Jim Barnard
Wore out three sets of tires already!
I could not really sleep last night. I had seen my favorite bike on a Craig's List ad and made contact with the owner. I have an appointment this morning. Knowing that the second buyer in line is not a good position, I was fretting about not creating a relationship with the seller and not letting the seller know I was 100% committed to showing up with the cash. I left someone else a way to show up late last night and be the first guy in line.
The ad was worded correctly, so anyone with a search set up like mine will get a CL alert soon enough. There was a poor pic, but I saw enough under the 15 year coating of dryer lint to know what year the bike was. This actually lead to some additional apprehension. These darn first year Choppers are VERY likely to have frame breaks. The last 3 69 bikes I found ALL did. The guard is missing and that usually is not an issue unless the mount has been hack sawed off, I have has a number of these as well. The prop is missing. Almost 75% of the short mount props have sheared the their pins and are laying on the cul-de-sac by the curb (at least it was in 1971).
I cannot tell if this particular bike is a rare cable through frame 69. Not a lot were made and none were sold in the UK so they are very sought after. Luckily, my part of the US has quite a few of these compared to most places. If this is a "cable through frame" bike the value triples. If it is a low serial number you can achieve a weird kind of "instant fame" in a small and intimate circle. The stakes are high!
I have all the missing parts I need to make this whole again, but I keep eyeballing the sissy bar. The seat is mounted very low in the frame... like it has never been raised to accommodate an older kid. If a touch of grease was not applied to the sissy bar (and why would it have, this bike is a model before the seat springs provided suspension) then the sissy is stuck with 12 inches into the frame. This nightmare can easily lead to frame breakage at the fender mount and the drop out welds. These frames were already under engineered.
I see missing lever on one side and am hopeful that this is a "TCW" 3 speed. That means it is a skidder! I see some blue under the grey (gray?) dust coat. That year was a wonderful metallic blue like the color you see on so many ladies "Sports" for some reason.
After my initial phone call, I responded to the add with an email saying I am confirming and will be happy to paypal a down payment. I am now actively regretting not getting into the last night and driving the 90 minutes to get the bike right then. When there was no response this morning, I waited to a respectful time and called the seller.
Apparently, he has been badgered all night by callers for the bike. He told me that since I was first to call yesterday, I have first shot, but he sighed and told me "that he hates to do this but he needs to double the asking price due to the volume of calls and offers."
TO BE CONTINUED
The ad was worded correctly, so anyone with a search set up like mine will get a CL alert soon enough. There was a poor pic, but I saw enough under the 15 year coating of dryer lint to know what year the bike was. This actually lead to some additional apprehension. These darn first year Choppers are VERY likely to have frame breaks. The last 3 69 bikes I found ALL did. The guard is missing and that usually is not an issue unless the mount has been hack sawed off, I have has a number of these as well. The prop is missing. Almost 75% of the short mount props have sheared the their pins and are laying on the cul-de-sac by the curb (at least it was in 1971).
I cannot tell if this particular bike is a rare cable through frame 69. Not a lot were made and none were sold in the UK so they are very sought after. Luckily, my part of the US has quite a few of these compared to most places. If this is a "cable through frame" bike the value triples. If it is a low serial number you can achieve a weird kind of "instant fame" in a small and intimate circle. The stakes are high!
I have all the missing parts I need to make this whole again, but I keep eyeballing the sissy bar. The seat is mounted very low in the frame... like it has never been raised to accommodate an older kid. If a touch of grease was not applied to the sissy bar (and why would it have, this bike is a model before the seat springs provided suspension) then the sissy is stuck with 12 inches into the frame. This nightmare can easily lead to frame breakage at the fender mount and the drop out welds. These frames were already under engineered.
I see missing lever on one side and am hopeful that this is a "TCW" 3 speed. That means it is a skidder! I see some blue under the grey (gray?) dust coat. That year was a wonderful metallic blue like the color you see on so many ladies "Sports" for some reason.
After my initial phone call, I responded to the add with an email saying I am confirming and will be happy to paypal a down payment. I am now actively regretting not getting into the last night and driving the 90 minutes to get the bike right then. When there was no response this morning, I waited to a respectful time and called the seller.
Apparently, he has been badgered all night by callers for the bike. He told me that since I was first to call yesterday, I have first shot, but he sighed and told me "that he hates to do this but he needs to double the asking price due to the volume of calls and offers."
TO BE CONTINUED
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