Really? Well when this happens let me know because I will take as many valueless classic bikes as you can find
Classic Bike Bandwagon
- Thread starter JohnnyBoxer
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Really? Well when this happens let me know because I will take as many valueless classic bikes as you can find
it all depends on what era bikes you have bought in the first place.
I agree that bikes in the 50`s - 60`s may well see their future buyers dissappearing over the net 15-20years BUT if you have bought bikes from the early 80`s then your home and hosed and they will be worth good money in future years
I agree that bikes in the 50`s - 60`s may well see their future buyers dissappearing over the net 15-20years BUT if you have bought bikes from the early 80`s then your home and hosed and they will be worth good money in future years
Me too, them long dead owners with their gold stars, venoms and manx Nortons etc must be turning in there graves knowing that they are now almost worthless.
Well when this happens let me know because I will take as many valueless classic bikes as you can find
Not a week goes by when my dad doesnt regail me with the story of his 2 International Nortons that he used to own and sold for about £40 in the
50`s as he needed the money after the coming back from the Suez war Crisis.
Everytime one comes up for sale now he rings me and tells me the same story
I really wish he had kept them
50`s as he needed the money after the coming back from the Suez war Crisis.
Everytime one comes up for sale now he rings me and tells me the same story
I really wish he had kept them
Not a week goes by when my dad doesnt regail me with the story of his 2 International Nortons that he used to own and sold for about £40 in the
50`s as he needed the money after the coming back from the Suez war Crisis.
Everytime one comes up for sale now he rings me and tells me the same story
I really wish he had kept them
That's his birthday present sorted then.
If I could get one for under £10000 I would buy him one
might have to wait until they all become worthless
might have to wait until they all become worthless
mark2jag
Registered user
Bloody hell you're brave. I rode one and I would NEVER call it entertaining. What I would call it however was Bloody Frightening (at the time!!!)
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Sold my 1989 CR500 to a mate in the mid 90s for £200 
regretted it from day one still looking for a replacement now its hard finding one for £200
regretted it from day one still looking for a replacement now its hard finding one for £200
...vintage, classic, modern?83
...surely this is cyclic?...why do vintage bikes command upwards of 20k with ease, they are now at least two generations out of 'fashion'!??.....As for Manx, Inters and Goldstars loosing value, I can't see it.......
...surely this is cyclic?...why do vintage bikes command upwards of 20k with ease, they are now at least two generations out of 'fashion'!??.....As for Manx, Inters and Goldstars loosing value, I can't see it.......
I am very tempted by a late 50s/early 60s BMW R50 in good nick. Am I mad?
Nope! They're a lovely usable machine even if you forget about the classic tag
R51 http://www.ventureclassics.com/stock list.htm
Sold about 2 weeks ago , didnt even get as far as displaying the price!
Sold about 2 weeks ago , didnt even get as far as displaying the price!
Thanks Rob and Steve
Spent today at Sammy Millar's - even though they only have 2 BMWs amongst their nearly 400 motorcycles it was a great day and it confirmed that I like that 50s and 60s design style (despite my memories as a student of pushing my 1950s BSA a7 up a particularly steep hill after its chain parted!)
Spent today at Sammy Millar's - even though they only have 2 BMWs amongst their nearly 400 motorcycles it was a great day and it confirmed that I like that 50s and 60s design style (despite my memories as a student of pushing my 1950s BSA a7 up a particularly steep hill after its chain parted!)
I had a 1954 a7 shooting star when I was in my teens. Lovely smooth running bike.
I bought a mint T500 in 1978 for £240 used it for 10 years then sold it for £250
Try and buy a mint one now for less than £7000 . Mental , but if I had the cash to invest in a toy I would do it .These bikes are getting scarce , supply is less than demand hence the prices . Back in the 80's Mk 2 jags were crazy prices , now more realistic. Got money to invest , get a classic bike
Try and buy a mint one now for less than £7000 . Mental , but if I had the cash to invest in a toy I would do it .These bikes are getting scarce , supply is less than demand hence the prices . Back in the 80's Mk 2 jags were crazy prices , now more realistic. Got money to invest , get a classic bike
Thanks Rob and Robbo - I may be mad but clearly I am not alone in that
Will keep you posted on the progress in landing one. Picked up a copy of Motorcycle Monthly today and it has a few interesting pages on acquiring a classic bike.
And more fun than leaving the money in the bank warning virtually diddly squat
Will keep you posted on the progress in landing one. Picked up a copy of Motorcycle Monthly today and it has a few interesting pages on acquiring a classic bike.
And more fun than leaving the money in the bank warning virtually diddly squat
Number 6
Registered user
(posted January 2013)
(posted today)
Make your mind up
(posted January 2013)
They're worth a lot more now than they were 3 years ago!
I'm not sure which way the classic bike market will go in the next few years. I have several old bikes and I have noticed that some old bikes, BSAs, Triumphs etc, usually Lightnings, Gold Flash, T100s etc are now going very cheap, around 4k for a very good one. If you were to go to Kempton Park classic autojumble next weekend with 4k in your pocket, you could take your pick of some serious classic Brit Iron. 10 years ago that would have been 7-10k.
I don't know if that is the 'market' or the fact that the vast majority of the original owners of these bikes are now giving up riding, just like my 80 year old dad, or literally dying out. But there are more and more old Brit bikes coming on the market, cheap. Most guys my age (I'm 49) grew up in the 80s on Japanese machines and aren't( or weren't) interested in Brit bikes. I think I am slightly unusual in that I want back to old British bikes when I got to 40 and moved away from Japanese machines, I'm still not sure why, but I like the sound and the way they handle. At this moment in time, I think its a good time to buy a british bike, but as the current crop of bikes dry up, prices will go up. At the moment there are more bikes than riders, meaning they are cheap for standard style bikes.
I own a 1950 Sunbeam S7, which cost me £3500 and is now restored and worth around £8000. In 1976 a friend of mine had a 1949 S7, which broke down in Kent. It cost him a fiver when he bought it so he pushed it off a cliff into the sea..... That bike would now be worth around £10,000 as it was an early S7, which are rocking horse shit. A member of the Sunbeam Owners Fellowship recently had a stroke and had to sell his collection of 3 Sunbeams, all of which went within 24 hours of being advertised, for £4500, £8500 and £11000, as they were rough, good and original conditions. So a lot depends on the actual bikes themselves. A Manx Norton or BSA Goldie will always go for good money. But at the moment the Triumph/BSA/Norton your dad owned is going cheap, so go buy one.... I'm a firm believer that every biker should have a classic bike as well as the daily rider/Sunday toy, just to remind us where we came from. Be careful though, as they become addictive, and good classic mechanics are becoming hard to find if you cant look after them yourself.
As an example I bought a BSA A65 Lightning recently, just because I knew the 75 year old owner and I knew how much love and attention hed spent on the bike over the years. It cost £4200 and is stunning....
I don't know if that is the 'market' or the fact that the vast majority of the original owners of these bikes are now giving up riding, just like my 80 year old dad, or literally dying out. But there are more and more old Brit bikes coming on the market, cheap. Most guys my age (I'm 49) grew up in the 80s on Japanese machines and aren't( or weren't) interested in Brit bikes. I think I am slightly unusual in that I want back to old British bikes when I got to 40 and moved away from Japanese machines, I'm still not sure why, but I like the sound and the way they handle. At this moment in time, I think its a good time to buy a british bike, but as the current crop of bikes dry up, prices will go up. At the moment there are more bikes than riders, meaning they are cheap for standard style bikes.
I own a 1950 Sunbeam S7, which cost me £3500 and is now restored and worth around £8000. In 1976 a friend of mine had a 1949 S7, which broke down in Kent. It cost him a fiver when he bought it so he pushed it off a cliff into the sea..... That bike would now be worth around £10,000 as it was an early S7, which are rocking horse shit. A member of the Sunbeam Owners Fellowship recently had a stroke and had to sell his collection of 3 Sunbeams, all of which went within 24 hours of being advertised, for £4500, £8500 and £11000, as they were rough, good and original conditions. So a lot depends on the actual bikes themselves. A Manx Norton or BSA Goldie will always go for good money. But at the moment the Triumph/BSA/Norton your dad owned is going cheap, so go buy one.... I'm a firm believer that every biker should have a classic bike as well as the daily rider/Sunday toy, just to remind us where we came from. Be careful though, as they become addictive, and good classic mechanics are becoming hard to find if you cant look after them yourself.
As an example I bought a BSA A65 Lightning recently, just because I knew the 75 year old owner and I knew how much love and attention hed spent on the bike over the years. It cost £4200 and is stunning....
Attachments
So in pursuit of a classic BMW I set off Thursday morning on my RT along with my mate, also of this parish. Splashed out £30 on a return ticket on the Tunnel. Made the boring ride from Hampshire to Folkestone area and rode onto the next train - in France by 10h30 and GPS set to ride across Belgium and Holland.
First stop, on the East of Holland, was Dutch Lion Motorcycles (http://www.dutch-lion-motorbikes.co...rival-bmw-r50-with-original-dutch-papers-1961 ). They have a whole hangar of investing bikes and I had the fun of riding this R50 round their track (once we got the bike started!). Interesting bike but not matching numbers and needed a bit of tidying up - but confirmed that I really like the look of the R50 and, although I am 6ft tall, the single saddle is about the right position for me.
Then we headed West and spent the evening in the charming town of Heusden, a mini citadel on the Maas I think. This positioned us to visit Bart at Classic BMW in Elshout the next morning. A very different operation and he is a real craftsman and expert. He used to be chief engineer on an ocean going tug and now has a great workshop and a lovely set of classic BMWs.
Sadly the 1957 R50 I had come to see had been sold two days before - I feasted my eyes on it but it was off limits!
I took a few pictures but will not struggle to get them off my iPhone - it's all in his website if you are interested! http://www.bmw-classicbikes.com
I learnt during the visits that Holland does not do MoTs for motorcycles so paperwork is limited to a log book which is now a plastic card and supporting letter.
So the net result:
1. Great Spring ride out in steady sunshine - the 600 miles confirmed my RT LC is a great mile-muncher as well as an agile back-road machine
2. Lovely mini-tour of Holland
3. I do hanker after a well-sorted R50, preferably 1957 (despite Bart's advice that the rarer R51 with telescopic forks is a better 'investment'.)
Now I just need to find a well-sorted one
First stop, on the East of Holland, was Dutch Lion Motorcycles (http://www.dutch-lion-motorbikes.co...rival-bmw-r50-with-original-dutch-papers-1961 ). They have a whole hangar of investing bikes and I had the fun of riding this R50 round their track (once we got the bike started!). Interesting bike but not matching numbers and needed a bit of tidying up - but confirmed that I really like the look of the R50 and, although I am 6ft tall, the single saddle is about the right position for me.
Then we headed West and spent the evening in the charming town of Heusden, a mini citadel on the Maas I think. This positioned us to visit Bart at Classic BMW in Elshout the next morning. A very different operation and he is a real craftsman and expert. He used to be chief engineer on an ocean going tug and now has a great workshop and a lovely set of classic BMWs.
Sadly the 1957 R50 I had come to see had been sold two days before - I feasted my eyes on it but it was off limits!
I took a few pictures but will not struggle to get them off my iPhone - it's all in his website if you are interested! http://www.bmw-classicbikes.com
I learnt during the visits that Holland does not do MoTs for motorcycles so paperwork is limited to a log book which is now a plastic card and supporting letter.
So the net result:
1. Great Spring ride out in steady sunshine - the 600 miles confirmed my RT LC is a great mile-muncher as well as an agile back-road machine
2. Lovely mini-tour of Holland
3. I do hanker after a well-sorted R50, preferably 1957 (despite Bart's advice that the rarer R51 with telescopic forks is a better 'investment'.)
Now I just need to find a well-sorted one
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Ditto-also slightly mad here...
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