Bike, Collectors, Investors and Hoarders

[bikebozo]

I have lost money , made money , made life long friends ,and life long people who do not like me ,

 

[catfish]

I have lost money , made money , made life long friends ,and life long people who do not like me ,

Walter, you have also made friends that love you.

 

[bikebozo]

Thank you , much appreciated

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

I don’t classify myself as to fitting into any one of the three listed categories. I like to tinker. Sometimes just getting a rusty hulk rideable, sometimes trying to bring them back to a semi-original form. Just stretching myself to the max of my skills. No plans to sell just to sell, not a bunch of extra parts, nothing unique enough to be an investment. I’m out of room for storing/working on anymore so I’ve quit looking for more. I enjoy trying to fix problems caused by previous owners who just didn’t know proper techniques. I like to ride down the street and have folks give me a thumbs up, sometimes asking me to stop so they can get a closer look. Am I alone out there? Am I the only one who is not in this as a money maker?

Thid is what I am talking about man! I have had more than a few condescending responses to this thread from people who seem to fit into one or more of my 3 main categories here.
I never said there were ONLY three types of people in this hobby. I said there are 3 types of people that are hurting this and other hobbies.
The 4th kind of person is like you and I feel. We are here for the bikes, not the money, or the bragging rights we get from posting photos of the latest conquest.
Thanks for making the point I was trying for.
Rob

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

No different then any other hobby. Look at petroleum, oil and gas. How many signs and pumps do you need ? How many rolls of silver dollars does a coin collector need ? Answer: as many as make you happy, that is what a hobby is all about. And wouldn't we all love people to part with all the hard to find parts. Well in most cases that collection took them years and more money, road time and research then you can imagine. You buy it when you see it, cause you mite need it or trade or cash for something you do need or just enjoy it. There's no rules, just envy. So if you really want something you can't just buy, get out there and search for it. It'll be rewarding when you find it, just like the guys that did that to build their collections, and you'll find the thrill of having a hobby you enjoy. If not, try scrap booking for a hobby.

Scrapbooking?
Maybe I took you wrong, but I find that comment to be a little bit condescending.
I don't know how old you are, but I am 61 and have been building, riding and restoring bikes since high school in 1974. I do enjoy this hobby. I also enjoy old motorcycles, musclecars and the company of close friends, all of which are getting more rare every day.
I don't mean to sound envious, I am glad for anyone who can find things that make them happy. I said in the beginning that Collectors were not the main problem. Too many people didn't get that apparently.
Maybe there were points I should've made more clear, but I already wrote a small book here and thought most people would get the point with what I did write. I guess I was wrong.
Rob

 

[Boris]

I've met Frank and he's at least 94 or 95. Pam was with him at the time, she's quite a bit younger. I've seen his scrapbook collection too, and I have to say, it's quite impressive.

 

[Frank and Pam Skid Kings]

Scrapbooking?
Maybe I took you wrong, but I find that comment to be a little bit condescending.
I don't know how old you are, but I am 61 and have been building, riding and restoring bikes since high school in 1974. I do enjoy this hobby. I also enjoy old motorcycles, musclecars and the company of close friends, all of which are getting more rare every day.
I don't mean to sound envious, I am glad for anyone who can find things that make them happy. I said in the beginning that Collectors were not the main problem. Too many people didn't get that apparently.
Maybe there were points I should've made more clear, but I already wrote a small book here and thought most people would get the point with what I did write. I guess I was wrong.
Rob

That comment was in no way directed at you. I just wanted to point out, in my opinion, most hobbies have a lot of competition and it's never easy being a collector in a big hobby. It was directed for the people who think everything is a gimme and there's been other posts about that. Everything I said was my point of view, not what I thought yours should be. I apologize for the way you took it, which just furthers my point that in high profile hobbies there's always a lot of misunderstanding. Only way to avoid that is a mundane hobby, and neither one of us would be enjoying bikes and be on this site if we felt that way, right? A hobby should be fun for the person doing it and I bet everyone agrees on that. By the way I am not 95, but having met Boris I can understand that to a twelve year old it's hard to tell age. Hey everyone ! Have a great weekend !

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

Thanks for clarifying and sorry for misunderstanding. Have a great weekend.
Rob

 

[oskisan]

It sounds to me like you were a happy collector/enthusiast enjoying the bike hobby around 10 - 15 years ago primarily working on stingray/muscle bikes. During those times Hyperformance Pete was repopping stringray parts and severely affecting the value of stingrays that should have increased in value, but stayed stagnant for a long period of time. I was very heavy into muscle bikes back during that time but could barely sell my bikes for anything. During those times I sold several manta rays for $500 ea., complete krates for $500-$600, etc. Disc wheels ran around $500 and there were plenty of repopped parts for spring forks, seat shocks, shifter parts, fenders, etc. Once Pete had a stroke and dropped out of the business, things really took off and the market went crazy. On top of all this Schwinn also repopped the krates and phantoms and that further hurt the market. The changes in the market have just caught up to where they should have been all along and it was a welcome thing to see. I completely stopped collecting postwar schwinns over 15 years ago and focused my attention on prewar bikes. I was also astounded when I recently revisited Stingrays only to see the market had finally corrected itself. It is important to note that while stingrays are getting expensive, they are still quite affordable and highly accessible bikes. At any day during the week, you can probably buy between 5-10 stingrays if you really wanted to.

Personally I love any/all bikes and "go with the flow" on them. While I still collect prewar bikes, I have also started delving into full suspension and hardtail vintage mountain bikes. This area of bike collecting is still fresh and (while is gaining in popularity) still affordable. BMX bikes have gained a lot of momentum and are also an area where you can find many at garage sales/flea markets.

-Ken

 

[RPower]

I don’t classify myself as to fitting into any one of the three listed categories. I like to tinker. Sometimes just getting a rusty hulk rideable, sometimes trying to bring them back to a semi-original form. Just stretching myself to the max of my skills. No plans to sell just to sell, not a bunch of extra parts, nothing unique enough to be an investment. I’m out of room for storing/working on anymore so I’ve quit looking for more. I enjoy trying to fix problems caused by previous owners who just didn’t know proper techniques. I like to ride down the street and have folks give me a thumbs up, sometimes asking me to stop so they can get a closer look. Am I alone out there? Am I the only one who is not in this as a money maker?

Same - build them, ride them, lose money, repeat.