Nope, it isn't an OCC bike. It's completely different. Custom never achieves the same kind of collectability as culturally significant products do. This bike has cultural significance for many people and as such they have become collectible. A one off chopper will never attain the value to a production line schwinn. It's the same reason muscle cars with "matching numbers" in original condition are worth more than some piece meal hot rod.

I really don't see a problem with the schwinns being collected. It's not my thing, but at the same time my wife does not understand why I need more than one bike. I am sure there are forums about record collecting and comic books and as much as I am not interested, I still get it.

Collecting them I get, not riding them . . . I don't get. Paying that much for a bike and not riding it, that is just silly.

You could say the same about any other "collecting" hobby, stamps for example.

Im sure some record collectors probably don't play some of their records to prevent damage to them too. I don't have the disposable income to collect at that level, but some probably do.

I went to a party a few years ago (the guy who did pimp-my ride and tae-bo, Paul Monet...now in jail hahaha) Anyway, he had expensive crap everywhere just because he could, including an really nice looking vintage jaguar in the entrance of the house.

During Free Dump week I ran across one of these bikes with a full chrome plated frame set but the wheels were missing. I gave the bike away to a young fellow at a local bike shop. I only chase old road bikes and I get far too many of those. Last week saw an eighties Benotto, two Raleighs from the mid seventies, a 47cm Nishiki, a Raleigh Super Course, a Concorde Europa, a Peugeot and Norco Monteray enter The Old Shed. I need a holiday and I am taking one.

Go for the Super Course. Go for the Super Course.

-Kurt

The quality of the welding on those frames would lead me to wager that they won't be anything but scrap by 2030.

I think the OCC bikes he was referring to are the P.O.C. 50 pound bicycles with 3" rear tires that one could find in Wal mart and such a couple years ago.

If it was cheaper, I know my brother would love to have one.

I think we actually had two, I was pretty young at the time. From what I remember, they were both cannibalized for parts when the BMX craze first hit in the late '70's.

My first BMX bike was a converted bannana seat bike with knobbies.

I dunno about that. How else could one use collectible stamps or coins? Once a stamp is postmarked, that's it-out of circulation. Bikes, firearms, radios, and so on can be used and collected at the same time, so I do see a difference there.

ETA: not that I'm advocating using a collectible bike and firearm and radio all at the same time. That would probably go very badly. I think you know what I mean.