retro bikes to avoid

[scant]

each to their own. I enjoy riding my retro bikes, not sure i would want that much high end metal sat unridden. Agreed we don't need the debate though [/quote]

its weird in that I'll happily never ride retro as for me personally i wouldnt get much enjoyment out of the ride & for the more irreplaceable bikes i own i wouldnt want to damage/break them & like to keep them pristine. there was a similar thread on mtbr recently. bikes as art kinda thing. so its obviously on a lot of peoples minds!

BUT!

i cant tolerate unridden modern bikes. if i'm not riding them they've got to go! .. which has just sparked another thread

 

[NickD]

From looking around shops recently, I reckon retro biking is cheaper than modern.

I have bought 2 frame & fork setups since joining here, as well as load of other parts. Neither of them were super cheap, but neither was hugely expensive either. I will have a mid 90's full susser and an early 90's steel hardtail, both with LX or better parts for around £250 each. I wouldn't consider either expensive, and the bikes in my LBS or Halfords for that price aren't very good.

I ride my friends modern hardtail Trek on occasion (mid to high end spec) and I have to say I much prefer the retro bikes.

As a side note, I also ride road bikes, and the bikes from the 60's are a much more pleasant ride than 80's/90's/00's road bikes, albeit a little slower. there is only a 2lb difference between the 531 60's Geoffrey Butler in my sig as compared to the 80's Eddy Merckx.

Oh, and modern roadbike paint schemes look cheap and tacky to me - even on £2k plus bikes :shock:

 

[utahdog2003]

This discussion has wandered somewhat.

Interested to know if people have similar discussions on classic car forums? For instance do you think they're all extolling the virtues of a spammed up family saloons over their classic porsche/ferrari/etc. Sure a brand new modneo st220 (or whatever) may be nominally quicker, have better brakes, have low servicing costs, is cheap to run and you can get the family labrador in the boot but surely that isn't the point. Is it ?

Interesting sidebar. There used to be an online community called "Turbo-Bricks" that celebrated Volvo Wagons! It was a funny site, because all the characters there knew all these part substitutions to get more power and better handling out of their 20 y/o wagons! There was even a pecking order of desireability based on which headlight/grill/hood combination you had on your particular car! Conversations and comments went on like: "If you use springs from the DL wagon on your GLT you can achieve a flatter cornering attitude." and "Fred's 240 Turbo has the flat hood and euro headlights, which is much more aesthetically pleasing than the boxed hood and grill and the twin rectangle NAS spec headlights on Bob's DL" Funny stuff.

There are romantics in every hobby, and VRC bikes isn't about getting a stout bike to hit the trails on the cheap, and it never was. VRC is about romance, pure and simple.

 

[scant]

and VRC bikes isn't about getting a stout bike to hit the trails on the cheap, and it never was. VRC is about romance, pure and simple.

agree to disagree there, it used to be, it isnt anymore. deffo romance now.. which is why i own em

 

[gibbleking]

i like volvos......turbo brick...awwwwwaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy.

 

[cherrybomb]

Kind of off topic (but everyone else has had a go! )......

Interestingly, in another life I'm into modified Jeeps and off roading.(yee haw! )
Anyway, the point I'm getting to is; I know a lot of people who have spent serious money (and I mean serious) on trucks that will do amazing stuff and go almost anywhere. The problem with that is it gets harder and harder to have 'fun' because there are fewer places to go that will stretch the ability of these vehicles.
People are starting to go back to trucks that are closer to standard so sites become more of a challenge again and there are more places to go.

I think that's why I like retro bikes. Just ordinary bridleways and byways can be challenging on a rigid bike, I don't need to go out of my way for kicks or visit specialist centres with managed 'built' trails. I'm not saying I don't like them, I do. I just don't want to be limited to going to them to get my kicks.

I think if you reckon you can't have fun on a retro bike, and you have to have a full susser and extreme terrain to be challenged then you're not being very imaginative.

 

[gibbleking]

hehe anything more than flat ground and im in trouble....

 

[scant]

I think if you reckon you can't have fun on a retro bike, and you have to have a full susser and extreme terrain to be challenged then you're not being very imaginative.

LOL! thats YOUR choice dude!. I live right next to the brecon beacons, they're my local trails, you're more than welcome to tag along on 1 of my rides on your retro bike

 

[cherrybomb]

you're more than welcome to tag along on 1 of my rides on your retro bike

You know that's not what I meant.

 

[scant]

you're more than welcome to tag along on 1 of my rides on your retro bike

You know that's not what I meant.

yeh, just messing