about to start getting it big. The "fixed gear" scene seems to have been a big stepping off point, at least openning the door. people started doing conversions, and then realizing that a vintage geared bike is a piece of art. i have gone through that over the last 7 years, and have only seen this culture wave build behind me. there is a website called fyxomatosis and they are getting the wave building down under. i agree, scavenge and hoard all you can, you will think me in 5 years.

I'm thinking you already, otto me boy.

thinks a lot.