Saw this one at the Twin Cities Roadsters swap meet today.
The bike is definitely a "30 footer", meaning it looked good from about 30 feet away. :lol:
The old 'good from far, but far from good'.
I went to the swap with a friend that his been in the bicycle industry for over 20 years. He's a great guy to have with me when I go to the swaps because he is quick to point out the many flaws on an old bike I might be drooling over that I would probably overlook. I've learned a lot from just walking around with him and saved LOTS of $$$ in the process.
This bike is an old Monark. I don't know the exact date yet but it is a post-skip tooth era bike and I'd guess it to be from the mid-to late 50's.
My friend pointed out EVERY reason to just walk away from this one. The chain guard is bent, the rear of the frame is bent, the fork is bent, the handle bars are bent, missing a truss rod,etc, etc, etc...
But I still had to ask how much. :wink:
The seller started asking ME questions about the Ike. He had thought it was much older. He asked for an offer and I told him the most I'd go would be $20. He told me he wanted $30 and I pointed out all of the various damage to the bike. He agreed to $20. 8) I rolled it about 10 feet when the front wheel locked up and I had to carry it.
My friend just rolled his eyes :roll:
It's my goal to prove to him that this wasn't a terrible investment. A least I know the head badge is good so there is at least one part that isn't bent.
The bike is definitely a "30 footer", meaning it looked good from about 30 feet away. :lol:
The old 'good from far, but far from good'.
I went to the swap with a friend that his been in the bicycle industry for over 20 years. He's a great guy to have with me when I go to the swaps because he is quick to point out the many flaws on an old bike I might be drooling over that I would probably overlook. I've learned a lot from just walking around with him and saved LOTS of $$$ in the process.
This bike is an old Monark. I don't know the exact date yet but it is a post-skip tooth era bike and I'd guess it to be from the mid-to late 50's.
My friend pointed out EVERY reason to just walk away from this one. The chain guard is bent, the rear of the frame is bent, the fork is bent, the handle bars are bent, missing a truss rod,etc, etc, etc...
But I still had to ask how much. :wink:
The seller started asking ME questions about the Ike. He had thought it was much older. He asked for an offer and I told him the most I'd go would be $20. He told me he wanted $30 and I pointed out all of the various damage to the bike. He agreed to $20. 8) I rolled it about 10 feet when the front wheel locked up and I had to carry it.
My friend just rolled his eyes :roll:
It's my goal to prove to him that this wasn't a terrible investment. A least I know the head badge is good so there is at least one part that isn't bent.
