# parting em out



## vincev (Jan 6, 2011)

First,let me say I am not knocking ANYONE who chooses to part out a bike.I have been noticing on different forums and ebay that some nice condition bikes are being parted out instead of being sold a complete originals.I understand that parting brings more money.I just hate to see some of these nice originals being parted.It seems like the current trend . I could see "beaters" being parted.Just wondering if anyone else has noticed this.


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## bricycle (Jan 6, 2011)

I pretty much agree. Tho once I had to buy a complete bike just to get a chainwheel and rack, because there were no parts available to purchase. Then once you get a "Frankenbike" together, no one wants it!
Selling parts is good for the delivery people tho too. Kind of a "Catch 22"?
Just my 2 cents...


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## twomorestrokes (Jan 6, 2011)

I hate to see it too. Can't argue that it brings a lot more money in pieces though. Doesn't apply to me as I can't seem to part with parts or bikes anyway. Just keep bringing 'em home...


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## slick (Jan 6, 2011)

YES I sure have and I feel you! I honestly am sick of it also. In my opinion they are doing it for the money. Yes, complete bikes are hard to ship and costly but, that super nice bike you just parted is pretty much like sending it to the scrap pile. The parts will be repainted to match it's new home and your bike just dissapeared forever. This 1 just got parted out also... I tried winning the complete Panther but got outbid, unfortunately. Then it was parted by the next guy about a month later!! So sad!!!!!


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## Don (Jan 6, 2011)

Relatively new to the field and because of that I'm just the opposite - have a few bikes that I probably should part out, but want to keep them together. I appreciate those that do part out bikes because that allows completion of some projects that are missing pieces. I just bought a tank for one of my projects that fits, but is for an earlier model. I can complete the project, the documentation will follow that bike if I get rid of it and if I ever find the correct tank (actually 1/2 of the tank, already have 1/2), I'll make the earlier tank available for the next person doing a restoration. It's obvious now that many bikes are worth a lot more as parts than aas a whole - usually the same with classic motorcycles, cars, etc.

Don


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## Talewinds (Jan 6, 2011)

Same boat here to. Slick it's not just an opinion, it's a fact, the bikes are being parted for the money. It's disappointing to see that bikes, like so many other things fall into the category of "the sum of the parts are worth much, much more than the whole." You know you can probably get 5 times (that's a semi-scientific guess) in parts what you would get for the whole bike. That's not to say that some bikes shouldn't be parted. Partial bikes missing stuff found in a barn or scrap pile should be parted out, but to see that AWESOME Panther above get parted, it makes me sick.
I DON'T like to sell bike parts, I like to create complete bikes and sell them, most unfortunately that's a financially disastrous endeavor.
On the flip side we are indeed lucky, like Don states above, that so many bikes are being parted these days, it gives us ample opportunity to complete our projects.


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## scrubbinrims (Jan 6, 2011)

Let's say you pick up a very nice original condition bicycle that is missing a chainguard or seat (better example as it is unrideable without).
You have two choices if there are no repops or if you want only a period correct replacement.
Option #1 Buy the component that has been parted out
Option #2 Buy more than what is necessary to obtain this component.
That's pretty much it, isn't it?
It is not only unrealistic and unpractical to keep everything as is, but I for one, will not be disallowed for returning my bicycles to more complete state or get whacked financially by appealing to less buyers with a more wholesome product in selling.
You have to look at both sides...yes it is disappointing nice complete bikes get parted out, but can bring much joy to numerous folks reincarnated.
Like it our not, individual components is our currency, and without thier availability, the hobby wouldn't be the same.
Regards, Chris


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## redline1968 (Jan 6, 2011)

don't pay much for the parts then they won't part them out.   i dont like it either but 1k for a part or 300 for it all.  the question relies on supply and demand and dealers see that. you cant stop greed and that is part of ebays existance.


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## twomorestrokes (Jan 6, 2011)

Yeah, I saw that Panther get ripped apart Slick. Darn shame. What can you do? I for one, am guilty of bidding on nice parts on eBay to make my bikes nicer. As long as we like building as much as just plain collecting, it's gonna happen.

Same thing happens with all collectibles. I'm into Honda 70's and built a nice one from parts costing more than I could have bought a complete bike for. Had the wrong seat on it in poor shape and I scored a sweet one yesterday in the correct year for a nice price. Guilty.


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## vincev (Jan 6, 2011)

I also like to buy parts I need and many barn finds and rusty ,incomplete bikes fill that need


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## abe lugo (Jan 6, 2011)

I buy mostly beat up parts to restore my bikes, but sometimes end up spending as much as I would getting the nicer stuff. It sucks to see complete parted out. In fact it is cheaper to get some bikes complete instead of collecting the parts.
It sucks this happens, I actually bought a girls bike that was parted out here on the cabe and got it back together for my wife to ride


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## Santee (Jan 6, 2011)

I dont have much of a problem with people parting out ladies bikes for the chain guard, fenders , handlebars,etc. If the parts fit a Mens frame. The ladies bikes I dont place much value on. My wife rides a 60's Spitfire, she loves it. And its a mens frame. But parting out that Green Panther??.....Unholy!


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## jwm (Jan 6, 2011)

It's a question of values. The machine itself has no intrinsic value to someone who parts out a complete bike. That individual cares only about money. The flip side, though, is that most of the people who are buying the parts value a completed classic bicycle more than a few bucks here and there.

JWM


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## cyclonecoaster.com (Jan 6, 2011)

*Parting out complete bikes is a sad day*

*I try to buy as complete as I can -- less hunting for the missing parts -- when I started collecting some of the balloon bicycles way back when it was hard to find parts -- the complete bicycles were more than I could justify spending or afford at the time -- the quality of the bicycles & parts was much better than the selection there is today - You would see a 5 to 8 scale bike on eBay sell for a fair value -- now you see a 3 to a 5 on a 1 to 10 scale in it's place for sale or some home restored pile sell for more than the nice originals then -- RESEARCH & ASK QUESTIONS -- I pieced together a Phantom back in the day - it took me a year & a half -- when it was all said & done it cost me more & looked pieced together -- all the patina was a mis-matched what a POS & I ended up just parting it back out the way I got it & acquired a complete original Phantom with the money which I still own today -- Problem is there are a lot of greedy people that NEVER ride their bicycles -- just buy & sell on the eBay & forums for money -- sad reality -- I am in it to ride every bicycle I own -I still hunt down the parts & sell bicycles with full disclosure & COMPLETE -- it's about the hobby & the history & the bicycle to me -- just my 2 cents  *


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## vincev (Jan 6, 2011)

I think eventually even a nice original girls bike will be hard to find.They have been parted out for  a long time.I just started seeing boys bike parted more frequently.


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## BIKE AT THE MOON! (Jan 6, 2011)

I love to see that the CYCLONE COASTER cruisers ride their bikes.  That is what they were created for...riding.
If you check out their site, you see the happiness that vintage bikes bring.  By riding them, they kind of share them with others.  We get to check them out and appreciate them.  As with everything...capitalism is a two edged sword.
I really try to avoid parting out and "canibalizing" bikes.  Alot of times I keep the bikes as I find them.  
Yeah I could find all the original parts...but it is costly and comes at the price of other bikes getting ripped apart.
Just my two cents.  
-BATM


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## chitown (Jan 6, 2011)

Those poor ladies bikes... They kept them in better shape than messy little boys only to have them parted out to fix up the boys bikes that were beat to all crap and left out in the rain. 

I myself have bought a few bikes with the intention of just using a couple parts I wanted and parting out the rest. Then when you get the bike it talks to you and it says... "hey buddy, aren't I a nice bike. Please respect me and my history and don't part me out." They're so cute when they talk like that. Then this sickness known as "bicycle collecting" kicks in fully and before you know it you're hiding bikes in every part of your garage or basement or closets even.

I don't have an unlimited American Express card so if I (or anyone) sells some parts here and there to fund other collections of parts, nothing wrong with that in my book. Free market = freedom to do whatever you like with _your_ belongings or $. Besides that other commie bike forum has the worst bikes anyway (communalbikeexchange.com)


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## Adamtinkerer (Jan 6, 2011)

I also see a lot of complete men's bikes going unsold, because they're not a deluxe tank model. Just saw a nice JC Higgins for $75 tonight, mighty reasonable, but since it's not a color flow, no bids. And ladies' bikes? They're barely selling at all. I think the state of the economy has pinced the pockets of most hobbyists! And you see more good bikes being parted out for the $. I'm not saying it's right either, just what I see happening.


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## ratdaddy (Jan 6, 2011)

How many of you has bought a used bike part.


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## STUPIDILLO (Jan 6, 2011)

Yep!!! I have got to agree, I have seen people parting out, bikes that I would pay dearly for, to add to my collection. I also sold a repainted "36-37" Schwinn Autocyle,(not knowing what it truly was at the time) that I had rescued from death in a garden, only to see the buyer part it out, on E-bay.(yes you know who you are!!!) Granted, I did make some profit from the sale,but, the Bike Nazi that bought it, made a huge profit, while dooming the bike to death. I have a few cool, really rusty, barn finds, that most would pass up as junk. But I have managed to make them all ridable & will at some point get them sandblasted & powder coated. I aim to preserve these rusty relics, not strip them of their dignity, as some folks do. To do so would be like pooping on the Mona Lisa.


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## slick (Jan 6, 2011)

Amen brother!! If you are in the hobby for the money, then it's not a hobby then. Maybe find another hobby that doesn't destroy history. Just because I like one part of a book doesn't mean i'll cut out that section just to have it. Keep searching for that "rare" part you need. It IS out there. It may take awhile but there's no sense in buying a complete bike just to keep that one cherry part and sell the rest. How about buying a rusty part and having it rechromed or repainted? Guess that makes too much sense?


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## slick (Jan 6, 2011)

Just to clarify things before everyone goes crazy on me, to sell random miscellaneous parts is one thing but to buy nice complete original bikes just to get one part for free and make a huge profit on the rest of it is rediculous.


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## OldRider (Jan 6, 2011)

It makes me mighty sad when I look in our "for sale" section and see the words "parting out". One parted out bike whether it be a  mens or ladies bike just means theres one less bike that will go down in history. To be honest though I'm sort of two faced on this issue........ my back alley, dumpster diving bikes that I find are usually cheap chinese imports, my friend and I are constantly swapping out parts from bike to bike to make them complete. But to desecrate a classic cruiser is where I draw the line.


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## twowheelfan (Jan 6, 2011)

I liked watching the girls green hawthorne bike part out here! i really liked it! that bike would have rotted somewhere complete! this way, the parts will go where they will be used and either sit in someones basement "showroom" or get ridden from time to time! there is a right time and right place for parting out. when you see a bike that you feel should not be parted, email the guy and make an offer. don't bid on the parts, and if possible, get everybody you know not to bid on the parts. maybe we should post threads here for exactly this type of thing! do you think that we could trust that everyone would be in agreement and not bid?


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## Flat Tire (Jan 6, 2011)

A few years ago I bought a couple nice girls bikes to turn a profit and buy a nice boys bike. Nuthin wrong with that...Turns out I couldnt even get my money back, even after hauling them to the swaps. Folks  really liked them but they just wouldnt buy em, so I parted them out. So now I dont by girls bikes unless theyre really cheap, like the one I bought last summer,  Schwinn hollywoood for 25 bucks. I knew I couldnt go wrong! Sold it to a friend for 25 bucks and a Chinese dinner.....and we were both happy, and full. Good deal....


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## scrubbinrims (Jan 6, 2011)

So it's okay to buy a part if it is already loose (the blind eye), perfectly fine if it barnfresh to remove it for one's own purposes, better if it is from a lesser value female bike, but advisable to wait around for an indefinite period to meet any of the above which voids a higher calling of keeping everything intact...got it and I am glad we are not on a slippery slope here folks.
Didn't the Statue of Liberty, the symbol of our freedom, get refurbished?


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## old hotrod (Jan 6, 2011)

Everything is relative...the Panther looks like it was pieced together, rechromed fenders or maybe or repop, wrong color light and who knows what else. Schwinns live and die and get reborn every day...I have two bikes that I had to piece together and they look very correct. Frame from here, fenders from there, lights from somewhere else, etc. By the statements of some here, if they saw these two bikes, I am sure they would feel it a major crime to part them out. Trust me, they were pieced together, they will be parted out and become other bikes down the road...
But now the hypocritical side of me refuses to part out complete original paint bikes, and I have several, because I like them and truly enjoy riding them much more then the few extra bucks they may or may not bring in pieces...of course I would probably feel diferent about that last statement if they were Schwinns...ch-ching


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## Talewinds (Jan 6, 2011)

scrubbinrims said:


> Didn't the Statue of Liberty, the symbol of our freedom, get refurbished?




I think we parted out the original glass torch....


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## jwm (Jan 6, 2011)

*Whose bike is it?*

When I got into this hobby in the late 70's there was no e-bay, and  if there were swap meets I never heard of them. The only way  to get a missing part was to find a whole bike at a yard sale, use what parts you need, and then sell the rest. I did that a lot. Both my B6, and my Jaguar MKIV  had non original parts, and were  missing parts when I got them. I've been incredibly lucky. The missing stuff that I acquired for both bikes was in a perfect state of wear. You'd never know to look at them that they had been partially parted together. Nonetheless, I would not consider parting out a complete bike. 

And this thread raises one of the true philosophical questions inherent in this hobby:
*"Whose bike is it, anyway?"*
In one respect, of course. It's my bike, and I can do with it as I please. If I want to chrome it, paint it, or rat it down it is my prerogative.
But in another sense we are really only the stewards of these fine old machines.  The bikes are a part of American history. They are artifacts of a time that (like it, or not) has passed. It pains me to write this sentence: You are never going to see the likes of these machines again. We have taken upon ourselves the responsibility for preserving these bits of America's industrial heritage. Some of these bicycles were here before we were. (My B6 is two years older than me.) And our bicycles will remain, and (I do hope) will be ridden after we are dead and gone. In the mean time, I want my fleet to be as complete, and correct as I can make it. (within reason, of course) And if that means buying a parted out part- I'll buy it.

JWM


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## cyclingday (Jan 6, 2011)

It's probably safe to say that the rarest bikes out there are the un molested original from the manufacturer bikes.
Almost every bike you see has been altered in one way or another to make it a deluxe model, or to dress it up or down depending on the desired level of condition. 
Even some of the most renowned collectors in this hobby are guilty of changing something on what are considered to be the best bikes in the hobby.
 It's just Human nature to want to change things. 
I have never really subscribed to the credo that the model year is sacrosanct, because if some new trick gizmo came out the following year, you can bet that the kid wanted it on his bike. Brakes,horns,lights etc. Nothing remains the same, but with that said, It is a shame when a good caretaker gets beat out of an auction by a guy whos only interest in the hobby is making money, so he blows it apart just for the profits.


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## twomorestrokes (Jan 7, 2011)

^^^ Well said. Remember that most of these bikes were originally toys ridden hard by kids. When I see a nice "original", I try to imagine how many times it has been totally disassembled by the many previous owners over the last half century or so. Kids like wrenches and taking things apart. Some bikes are indeed "original and unmolested" but most bikes that may appear totally original have in fact been disassembled, repaired or who-knows-what way back before we may have been born. If a bike has had every nut and bolt taken off at one point or another, what difference does it make if a nicer fender or handlebar stem has been substituted if it is in the correct color or from the right year bicycle? I fully agree that it's a sin to buy bikes just to part them out, like that green Panther. I wouldn't do it. I think more of us look for nicer parts that are a perfect match for our less-than-perfect vintage bikes than we are admitting. I have more fun when I'm repairing a bike or making it better than I do staring at it when it's done.


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## cyclonecoaster.com (Jan 7, 2011)

*They're fun to collect -- but even better to ride*



BIKE AT THE MOON! said:


> I love to see that the CYCLONE COASTER cruisers ride their bikes.  That is what they were created for...riding.
> If you check out their site, you see the happiness that vintage bikes bring.  By riding them, they kind of share them with others.  We get to check them out and appreciate them.  As with everything...capitalism is a two edged sword.
> I really try to avoid parting out and "canibalizing" bikes.  Alot of times I keep the bikes as I find them.
> Yeah I could find all the original parts...but it is costly and comes at the price of other bikes getting ripped apart.
> ...




Good to see there are others that appreciate keeping bicycles together & enjoying them for what they are -- ride vintage --


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## partsguy (Jan 7, 2011)

Green Hawthorne...well, theres my 15 min. of fame, lol. Obviously I have parted some bikes out...some pre-war. But lets be honest, they were very high mileage examples and one I can tell was in a garden for a years. Another rotted away in a shed with road salt for 35 years....I love Classic Cars and bikes. I can't afford Classic Cars...heck, I can hardly afford to keep the two cars running I have now. One has a tranny issue, the other stinks real bad and I'm trying to trace the smell as I'm paranoid and up in arms over it.

All the bikes I part out are bikes that would have eventually met their fate whole at the scrap yard or rotted into the ground if it weren't for me. I have got numerous offers to part out a bike I hope to fix someday...a blue '47 Hawthorne and is complete except for the chaingaurd, headlight, and seat is incorrect. Has the working horn tank and all. I tried to sell it whole, but gave up. I'd rather sit on it and hope to get to it someday...then to have an actually decent ride get parted. I have a fine line between "parts bike" and "project". I have my standards.

I'm pretty much only a dealer now due to the fact I'm getting busier every day and I need the cash. I still ride when theres nice weather though.


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## Santee (Jan 7, 2011)

cyclonecoaster.com said:


> Good to see there are others that appreciate keeping bicycles together & enjoying them for what they are -- ride vintage --




Yup, I rode with the Cyclone Coasters in San Diego a couple of days after Thanksgiving. These folks do it right. I rode my Dyno UltrGlide, although it was not vintage I would have rode my Shelby if I had more time to get my flat tire fixed. But only heard about the ride the day before. ( Still digesting and sobering up also....) But I want to hook up in Long Beach for a ride soon! Everyone is great!!


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## HIGGINSFOREVER (Jan 8, 2011)

I have bought and sold parts and also complete bikes.Lets say there is a bike on e-bay for $600.00 plus shipping of $100.00,that means i have to come up with $700.00.But if i have the same bike that is only the frame and i know that sooner or later i will find the parts,So i spend $50.00 here and $50.00 there i will find all the parts.The best part of any collecting is the hunt,walking the swap meets,meeting other collectors.The last bike i sold on e-bay between pay pal fees and e-bay fees and the $35.00 i had to pay for under payment from buyer for shipping that e-bay took out of my account was the last bike i will sell on there.


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## partsguy (Jan 9, 2011)

I sold a mid-school BMX on eBay once...non-paying bidder. That was three or four years ago. Haven't sold another whole one since.


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## Ashley Campbell (Jan 9, 2011)

hey i hav a acme king 1896 do u know how i can figure out what its worth it is comp


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## partsguy (Jan 10, 2011)

I have no idea. Never heard of the company.


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