Spring (winter?) clean

[Brian]

Had a clean up today, pulled the bikes out of the shed and cleaned my shed out. Currently at 15 bikes, all going rideable except the one I'm currently working on which isnt far off being finished (a Montesa). The plunger B33 will be this seasons ride. I'm not a "one marque" person, if it has two wheels I'll ride it.

[BagONails]

That's a fair effort Brian very impressive! Its funny how these two wheelers seem to accumulate, easy to buy and so hard to part with...

[Rex]

You mean easy to buy, difficult to get shot of...

[Kickaha]

I did the same a couple of months back, the A10 is on the stand in the garage so not included, nor are the other three bikes in the back shed

[Brian]

After putting this post on here I thought that it makes me look like I'm rich or lucky to have so many bikes but nothing could be further from the truth.

My bike collection is the result of a lifetime of buying, selling, repairing and doing whatever I could to get bikes. I often buy a bike, usually as cheap as possible, and just get it going and rideable and then over the following years I improve it as money and the location of parts allow. I'm not fanatical about originality but do try and get them to reasonably represent what they looked like originally.

It doesnt happen overnight but will happen if you persist.

[berger]

all i know about loads of bikes in the stable in the uk is keeping corrosion at bay and battery's ok and carbs ok unless you have a heated garage and loads of those charging things and free electirickery . i have 3 and that's enough to keep going in england so maybe if i want more i will have to move to better climes or spend more time on maintenance in the cold damp miserable winters instead of going to the PUB!

[orabanda]

Beautiful collection Brian,
Would love to see them out on the lawn again, but with the RM's at the front!

[Brian]

How about this one Richard. The RM is currently the national number two plate holder in the up to 1978 class ridden by my son. The Cappra is relatively "new" to me and I'm currently working on a 1974 Montesa King Scorpion. I bought a Cappra and a King Scorpion new back in 1974.

[BagONails]

You mean easy to buy, difficult to get shot of...

funnily enough Rex, that's exactly what I had in mind initially but then in deference to Brian's sensibilities I modified my take on the situation slightly 

[groily]

You mean easy to buy, difficult to get shot of...

funnily enough Rex, that's exactly what I had in mind initially but then in deference to Brian's sensibilities I modified my take on the situation slightly 

I've found that it's a bit too easy to dispose of things that aren't actually for sale!
At one point I had a dozen, all running pretty well but in various cosmetic conditions / states of originality. None was horrible though. Herself thought they were breeding in the shed.
I'm down to half that now - without ever having had anything 'For Sale'. People show up for normal non-bike-hunting reasons, chat about all sorts, one thing leads to another  . . . and ouf! there's a hole in the shed.
So "they came by magic and they disappeared by mistake did they?" is Herself's view on things.

I was happy other people were made happy with things I could manage without, and I was happy to have just about maybe broken even overall, with a couple of  probably undeserved wins. (They asked, they offered, wasn't me trying it on Guv.)
Like Brian, I had a tendency to buy cheap and not running, sort them mechanically at least, enjoy them, and go from there. And gone from here some of them have.

I know if I wanted to sell something like a normal person I'd be expected to haggle and I'd get grumpy, so I hope the rest can be re-housed when Time Runs Out on a similar basis or in the family. It helps to know quite a lot of people and be in a few clubs I guess - best keep in with them then! Anything left over = Kids' Problem