The Game Before The Internet.

[American Vintage Bicycle Supply]

A.S.Boltnuts and I were talking today over PM about pre-online bike sales.

Got me to wondering...

I know there are many of you bike guys, like myself, that were either not involved, or too young to care for the antique bike collecting back before internet.

Just wondering if anyone wanted to share how they had to track down bikes before the age of eBay, Craigslist, RRB...etc

I know I started browsing RRB at the age of 11-12 and became a member soon after. Now I'm 19 so I can say I've been doing this for a good 8-9 years. I've had hundreds of bikes pass threw my possession and a few keepers along the way. (All made much easier by the internet and quick and easy Google research)

How did you find them?
How did you date and value them?

Thanks,
Tyler

 

[ifitsfreeitsforme]

my first experience with a classic bike was in the late eighties when I was a bike racer. I came across a neglected Murray at a flea market, and shortly after, some period-correct accessories at a tag sale. I restored the bike, enjoyed it into the 90s, then sold it through a free classified ad in a newspaper. Didn't revisit vintage bikes until discovering this forum in 2008 or 09.

But to answer your question, I recall scanning Bargain News (a printed magazine), and newspaper classified ads back then to find used deals on anything, including bicycles. To date and value items, I asked local friends who always knew somebody in the area who was into whatever hobby the item was about, and I called that person.

 

[TuckTuck]

Scrapyards/junkyards were my place for bikes. Always had the guy running the scale look out for anything with wheels.

Its was my dad who got me hooked on them, and brought the winners home though. He was a bodyman by trade, and connected with so many old car guys who had old bikes and stuff we liked.

Its hard being 20 and not having any friends my age liking old stuff like me. Lol. All the old guys I know said they'd kill to have a son like me, to be interested in this stuff.

 

[American Vintage Bicycle Supply]

Scrapyards/junkyards were my place for bikes. Always had the guy running the scale look out for anything with wheels.

Its was my dad who got me hooked on them, and brought the winners home though. He was a bodyman by trade, and connected with so many old car guys who had old bikes and stuff we liked.

Its hard being 20 and not having any friends my age liking old stuff like me. Lol. All the old guys I know said they'd kill to have a son like me, to be interested in this stuff.

Good to met another youngin' on the forum. I'm the same way. I'm a pretty big antique dealer for our small town of Dallas GA, so the look on the guys faces who are buying from me always crack me up...It's like they want to say. "Is your father home?"

 

[ctaccruiser]

It's good to see the hobby in the good hands of the youngsters.

 

[SCHWINNRAY69]

Good to met another youngin' on the forum. I'm the same way. I'm a pretty big antique dealer for our small town of Dallas GA, so the look on the guys faces who are buying from me always crack me up...It's like they want to say. "Is your father home?"

Haha that's funny! Same stuff happens to me. Kids at school say I'm like an old guy and I was born in 1970. I started collecting bikes the same time you did, roughly 10-11. I'm 16 now. I never really had a "before the internet" so CL was my main bike finding source. I only found one old bike at a yard sale.

 

[GuitarlCarl]

I found my first old bike at a garage sale way back in September of 2013' , came here looking for info and stayed.

Carl.

 

[American Vintage Bicycle Supply]

Some of the old school guys I have at my swap meets still bring their photo albums full of their parts and bike collection photos.

I once wrote letters to Joe Dyer owner of Best Bicycle Store. He has a huge collection of stuff from his Schwinn shop days. He doesn't do email or phone so I had to write him letters until I had the "go ahead" to "pick" threw his shop.

Then I found a flyer form the old Marietta Swap meets back in the 90's on the floor in Joe's shop. That flyer then lead me to the coordinators Buck and Jim. Got in touch with them by their phone numbers on the flyer and got to go see and "pick" their collection.

Sometimes keeping it offline works best.

 

[FlordiaRust]

I was born into the old bikes at age 4 I had a 1960's 20in unisex tank bike Columbia that I rode around Bakersfield,Cal than got a pic somewhere of my first big boys bike (age5)which was a 1920's wood rim harely Davidson that had 8 to 17 welds in it from me jumping ditches and dumb kids stuff. Than moved to Nebraska when I was 6 and had broken,collected and found from local farmers, farm auctions, yard sales and other events my bikes which were like 1 dollar to 20 dollars in the late 90's and I still got my 10th bike with is a 1949 Wards Hawthorne that I had to call on the rotatory home phone to my neighbor if I could have it. And now Im 22 and so far lost track but kinda know its over 1000+ for my life. And I never had a new bike all hand me downs

 

[Bendix]

Newspaper classifieds (remember those?) for yard sales and auctions were my best bet.

I also ran an ad in a small farm/ranch/rural living magazine called "The Fencepost". That didn't work so well. At that time old bikes were just getting popular, lots of myths about old bikes that sold for thousands, and everybody thought theirs was THE one. I also drove 3 hours for an old Schwinn that wasn't a Schwinn from that ad...

 

[the_undecider]

Wow, didn't realize so many young people were on here. I'm 32 and thought I was young for this site. I think this bodes well for the future of the hobby.

I wasn't in to collecting bikes until about 10 years ago and my interest in older bikes is younger than that, but I always likes looking through the Thrifty Nickle paper when I was a kid.

 

[The Black Monark]

Newsletters/bike classifieds, swap meets, networking, telephone. Want to see pics? Wait 7-10 days and you'll get some in your mailbox...the one outside your house

 

[Skipton]

Back in the 80's my buddy and I would search the newspaper classified adds.

In the early 90's in Hemmings Motor News in none car related section I found a add for a newsletter , ( small upfront fee for a year or more) It was muscle bike based, might have even been called Schwinn Muscle Bike Club. (can't remember exactly)

They had adds in the back, no pics

• you would call the guy
• leave a message on answering machine
• play phone tag for a couple days
• ask if he could send you some pics
• some guys would ask for a self addressed envelope
• then if you wanted to buy.. send a check
• or cash wait for check to clear.
• three weeks later your bike would be shipped
• I will never complain about Paypal fees ever!
• 

 

[Thxcuz]

Haha that's funny! Same stuff happens to me. Kids at school say I'm like an old guy and I was born in 1970. I started collecting bikes the same time you did, roughly 10-11. I'm 16 now. I never really had a "before the internet" so CL was my main bike finding source. I only found one old bike at a yard sale.

I was born in 1969 and I'm not old!
I just got into bikes a few years back but I remember scanning the paper for guitars.
Note for the kids: the paper was like an iPad that came to your house every morning after you read it you could line a birdcage with it.

 

[TuckTuck]

Good to met another youngin' on the forum. I'm the same way. I'm a pretty big antique dealer for our small town of Dallas GA, so the look on the guys faces who are buying from me always crack me up...It's like they want to say. "Is your father home?"

I get that all the time. Lol. They even call me by my dad's name.

I
Note for the kids: the paper was like an iPad that came to your house every morning after you read it you could line a birdcage with it.

I still get a newspaper daily! Seems I have had pretty good luck with the paper lately with estate sales.

 

[Bob Gray]

I'm 45 and while I wasn't collecting old bikes back then, I've always been collecting weird old junk. The methods people used in the days before the net are still the best ways to find bargains today: garage sales, estate sales, auctions, newspapers and word of mouth.

In general, the internet is the best thing ever to happen to hobbies like this one. Back in the day if you were into something kind of obscure like old bikes you knew of yourself and maybe 2 or 3 other oddballs. Now you can correspond with hundreds of like-minded souls and everybody can learn from each other. Also, you can learn about products and with a community of enthusiasts new products get made that wouldn't have back in the day. You can also locate what used to be really hard to find parts easily.

The one big downside of it though is it has pushed up prices. Ebay makes a lot of people thing their junk is now valuable.

 

[Bob Gray]

There is a LOT less enthusiasm for bicycles among the youth of today than there was when I was a boy. Back in the 70's and 80's when I grew up it seemed that perhaps 25% of grade and middle school boys were into bikes. By that I mean that we spent our own money on them and rode them almost daily. The other 75% weren't as enthusiastic, but they all had bikes and most rode them regularly.

Nowadays kids just aren't into them nearly as much. Part of it's probably has to do with video games and electronics, but I think that the primary reason is just that we allow children today MUCH less freedom than the kids of my generation had. From about the age of 8 on my friends and I would pedal just about anywhere in a 5 mile radius from our homes.

 

[LukeTheJoker]

There is a LOT less enthusiasm for bicycles among the youth of today than there was when I was a boy. Back in the 70's and 80's when I grew up it seemed that perhaps 25% of grade and middle school boys were into bikes. By that I mean that we spent our own money on them and rode them almost daily. The other 75% weren't as enthusiastic, but they all had bikes and most rode them regularly.

Nowadays kids just aren't into them nearly as much. Part of it's probably has to do with video games and electronics, but I think that the primary reason is just that we allow children today MUCH less freedom than the kids of my generation had. From about the age of 8 on my friends and I would pedal just about anywhere in a 5 mile radius from our homes.

Have to agree with your comments Bob Gray, I remember riding upwards of 20km (12miles) away from home just for fun, or to go to the public swimming pool when I was still in primary school (20 years ago), I know if I had kids these days, I would not let them do that, video games and the internet has dampened the enthusiasm of young ones for cycling, but yeah, the safety thing is a big issue with kids out riding by themselves these days...

Oh, and I still check yard sales and the bargain buys paper for bikes, we live in a farming area away from the big cities so the internet and eBay is only good if I am willing to travel for a bike, and if it is a bike I am willing to travel for usually someone closer wants it more than I do and will outbid me anyway...

Luke.

 

[mikeeebikey]

Before the interweb I ran a shop, knew where a bunch of old Schwinns were, never cared for any other brands, so when that Schwinn fever struck years ago, I was on my game day!
Word of mouth, chasing down, "homee the clown," to buy his spray paint bombed 1940s, and good ol news papers. But really it was word of mouth for me, the good ol boy connections.

 

[Thxcuz]

I played my share of video games when I was a kid. How many hours were wasted on the Atari 2600 or Mattel Intelivision (remember that one?)
As a parent and as someone who works in TV news I am scared to death to let my kids wander too far. I'm sure it was just as dangerous then as it is now but parent were just happy to have us out of the house.
There is a new movement to let the kids do more on their own. I think they call it leash less parenting.
Back to bikes, sometimes you could just drive down the alley and find bikes. The night before bulk pick up day the pickers and rag & bone people are up and down the alley all night. My dog goes crazy.
My neighbors garage was open the other day...I saw a bunch of banana seat bikes. I'm guessing it was their kids and never got rid of them. I better bake some cookies and go on over.