Just a frame

[Uncle Stretch]

You know its hard to pickup a frame and then return it to the bike it once was. The rims around,are 50 to 60 years old ,and usually really bad. Even if you find a nice set they wont be cheap. A rechrome job goes for hundreds. Good set of fenders are expensive too. All the parts you will look for ,are coveted by collectors in case they run across a bike that needs them. That is why Rat Rod emerged. Get a cool frame ...some aftermarket fenders...Your choice of nice rims and tires ....and ride the fire out of it. If you really want something old and complete ,save your money and find a collector who is going through a divorce and pick one up cheap that he already has spent years finding all the little correct expensive parts for. It is surprising how someone will turn up their noses at a restored....well done bike for $600 when the parts alone are worth much more ...not to mention the fact the person has spent 2 or three years searching...begging...conning their friends out of parts that you may never find. So if you want that pristine bike that your afraid to ride , save your money and buy a good one....you can always part it out on ebay and make some money . :wink:

 

[BrigmasterA]

Amen Brother!

 

[Rat Rod]

That's how this forum emerged...my small bank account. :lol: :lol:

 

[thatismytruck]

hallelujah!! uncle Stretch!! Praise the Rods!!

 

[oddman]

Yeah. It kills me that someone spends so much time restoring a bike to original condition when the original condition wasn't all that interesting to begin with. I mean come on. Make it better than the original. That's what I say. What's going on here is so much more interesting, creative and original. Keep up the good work everyone.

 

[Uncle Stretch]

Yeah. It kills me that someone spends so much time restoring a bike to original condition when the original condition wasn't all that interesting to begin with. I mean come on. Make it better than the original. That's what I say. What's going on here is so much more interesting, creative and original. Keep up the good work everyone.

You know when I wrote this I never really thought about that. The bikes produced here do blow away anything that is produced today. Heck I think they copy us.
Harley davidson did the same thing. They built a bike and so many people changed it , and it looked so much better that they had to copy the choppers. 8)

 

[bombshelterbikes]

Yeah. It kills me that someone spends so much time restoring a bike to original condition when the original condition wasn't all that interesting to begin with. I mean come on. Make it better than the original. That's what I say. What's going on here is so much more interesting, creative and original. Keep up the good work everyone.

I can"t resist quoting that again....PERFECTLY SAID! I was orignally into hard-core restoration of some pretty sweet bikes from the 1930s to 50s. Then I started realizing that the schphincter tightness quotient involved with who exactly you were trying to please (aka "the old-time collectors") was way too much.

Look, I absolutely LOVE the classics, after all they are the roots for what we all built from....and lordy knows I still have a few. I also LOVE looking at an original bike from the bygone eras, and really dig seeing restored ones that show exactly what they looked like new. BUT.....often times those old bikes, original OR restored, don't ride very well!!!! :? People were smaller back then, and they certainly had different ideas about posture and rding comfort. Even designs that were "progressive" for their time are pretty darn conservative looking by today's standards.

Oddman said it right. THIS is the place, THIS is the time, THESE are the innovators. Thanks to everyone that make this site amazing with their work, creativity and passion.

 

[sensor]

THIS is the place, THIS is the time, THESE are the innovators. Thanks to everyone that make this site amazing with their work, creativity and passion.

that about sums it up! and myself..i do love the look of a survivor or restored bike but i never saw the point in not riding them :? .......i mean where do your tires wear out first? the tread or sidewalls?!? theyre bikes enjoy them!

 

[beatcad]

i heard this in the car world a long time ago, but i also relate it to motorcycles and bicycles.....
"stock sucks and restoring is boring"

dont get me wrong. i do appreciate a 100 point restoration, but i dought i will ever do one.
what ever i build i want to put on the street. if a car/motorcycle/bicycle is really driven/riden it WILL get stone chips and nicks and the like.
i have a pal that has bikes the smithsonian wishes they had. some goin' back to the 1800's. some are excelent originals and some are perfect restorations. most of them are worth more than most of the cars we own.
i have serious respect for that kinda stuff, but whould i have one? i dunno. i'd be scared to ride something that perfect.


chop, custom, rat....whatever...stock sucks.

 

[bigredddaddy]

I built a cruiser that was real sweet. Sub-lime green paint, ducktail fenders covering WWs on 72 spoke rims, and white everything else, pedals, seat, grips, and a big chrome headlight. Then I didn't ride it as much as I thought, hated cleaning it. Now my rat rod bike has never been cleaned. and has scratches, dings, and more rust than when it started with. The green cruiser cost; $345, Rat bike cost; $6, and I ride it still. This site ROCKS :mrgreen: