Pulled the trigger on a Flying Pigeon!

[TimothyNelson]

Something about her, just spoke to me. Even after doing the research of it being the world's most mass produced bike and not known exactly for the it's reliability after speaking to the seller he informed me that he modified it to where he made it a reliable bicycle.

Whether or not that's accurate, I am not sure but I did take it for a quick spin as I just picked it up tonight and she seems to ride wonderfully.

Just something very unique about her. What do you think?!

 

[BFGforme]

 

[TimothyNelson]

Something about her, just spoke to me. Even after doing the research of it being the world's most mass produced bike and not known exactly for the it's reliability after speaking to the seller he informed me that he modified it to where he made it a reliable bicycle.

Whether or not that's accurate, I am not sure but I did take it for a quick spin as I just picked it up tonight and she seems to ride wonderfully.

Just something very unique about her. What do you think?!

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Very cool!!! China Post!

 

[TimothyNelson]

Poll:

What do you think would be a fair price for this Flying Pigeon (with 'upgrades' to make more reliable) with the Brooks Saddle as shown?

Thanks!

 

[SirMike1983]

Be careful about sinking money into that bike. The fork looks off to me, as if it was bent and someone tried to correct the issue but instead created a compound bend. The handlebars look bent as well. The wheels look different from each other. The rod brake system is missing, which I guess is replaced with a coaster brake. If the saddle doesn't have any breaks in it, that is the most valuable part. The plating on these is thin and doesn't survive the outdoors very well usually, but that's part of the character of what they are.

I would imagine all this could be remedied with parts, time, and money, but you'll be putting into it more money than you probably paid or the bike would be worth. I guess it would be a challenge, though seems doable with the right parts and enough time.

Reliability is not the issue with these bikes, it's mainly that they're heavy and tend to rust if they're left outside all the time. They've been used as daily transportation for decades in China. A Flying Pigeon is a nice collection piece to have because it is a historically significant model. You just don't want to get into a money pit where you're trying to fix a lot of stuff at one time.

 

[TimothyNelson]

She seems to ride nicely, will have my bike guy (i tinker but yeah...) go over come Spring. It will be stored indoors regarding maintaining condition.

Here's what the seller had said they had done to it:

 

[Freqman1]

I’m with Sir Mike on this one. These have little collector value and if your looking to sell I’d move it along as is.

 

[TimothyNelson]

Just gauging how much I overpaid or didn't, ha. It's just cool to me and for the history. Flying Pigeon. The name alone is awesome plus I love how it looks. Not concerned about reselling at the moment, but with the Brooks saddle, I'm thinking I did okay.

Definitely one of those 'just have to have it' buys...

 

[Archie Sturmer]

Makes one wonder how that conversation about "reliability" went, and what the seller did to correct the reliability problem?
Did he pour some liquid reliability in the tires/tubes?

Not sure about the reliability of rod brakes, or if rod brakes might be affected by bent handle bars?

 

[TimothyNelson]

Makes one wonder how that conversation about "reliability" went, and what the seller did to correct the reliability problem?
Did he pour some liquid reliability in the tires/tubes?

Not sure about the reliability of rod brakes, or if rod brakes might be affected by bent handle bars?

When I tried to use the fact they're not known for their stellar quality (per the Google research by large) as leverage to try to see if there may be any wiggle room, he stated he made it reliable with modern parts. Such as what was stated in the bikes listing shown above.

It cruised to and from the grocery store just swimmingly yesterday... time shall tell!