# I have a rare/vintage/antique 'Silly Cycle' unicyle prototype in excellent condition



## SalesQueen (Aug 25, 2012)

I have a very rare antique/vintage Silly Cycle that is in pristine condition. It has been kept indoors for the duration of it's life. I have researched all over the world wide web, many different search engines, websites, antique cycle forums, etc and came across Only One similar to mine that was completed rusted out with no seat, no foot pedals, and no hand pegs. I have even registered on several classic antique cycle websites just trying to find someone who knows anything about this rare invention. On the label it says Silly Cycle 'Patent Applied For' By Mid-South Enterprises of Durant, MS. I have tried looking up this company but apparently they were only in business for a very short period of time and only produced this one product. I was told by an appraiser (who has also never seen anything like this) that it was most likely produced between the late 1950's--early 1960's. He said due to the outstanding condition and extremely low production amount, it is very rare and has an intrinsic value. He also implied that the 'patent applied for' label with little production indicates that the patent was never granted and that there may have been a couple of them sold locally. There is no trace of a patent number on the label of this rare toy anywhere. It has the old 'banana style' Troxel seat with the handlebar just below the seat. One large wheel, three small wheels and it is propelled by one child using foot pedals. The wheels are solid rubber with no splits or cracks and they all turn smoothly. The frame is constructed of steel with all of the original red paint is intact, and has no rust. As far as I know, this is a one of a kind (two of a kind if you include the only other one that's out there on the 'world wide web') Please feel free to research this unique unicycle; if you find ANY information on this, please let me know. If interested, please call/text me at 615-289-5742. NO SET PRICE - Trade/Cash Offers will be considered. IF ANYBODY CAN PROVIDE ANY INFORMATION REGARDING THIS STRANGE INVENTION, PLEASE CONTACT ME. Thank you and God Bless!


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## jwm (Aug 25, 2012)

Picture?
It sounds like a novelty toy. It's probably a very cool little gizmo, but don't get your hopes up for any significant "collectors' value".

JWM


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## SalesQueen (Aug 26, 2012)

*Does anybody on here know ANYTHING about this unique looking cycle?? 8 PICTURES...*

I just posted 8 pictures last night...Can anybody tell me any information regarding this unique looking cycle? I have researched everywhere and can't find any helpful info at all. Has anybody on here even seen one like this??


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## SalesQueen (Aug 26, 2012)

*Has Anybody Ever Seen One Of These?? Can Someone On This Forum Please Provide Info??*

I have a Very Rare/Antique/Vintage "Silly Cycle" that is in pristine condition. It has been kept indoors for the duration of it's life. I have researched all over the world wide web, many different search engines, websites, antique cycle forums, etc and came across Only One similar to mine that was in very poor condition. It was completely rusted out with no seat, no foot pedals, and no hand pegs. I have even registered on several classic antique cycle websites just trying to find someone who knows anything about this rare invention. On the label it says Silly Cycle 'Patent Applied For' By Mid-South Enterprises of Durant, MS. I have tried looking up this company but apparently they were only in business for a very short period of time and only produced this one product. I was told by an appraiser (who has also never seen anything like this) that it was most likely produced between the late 1950's--early 1960's. He said due to the outstanding condition and extremely low production amount, it is very rare and has an intrinsic value. He also implied that the 'patent applied for' label with little production indicates that the patent was never granted and that there may have been a few of them sold locally. There is no trace of a patent number on the label of this rare toy anywhere. It has the old 'banana style' Troxel seat with the handlebar just below the seat. The seat has one small crack but is not missing any part of it. It has one large wheel, three small wheels and it is propelled by one child using foot pedals. The wheels are solid rubber with NO splits or cracks and they all turn smoothly. The frame is constructed of steel with all of the original red paint is intact, and has no rust. To my knowledge,  I was told that it should be in a museum or go to a nostalgic antique collector. I can't find any information on the internet that indicates that there are any others that are still in existence...with the exception of the only other one that's out there on the 'world wide web') I know that there were very few made so it is considered to be a rare, collectible, antique ride-on toy vehicle. I have been told that it may be considered to be a unicycle training device or a trick cycle. 















Thank you and God Bless!


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## JOEL (Aug 26, 2012)

Ive seen it before. Fits more into the toy category...  Probably made in the 70s. Nothing special IMO.


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## Talewinds (Aug 26, 2012)

You have now posted FIVE threads within this forum regarding this item. We all perceive that you're trying to drum up interest, wonderful, but you're approaching the point of SPAM. It isn't a bicycle and it isn't on-topic.

You have already received an answer on the item. It is not old. It may be regarded as scarce, rare, uncommon, whatever... but it is not remarkable and it is not valuable.


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## SalesQueen (Aug 26, 2012)

*The only reason that I joined this site is to try to obtain some kind of info on this*

Thanks for noticing the amount of forums that I have on it...I have researched all over the internet and can't pull it up. So basically, I haven't really received a clear answer from ANYBODY THAT KNOWS ANY INFORMATION ON IT. MAYBE YOU CAN PROVIDE THAT FOR ME SINCE YOU ARE A "SEASONED MEMBER" AND HAVE PROBABLY SEEN IT ALL...Thanks for your input.


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## OldRider (Aug 26, 2012)

SalesQueen you're not going to get much of anything from us if you have an attitude like this.


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## Rookie (Aug 26, 2012)

SalesQueen said:


> Thanks for noticing the amount of forums that I have on it...I have researched all over the internet and can't pull it up. So basically, I haven't really received a clear answer from ANYBODY THAT KNOWS ANY INFORMATION ON IT. MAYBE YOU CAN PROVIDE THAT FOR ME SINCE YOU ARE A "SEASONED MEMBER" AND HAVE PROBABLY SEEN IT ALL...Thanks for your input.




What's it made out of and how much does it weigh?


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## bricycle (Aug 26, 2012)

It was simply a "safe?" alternative to the unicycle experience for a child. Circa mid 1960's-70?


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## Talewinds (Aug 26, 2012)

bricycle said:


> It was simply a "safe?" alternative to the unicycle experience for a child. Circa mid 1960's-70?




This^. But trademarked in 1973.


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## bricycle (Aug 26, 2012)

Talewinds said:


> This^. But trademarked in 1973.




Nice "sluthing" Bri.....


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## dxmadman (Aug 26, 2012)

*Dangerously Silly*

What I've heard that this was taken off the market due to a child's over indulgence in sillyness,  The thing resulted in lots of childhood trauma, loss of balance, dizziness, frequent urination, crossed eyes, cowlicks, goofy smiles, lack of concentration, most of those children growing up traumatized and taking seats in the US senate, and congress, we are still feeling the effects.
Those are even spotted in the white house lawns and the official recreation of GOP and other summits.


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## OldRider (Aug 26, 2012)

dxmadman said:


> What I've heard that this was taken off the market due to a child's over indulgence in sillyness,  The thing resulted in lots of childhood trauma, loss of balance, dizziness, frequent urination, crossed eyes, cowlicks, goofy smiles, lack of concentration, most of those children growing up traumatized and taking seats in the US senate, and congress, we are still feeling the effects.
> Those are even spotted in the white house lawns and the official recreation of GOP and other summits.



I know a few Canadian politicians that must have taken a whirl on the Silly Cycle too.


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## Waterland (Aug 26, 2012)

From a quick (less than 5 minutes) Google search, I came up with 3 examples of this ride-on toy.  One is yours, another is in this post on another forum: http://yourhappyplace.yuku.com/topic/6502#.UDqdFaDhdPE, and the third is on an old CABE thread, which you have responded to.  This toy is perhaps uncommon, but as someone in the other CABE thread pointed out, there isn't much demand for something like this, so sale price would be probably relatively low.  Put it up on Ebay with no reserve and see if you get any interest, that will be a good test ground for what it is potentially worth.  I can tell you though, there are no completed auctions for this toy in any condition on ebay, and yours is by far the best example of the three that I found.


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## SalesQueen (Aug 28, 2012)

*Just trying to acquire info...*

No attitude intended, just trying to acquire info on this Silly Cycle...I just thought that if I registered to be on this site, joined forums, posted pictures, and asked questions that I might actually find somebody on here who may have some primitive information regarding this piece.


OldRider said:


> SalesQueen you're not going to get much of anything from us if you have an attitude like this.


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## SalesQueen (Aug 28, 2012)

LoL, I totally agree...


dxmadman said:


> What I've heard that this was taken off the market due to a child's over indulgence in sillyness,  The thing resulted in lots of childhood trauma, loss of balance, dizziness, frequent urination, crossed eyes, cowlicks, goofy smiles, lack of concentration, most of those children growing up traumatized and taking seats in the US senate, and congress, we are still feeling the effects.
> Those are even spotted in the white house lawns and the official recreation of GOP and other summits.


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## SalesQueen (Aug 28, 2012)

Thank you for the info. I found the trademark label to have been legally active as of 73', but I would absolutely love to find someone who may have had one in new condition (as a child) to determine exact date of production. I know that it would be slim to none to find that person, but it would be a rare occasion.



Talewinds said:


> This^. But trademarked in 1973.


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## SalesQueen (Aug 28, 2012)

Thank you for your time and consideration to research this uni-toy. I found this site (thecabe.com) by searching for the silly cycle initially and joined here to be able to view pictures of the original post in 2009. I have been considering selling it, but I would really like to hang onto it until my daughter graduates. She is only 5 now, so i figure that it will be worth a lot more by then.



Waterland said:


> From a quick (less than 5 minutes) Google search, I came up with 3 examples of this ride-on toy.  One is yours, another is in this post on another forum: http://yourhappyplace.yuku.com/topic/6502#.UDqdFaDhdPE, and the third is on an old CABE thread, which you have responded to.  This toy is perhaps uncommon, but as someone in the other CABE thread pointed out, there isn't much demand for something like this, so sale price would be probably relatively low.  Put it up on Ebay with no reserve and see if you get any interest, that will be a good test ground for what it is potentially worth.  I can tell you though, there are no completed auctions for this toy in any condition on ebay, and yours is by far the best example of the three that I found.


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## greenephantom (Aug 28, 2012)

Here's the thing about rarity, it doesn't always translate into value (money).  What you have there could be the best remaining example of this item.  But if there isn't demand for it, then it doesn't really have much value.  It's one of those items that you might be able to sell at a swap meet for a hundred (two if you got lucky) bucks to someone who just thinks it's neat.  But for bicycle collectors it's too new, too much of a toy, and likely just not cool enough to be of much value.  It's certainly a really neat item, but whether it will ever be worth much is somewhat doubtful.
Cheers, Geoff


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## JOEL (Aug 28, 2012)

Greenphantom's analysis is correct...

I'd say turn that 5 year old loose with it and when she is elected to the Senate you can sell it for big $$$.


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## Rambler (Aug 28, 2012)

SalesQueen,

You may already have this information but here it is anyway.






On Tuesday, June 19, 1973, a U.S. federal trademark registration was filed for SILLY CYCLE by MID-SOUTH ENTERPRISES, INC., 101 N. Depot ST., Durant Mississippi 39063. The USPTO has given the SILLY CYCLE trademark serial number of 72460777. The current federal status of this trademark filing is EXPIRED.

This means the Silly Cycle was produced around 1973 or later, so at the very most it is maybe 40 years old or newer, so not really all that old, certainly not an antique by any means. As anyone can see it is built using tricycle parts, which is to say not built very well or not meant to last, just a cheaply built toy.

A Silly Cycle was offered at auctioned on 4/9/2012 for $44 and failed to bring even a single bid.

http://wensy.com/detail.asp?id=8022674

So I agree with others that it may be unusual or maybe even rare but not particularly valuable. Personally I think your best outlet for selling it and obtaining the highest possible price is probably eBay and be prepared to ship it as that will open your market up to a larger audience than local pickup will. Another avenue you may want to consider is contacting some Mississippi museums of local interest which may be willing to purchase it from you.


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## Zephyr (Sep 2, 2012)

I agree about the museum. That might be your best avenue but trying to sell to an individual would be worth it too.


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