# 1940 Dayton/Huffman Champion Girls Bike Pricing



## HARPO (Apr 18, 2017)

Can anyone out there please let me know if this is a semi-rare bike? I have an opportunity to purchase it, and from the photos I've seen it's missing only the rear rack and grips. Even the attached dried out, bent whitewalls appear to be original!
The paint is pretty scratched up, rims rusty...but the headlight and that gorgeous two-tone blue tank are there intact. I'd like to buy it but I'm not sure what an average price would be. Sorry I don't have photos to get a better opinion on...so just let me know what you think.

Thanks!
fred


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## Freqman1 (Apr 18, 2017)

Without photos there is no way to really say what the bike is worth. There is a project in the for sale section that you could use as a guide. The rack for a '40 is expensive. V/r Shawn


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## fordmike65 (Apr 18, 2017)

Let's see her!!!


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## Freqman1 (Apr 18, 2017)

Here is the ad I was speaking of http://thecabe.com/forum/threads/1940-huffman-girls-big-tank-project.108528/#post-715626  Even crappy cell phone pics are better than nothing. I would never offer a guess on value without having a pic to look at. V/r Shawn


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## HARPO (Apr 18, 2017)

This is the bike.


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## Vintage Paintworx (Apr 18, 2017)

HARPO said:


> This is the bike.View attachment 453269




So how much are they asking?


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## Freqman1 (Apr 18, 2017)

You sure that ain't a '41? Is kickstand welded or bolted on? A rack for a '41 is less than $100. A rack for a '40 (non-lit) will probably be about $500 if you can find one. V/r Shawn


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## scrubbinrims (Apr 18, 2017)

Bid to win I'd say...
Chris


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## Euphman06 (Apr 18, 2017)

One of the sexiest girls bikes out there


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## Nickinator (Apr 18, 2017)

looks like a 41 to me. pretty girl though.

Nick.


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## HARPO (Apr 18, 2017)

It has an attached kickstand so I guess it is a 1941 model.  Is it worth about $400 ?


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## fordmike65 (Apr 18, 2017)

HARPO said:


> It has an attached kickstand so I guess it is a 1941 model.  Is it worth about $400 ?



Get it.


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## Nickinator (Apr 18, 2017)

1940 has the welded on kickstand. See our post that Shawn/Freqman1 posted.


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## HARPO (Apr 18, 2017)

So what would the magic number be to purchase this figuring it needs an incredible cleaning and maybe some rust issues ?  I know that the bottom of the fenders at the rear of very rusty .


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## Freqman1 (Apr 18, 2017)

You call that an incredible cleaning? If your not willing to pay $400 for this I don't think we can help you. All this bike needs is a detail, service, tires/tubes, and the correct rack which could be patina matched to have a great pre war girls bike. If your looking to flip for a bunch of money that's probably not in the cards but if its to keep its a hard deal to beat. V/r Shawn


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## HARPO (Apr 18, 2017)

Freqman1 said:


> You call that an incredible cleaning? If your not willing to pay $400 for this I don't think we can help you. All this bike needs is a detail, service, tires/tubes, and the correct rack which could be patina matched to have a great pre war girls bike. If your looking to flip for a bunch of money that's probably not in the cards but if its to keep its a hard deal to beat. V/r Shawn


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## HARPO (Apr 18, 2017)

I meant that I like to do incredible cleanings and detailing on all of my bicycles .  I'll find out probably tomorrow or the next day if I even get this .  Wish me luck !!!


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## the2finger (Apr 19, 2017)

Wife's '40 Dayton National its worth as much as someone wants to pay


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## Freqman1 (Apr 19, 2017)

the2finger said:


> View attachment 453747 Wife's '40 Dayton National its worth as much as someone wants to pay




Not to split hairs here but its either a Dayton or a National not both. Dayton and National were the top tier Huffman brands. Kinda like saying I have a Cadillac Buick. V/r Shawn


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## Cory (Apr 19, 2017)

If that's not a $400-$600 bike I don't know what is. I love it!


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## Vintage Paintworx (Apr 19, 2017)

the2finger said:


> View attachment 453747 Wife's '40 Dayton National its worth as much as someone wants to pay



Blue pedal blocks  now all it needs is some blue chain tread tires.


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## the2finger (Apr 19, 2017)

Says national on the tank


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## the2finger (Apr 19, 2017)

Hey I got a deal on the blocks and the wife likes em


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## Handle Bar Hoarder (Apr 19, 2017)

the2finger said:


> View attachment 453747 Wife's '40 Dayton National its worth as much as someone wants to pay



and I will  pay you  for that bike how much do you want   and i will even come pick it up


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## the2finger (Apr 20, 2017)

I like it under the dinosaurs


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## HARPO (Apr 20, 2017)

I didn't get it...I don't even want to talk about it...


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## fordmike65 (Apr 20, 2017)

HARPO said:


> I didn't get it...I don't even want to talk about it...





I really hope someone here didn't snatch it from you


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## HARPO (Apr 20, 2017)

I'm so pissed......


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## Euphman06 (Apr 20, 2017)

Common.....what's the story! Get it off your chest, it will feel better


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## Handle Bar Hoarder (Apr 20, 2017)

the2finger said:


> I like it under the dinosaurs



come on down & bring me that blue beauty


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## HARPO (Apr 21, 2017)

Euphman06 said:


> Common.....what's the story! Get it off your chest, it will feel better




I called the owner up and made an offer and told him to call me back. I didn't hear from him and called him later yesterday, saying I wanted to come and get it anyway. He said someone was coming from the Bronx to see it after work and didn't have his number to call him back. If the guy didn't want it (yeah, right!) I could call him back in the morning.
Well, it was removed from Craigslist last night (I NEVER should have posted that photo) as I feel someone here that's in New York saw that's where I live. They probably started digging around and found it. I opened Pandora's Box, but put the photo on to get a better idea of the value from you guys, not realizing how valuable the bike really was. I only have myself to blame, and believe me...I barely slept last night. I'm very angry about it all...!!!!!!


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## jimbo53 (Apr 22, 2017)

A lesson learned hard is a lesson learned well. In this hobby, best to play your cards close to the vest. The best time to buy is when you first see it. Trust your gut and drop the coin. A bike in the $400 range is not too much of a risk, but losing a great bike in the $400 range due to indecision will haunt you for a while. Believe me, I know that sting. Move on to the next bike and may the force be with you!


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## HARPO (Apr 22, 2017)

_*jimbo53*_...you're right. I knew it was mistake showing the photo, and I even blacked out around it to disguise it a bit. And yes, this will haunt me for quite a while. Especially knowing it went for under $400 (it was my typo...it was listed at $300) and I wasn't aware at the time of the rarity. I should have done more research. If I had, it would be in my house instead of somewhere in the Bronx...


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## Freqman1 (Apr 22, 2017)

An example of where knowledge is power. Yep some of us spend a lot of time reading and researching and at $300 I would have been to his house with the Benjamins pronto. When something like this hits CL your window of opportunity is hours if not minutes so it pays to know a bargain when you see it. Sorry you missed out on this one but hopefully you will be better prepared next time. V/r Shawn


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## bikewhorder (Apr 22, 2017)

You don't even always need knowledge though.  All you really need sometimes is to search the archives. http://thecabe.com/forum/threads/dayton-national-big-tank-for-sale.100656/#post-653573


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## fordmike65 (Apr 22, 2017)

bikewhorder said:


> You don't even always need knowledge though.  All you really need sometimes is to search the archives. http://thecabe.com/forum/threads/dayton-national-big-tank-for-sale.100656/#post-653573



No quite the same bike, but more than enough info to know it's a good one.

See post #12
http://thecabe.com/forum/threads/1940-dayton-huffman-champion-girls-bike-pricing.109018/#post-716607


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## rustjunkie (Apr 22, 2017)

Private conversations can be helpful in situations like this.
There are plenty of cabers that will help or steer you to someone that will w/o obligation.


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## bikewhorder (Apr 22, 2017)

I wouldn't waste any time being angry at the person who bought it though.  It was on CL, you found it, so anyone could have.  Just because you posted a picture of it on here doesn't mean someone here took it out from under you.  If you had posted the link maybe, but even then its still fair game.


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## HARPO (Apr 22, 2017)

I'm not angry at the person who got it...they had no idea another person was interested _*UNLESS*_* it was someone on TheCabe*. I'm angry at myself for being so stupid. Carrot was dangled and I didn't jump on it. Lesson learned!!!!!!!!

BTW...my butt is black and blue from where I've been kicking myself all day...


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## bikewhorder (Apr 22, 2017)

HARPO said:


> I'm not angry at the person who got it...they had no idea another person was interested _*UNLESS*_* it was someone on TheCabe*. I'm angry at myself for being so stupid. Carrot was dangled and I didn't jump on it. Lesson learned!!!!!!!!
> 
> BTW...my butt is black and blue from where I've been kicking myself all day...




The question is are you bumming because you wanted it or did you just want it because it was priced low? According to your info you've been on the cabe for almost 7 years. The Cabe is _mostly _dedicated to American balloon tired bikes, so it seems like by now you'd have a handle on what's out there and what you're looking for.  So I'd wager that if you came across this bike and didn't  immediately know that it was a bike you wanted to own then maybe you didn't _really _want it. In my experience buying bikes on speculation is not really a good get rich quick scheme because now you've got this thing you don't really want and you have to deal with selling it and probably shipping it.  In this case there was enough meat on the bone to justify it, but generally I've learned that buying, or even being gifted, anything I don't really want because, "I can sell it for more" leads to a cluttered shop and severe time poverty.  So if it wasn't destined for the permanent collection I wouldn't beat yourself up too badly.


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## fordmike65 (Apr 22, 2017)

bikewhorder said:


> The question is are you bumming because you wanted it or did you just want it because it was priced low? According to your info you've been on the cabe for almost 7 years. The Cabe is _mostly _dedicated to American balloon tired bikes, so it seems like by now you'd have a handle on what's out there and what you're looking for.  So I'd wager that if you came across this bike and didn't  immediately know that it was a bike you wanted to own then maybe you didn't _really _want it. In my experience buying bikes on speculation is not really a good get rich quick scheme because now you've got this thing you don't really want and you have to deal with selling it and probably shipping it.  In this case there was enough meat on the bone to justify it, but generally I've learned that buying, or even being gifted, anything I don't really want because "I can sell it for more" leads to a cluttered shop and severe time poverty.  So if it wasn't destined for the permanent collection I wouldn't beat yourself up too bad.



Pretty sure he already had at least one Caber interested if he decided to flip her


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## HARPO (Apr 22, 2017)

I rarely purchase girls bikes...but I do have have a few...the oldest being the 1934 Rollfast. I've had this one for over 10 years. A few are attached in the photos below.


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## HARPO (Apr 22, 2017)

BTW...Howie Cohen had posted the Rollfast and Columbia on his web site a long time ago. Probably about 3 years before he passed away.


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## fordmike65 (Apr 22, 2017)

HARPO said:


> I rarely purchase girls bikes...but I do have have a few...the oldest being the 1934 Rollfast. I've had this one for over 10 years. A few are attached in the photos below.View attachment 455018 View attachment 455019 View attachment 455020 View attachment 455021 View attachment 455022



Don't forget this lady now residing in sunny SoCal


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## HARPO (Apr 22, 2017)

Hey, Mike, looking good! I see you put whitewalls on her!! I miss her...but I can't keep ALL of them, lol! Glad she went to a good home on the sunny west Coast..


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## fordmike65 (Apr 22, 2017)

HARPO said:


> Hey, Mike, looking good! I see you put whitewalls on her!! I miss her...but I can't keep ALL of them, lol! Glad she went to a good home on the sunny west Coast..



I actually wasn't all that crazy about the look, so I swapped some blackwalls back in. I'll see if I can find a pic. Thanks again!


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## cyclingday (Apr 22, 2017)

There's all kinds of things I want to say, but I don't want to hurt your feelings.
But just as a general rule of thumb.
Any two tone blue prewar bike that still has its tank in 5+ condition is worth $300 dollars.


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## Krakatoa (Apr 22, 2017)

I saw this bike posted on LI CL a while back, almost a month and I just couldn't make it down there. It's kind of a decent drive from NH, and I was tied up in another buy. When I was able to make time to go, the ad was deleted. I just had to say oh well, it wasn't meant to be. This is all several weeks before you started your thread Harpo. I stayed out of the discussion because I was hopeful you would get it. Obviously the 1st ad must have expired once, and the seller reposted it. I had assumed it was sold, but I guess it came back up. Anything on CL could have been seen by anybody. There are so many variables to consider, you can't wait for confirmation really you have to act on your gut. Bikewhorder has some very keen observations on these things I believe. I too have learned some hard lessons like this, but that's the way she goes...It makes you work harder and smarter for the next find.


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## HARPO (Apr 23, 2017)

*Lol...it was me* who listed it on Craigslist here on Long island. I took it off because I never got any responses from anyone who wanted to come and pick it up. I then put it up for Sale here. Mike had someone come and get it...pack it up...and send it to him.


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