sultanofsuede

I've been on some bike searches over the last couple of years, and as I look around I've found some amazing older frames/bikes that remind me of my youth. Got me thinking that it would be fun to start collecting some of my all time favorite frames (even if they might now be worth a whole lot).


I was curious if anyone else has fallen down this rabbit hole, how the journey has gone for you, what kinds of bikes have you found - and maybe most importantly - what do you do with them?


I think of them as works of art, so how do I display them as works of art? How do I convince my wife (or how did your convince your significant other) that this was a good idea, and that displaying them in a prominent way was a good idea?


A few that I'm currently kind of stalking craigslist:

- Trek 2300

- 1996 Lemond Alpe d huez

- Team Motorola Eddy Merckx

- Lemond Team Z

- 80's Pro Miyata

- 80's Cinelli Super Corsa

- Kestrel 4000

merziac

A noble quest and you are preaching to the choir as you probably know.

All's it takes is money, time, patience and a significant other that will tolerate some/most/all of it and the nonsense it causes.

One of the top arguments is fitness, if you ride them you will be healthier but that is rarely enough, you can try to get her involved as well which would be good too. Still usually an uphill climb unless they are already up for it.

I have staved off some of the pushback by buying her bikes as well, get that right as I have and it can really help, she has six of her own, still doesn't ride hardly at all but has in the past. She also bought her own first 2.

fettsvenska 

I did something similar for awhile and was collecting bikes and frames simply because I could and because I thought that they were cool. After some time I came to realize a few things:

1. I was spending more money on bikes, parts, accessories, etc. than what I really wanted.
2. Bikes take up a lot more space than other collectible things.
3. While my bikes were all functional, I didn't ride all of them nearly as much as I thought I would and some hardly ever.
4. When I sold a bike I was lucky to break even with my cost but usually took a loss.
5. Many times what I thought was cool, turned out to be not as cool as I first thought.
6. I love my vintage bikes and they ride awesome. However, there have also been several design and technological advances made over the years that make modern bikes superior to vintage bikes in many ways so my modern bikes get more miles than my vintage bikes.

At one point I had over 25 complete bikes and several framesets, which is a miniscule collection compared to some other BF members. For me it became too consuming; too much time, too much money, too much space. A couple of years ago I looked at my collection and I selected 3 vintage bikes that I would keep and decided that the rest had to go and started the process of selling. Since I started selling my stuff I believe that I've collected nearly $6,000 (give or take). I'm not sure what I paid for all of that but I know that it was quite a bit more than $6,000. I still have a few things to unload that might bring in a few hundred dollars but most of it is now gone. There are couple of bikes that, if I found them at the right price, I would buy but other than that, the bike collection is now more appropriate for me.

So my recommendation is to just be careful and choose the bikes that you really want and try not to be too impulsive. I've also found that I get almost as much enjoyment out of seeing the vintage bike pics posted here on BF by other members just as much as owning them myself. I'm not suggesting that you will have the same experience as me. I'm just describing how I came to the point where I am now.

You've listed 7 bikes that interest you. What would it mean for you if you acquired all 7? Do you have room to store them? Would they all get ridden or would they collect dust? What does it mean for you when one of your bikes has not been ridden for 2 years? Just a few things to think about.

merziac

Good points all but you don't really know where you are headed until it goes good, bad or ugly and by then it may be too late.

If its all or mostly about the money or worse if it becomes about it as it easily can, C+V bikes are a sinkhole, plain and simple although many here make a heckuva go of it.

Value, like beauty is in the eye of the beholder, if you're in it for the money, you may never get there and you may become very disillusioned in the process.

I have paid dearly for several of mine and have gotten many screamin deals, had bikes given to me and everything in between, the pile is huge, so be it.

The ones I likely overpaid for, I did so willingly and gladly, very happy to find them and snag them, no regrets and will probably loose my shorts, no matter, I got them.

I drag raced motorcycles twice a week for 18 years, won a lot, lost a lot, spent a ridiculous amount of $$$ just on entry fees alone, likely in the 10's of 1000's, fortunately the bikes were bulletproof so they were a fraction of the program where many spend $100's of 1000's chasing speed and glory that never comes.

Had an absolute blast, delivered and received 1000's of azz whipings and wouldn't trade that for anything, bicycles are a drop in the bucket compared to that program.

Satisfaction, accomplishment and enjoyment can be priceless.

tricky 

As hobbies go, bikes aren't as expensive as something like vehicles. I now have firsthand knowledge of that after buying a vintage car last November. It's funny that I would hold off on spending $100 on a derailleur or other bike part, but am regularly dropping $300 or more on orders for car parts.

As far as whether or not you should buy and own bikes, you don't know if you'll like it until you try it. The primary reason I don't pursue all the bikes (or cars or motorcycles) I want is the space. My 2 bed apartment in Seattle has about as much room as you'd expect (maybe less if you are used to modern apartments and not pre-war buildings) for storing bikes. My GF is actually very understanding of both hobbies. And that brings me to the crux of the issue. Is there a negative affect on your life if your collection includes all those bikes?

As far as the question you actually asked... I have two complete bikes hanging (my riders for easy access) on the wall using this stand. https://designbydelta.com/products/t...-gravity-stand It's not that bad looking, There are also 3 frames in a closet and one bike stored in the bike room of my building. I have considered trying to convince the GF to hang a bike frame as an art piece. She would let me do it since she's a gem, but the bikes take up so much mental and physical space as is that I am not so sure about the idea. And regarding convincing them it's a good idea, generally we don't have a problem with what the other does with their hobbies, but we also aren't tied together financially right now beyond a shared lease and utilities. Every relationship is different though.

jamesdak 

Don't do it......it's a long, dark, deep, and expensive rabbit hole.

SurferRosa

Yeah, I think of them as works of art ... that you mount and ride.

nlerner

We can stop anytime. Sure.

BFisher

My bikes are all riders. I tend to lean away from the bike as art view. For me, the most beautiful thing about a bicycle is the ride. I don't have anything overly valuable or rare.

Having said that, my Colnago Super was a gift from my wife. It lives on our bedroom wall. She also gifted the mount it hangs from. She actively encourages this madness hobby. She's never once complained or discouraged me from buying another bike. I often have a bike in the living room during winter. I don't go overboard with it (piles covered with tarps/junk everywhere) and it has never been a point of contention. She's into pottery and I'm all for it. Her kiln came this week - super exciting stuff! We are definitely not typical, but we communicate fully. Always.

randyjawa 

There was a time when I sought out only the top dogs of any kennel and I did find some pretty nice, top of the line, vintage road bicycles. For example, the iconic Peugeot PX10...


But, for me and due to different things, I do not seek only the best. These days, old school lugged steel is my preference with cottered cranks, head badges and as much chrome as I can get...


It is just as much fun to find, restore and ride an entry level steed as it is to do the same for a top of the liner. My most recent example (the yellow Torpado above) was found (for free) and built up by me. No one else helped with the restoration. Paint by brush, used mostly what I had on hand that was period and/or model correct and paid for only what I really had to (in this case are from Velocals). The result, a heavy but beautiful (my opinion) entry level Torpado...


To me, the Torpado is a dog to ride, when compared to my rider, a 2000 (approximately) Marinoni Piuma...


But the Torpado is a work of art, in my mind. I own four bikes and all, even the Marinoni, are worth looking at. Most, except the Marinoni, are wall art but I keep only one on display at a time. I just do not have the room to display several, so, when the mood strikes, one of the wall hangers hangs out in the living room, for me to view at my leisure. I display one at a time, mostly out of respect for my wife who does not see the same artistic value that I do. She and I have been married for 52 years and I respect her wishes (one on display at a time). At the moment, that one is my 1958 Rabeneick 120d...


And, in closing, I find that it is just as much fun to find, restore and ride (however briefly) an entry level steed as it is to do the same with the head horse in the heard. My next project, a lowly Carlton that will allow me the opportunity to try out the Campagnolo Gran Tourismo rear derailleur (the Carlton was originally fitted with Simplex plastic chain hoppers but I do not really like plastic anything)...

Mrstott

thats a good looking rabbit hole

alexihnen 

I agree - don’t do it! You may end up with more beautiful bikes than you’re able to ride regularly.

Oh, who am I kidding?! Do it! Just leave any 55cm Kvale, Bock, or Fattic frames for me. If you love to wrench on bikes, enjoy the history, and get a kick out of showing them off, do it. As with anything, don’t go overboard.

At first I somewhat sheepishly told friends about my collection, only to find out some have spent more on fly fishing gear, vintage pocket knives, or Disney cruises than my entire collection.

bikemig 

That is one good looking bike room with bike art and books to boot. I like it.

bikemig 

I figure that all the cool bikes I wanted to own in college but couldn't afford are now on deep sale.

John E

I fell into a Capo trap.

Repainted Cap Sieger frame, serial number very close to that of my other Sieger, so who was I to say no to it?

Almost all-orig. 1960 Capo Sieger

1959 Capo with Nervar Star crank and Campag. 980 derailleur upgrades. CyclArt repaint, done in 2003 in Jim Cunningham's stock "almost candy" maroon/red

tendency

Here's your pro Miayata (58cm): https://rmn.craigslist.org/bik/d/wab...305290467.html
Note - he's been trying to sell this for a year now so I'm sure he'll negotiate He's listing it now for 'just' $550 - down from $750 a year ago.

pcb 

Lotta good points made so far, I'd say OP won't know until they try. Getting stuff you lusted for in your yout is a pretty common motivator for all collectors, I reckon.

My numbers have ebbed and flowed and etc yadda yadda yadda. I started out just grabbing stuff I thought was cool, many were brands/models I either drooled over when young or always wondered how they'd ride. I was pretty indiscriminate, then decided what really interested/grabbed me was lugged steel from small-volume US builders. Sold off a bunch of stuff that wasn't that, then went in kinda deep again. Semi-weird stuff happened, like realizing if I had another coupla Ron Stouts I'd have 10% of his total output, or finding I had inadvertently started a collection of former Serotta builders.

That started to feel a little nuts, so I thinned the herd again and focused a on smaller number of builders whose work really grabbed me. I realized I missed having some British bikes around, so I let a couple/few of those sneak in. Got the numbers down to a little under half of my peak.

Then I had a health scare that could've left me dead and forced my family to deal with all of my accumulated crap, which was a wake-up call to continue thinning the herd. That's only been quasi-successful, in that my overall number of riders hasn't dropped much, but I have managed to clear out a lot of unbuilt "projects" and parts/wheels/crap. Still a lot to go there, though, and it would be better all around to clear at least a few more hooks.

I also came to an agreement with a similarly afflicted local buddy that we'd take care of selling off each other's stuff should either go first. He's younger and I've got more crap, so I'm ahead on that front, but he also knows he can keep a few of mine, so he's OK with that. Knowing I have somebody to step in to lessen the burden on my family should I check out anytime soon helps me breathe easier.

I've been able to handle/wrench/ride a whole bunch of bicycles, and I sometimes "miss" many/most of them. But this forum has helped a lot, in that every time I pang for a long-lost DeRosa or SBDU Raleigh or whatevs, I can come here and eyeball a whole bunch of them. Then I can ask myself which of the bikes I currently have I'd be willing to sell to get one of those, and if the answer is "none" then I can just go on dreaming.

Unrequited longing isn't such a bad thing, I suppose, at least when it comes to inanimate objects...

randyjawa 

I truly understand the N+1 virus that seems to be repeatedly invasive. Three times I have sold off all but a couple of my bikes. The only original one that remains, today, is my Legnano...


This was the first get-em-gone sale, implemented ten or more years ago. With these gone, I still had eighteen bikes left in the stable...


In the last sale, two or three years ago, I let seven bikes go, keeping only two and one project bike. Sold all of my vintage components also, except what was needed for my project bike...


Today, I can count eight bikes, four of which are restored and/or road worthy safe to ride steeds. Three projects hang from the rafters, under my lake cottage, waiting for me to get at them. And at least two more that I have harvested for components. I hope that I can find buyers for the frame/fork sets...

Nuovo Record

You could say: "Collecting vintage bikes is cheaper than collecting vintage cars, they require a lot less space, and if I sell them again, they will bring a huge profit (at least in percent) that will not be taxed."

tkamd73 

If there is not something you always want, why bother to get up in the morning!
Tim

TCollen

What Mark Twain said about smoking applies equally to collecting bikes,

“Giving up ... is the easiest thing in the world. I know because I've done it thousands of times."

Addendum -- Last month I owned just 1 bike, today I own 12. Craigslist and garage sales keep calling me.

sultanofsuede

Some impressive pictures here. Wow! I don't have that kind of room. I was kind of considering frame/fork only and finding a way to display as wall hanging artwork. of course, still need to get my wife to see them as art. ha!

alexihnen 

I may end up going this route a bit. Instead of fully kitting out each bike, it could make sense to hang some frames - maybe build them up every couple years. That would give me things to tinker with without adding new bikes to the collection. It would also be a little cheaper, and perhaps easier to store.

polymorphself 

Well here's one for you if you ride a 63: https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...pro-60-cm.html

EDIT: Whoops, sold.

sloar 

My OCD will not allow me to have an unbuilt frame. Drives me crazy until it’s completely finished.