Its not for sale

#2
It doesn't make any sense to me. Some fellow likes this bike so much that he is willing to let it sit in a shed and rust away until it is an un-salvagable pile of scrap. At which point he will pass away and his heirs will toss it in the dumpster. It seems to me; if the owner really cared about this bike; the better alternative would be to sell it to someone who is interested in doing a ground up restoration and let them restore it to factory new condition. I have a friend who, back in the 1970's, put a pretty nice Fox Campus in his shed for storage. The shed had holes in the roof and a dirt floor. I offered to buy it and do a full restoration but he wasn't interested in selling. Now, forty four years later that bike is still sitting there. The frame is rusted through, fenders have holes from rust, seat has been shredded by mice, tires and rims are rotted and it is now beyond repair. Every time I go visit him I peek into his shed (it has no doors) and it makes me sad. That's just how I feel when I see pictures like those above. Ogy
 
#3
Seeing that its just sitting in an old bus not touched rotting away reminds me of that hoarder tv program. I bet all the junk in there has too much sentimental value as well.

Keep asking and maybe he will cave and appreciate what you will do with it.
 
#4
It doesn't make any sense to me. Some fellow likes this bike so much that he is willing to let it sit in a shed and rust away until it is an un-salvagable pile of scrap. At which point he will pass away and his heirs will toss it in the dumpster.
You make a good point, and it is frustrating. This applies to those rare parts under glass that will never be used as well.

I can understand someone's emotional need to keep something from the past. Certainly, a guy could sell a "treasure" to someone who would do something with it. But the "treasure" is gone, and the original owner knows the new owner wont have the same attachment for the same nostalgic reasons.

Gerry has posted several times on nostalgic pieces he's pried from reluctant owners. In all cases, he pledges to restore it to it's former glory and condition. A lot of us can't make that promise, cant keep it, and aren't interested in nostalgia beyond what parts bring on Ebay, or at the very least, lame attempts at garnering greed from fellow mini bike enthusiasts. Just saying...
 
#5
gerry has posted several times on nostalgic pieces he's pried from reluctant owners. In all cases, he pledges to restore it to it's former glory and condition. A lot of us can't make that promise, cant keep it, and aren't interested in nostalgia beyond what parts bring on ebay, or at the very least, lame attempts at garnering greed from fellow mini bike enthusiasts. Just saying...
soooooooo true!
 
#6
You make a good point, and it is frustrating. This applies to those rare parts under glass that will never be used as well.

I can understand someone's emotional need to keep something from the past. Certainly, a guy could sell a "treasure" to someone who would do something with it. But the "treasure" is gone, and the original owner knows the new owner wont have the same attachment for the same nostalgic reasons.

Gerry has posted several times on nostalgic pieces he's pried from reluctant owners. In all cases, he pledges to restore it to it's former glory and condition. A lot of us can't make that promise, cant keep it, and aren't interested in nostalgia beyond what parts bring on Ebay, or at the very least, lame attempts at garnering greed from fellow mini bike enthusiasts. Just saying...
I totally agree..........guess that makes me more of an original restoration person......I gather and horde but part of the fun of this hobby for me is the restoring and brand new parts just sitting in a display case or in a box on a shelf .........you said it well dave......but then every one has their reasons for pursuing the hobby...........
 
#7
Worst part of It Is that when he passess on, his kids will probably sell It for scrap or give It to someone that will scrap it . What a shame !
 
#8
I have thought about this subject a lot and have mixed feelings. I kind of enjoy seeing these barns and warehouses full of old cars and motorcycles that turn up now and then. If it weren't for hoarders all or most of that stuff would have gotten scrapped long ago. At least it's still here. Now the guys that have acres and acres of old cars rotting into the ground and refuse to sell a single piece or part to anyone...that's a different story.

There's also the person who may have a car or bike that was given to them by their dad or it belonged to their dad or it was their first car or bike or whatever. Regardless of how old they are or their physical condition...in their mind they are going to get around to restoring it someday and re-live their youth. Or it just makes them feel good to look at it because it brings back memories. It's a tangible link to the past, to the "good old days". For some people that's all they have left. Hard to begrudge them that.

Like everybody else I like to see stuff get restored or at least preserved for history sake. In some cases it's a lot more complicated than it seems. Like I said I think about it all the time and have mixed feelings.
 
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capguncowboy

Well-Known Member
#9
I can understand hanging onto something, even if it's in disrepair and keeping it dry and safe from further decay. What I can't understand is "collectors" that leave stuff out in the elements to rust and rot. You see it a lot on American Pickers. Those guys will pile shit everywhere over a 40 acre plot and call themselves a collector.

There's a difference between being a collector and a hoarder. A collector would never let their stuff get ruined.

That being said, it doesn't look like it's getting any worse in that bus. Its future is probably doomed to eventually be old for scrap, but until then, it's his right to do what he wants with it.

You should quote him a price to restore it for him. Maybe he'll go for it. At least then, it might get a nice cozy spot in a garage.
 
#10
That is an "Allstate" which was made by Cushman and sold by Sears. I am currently restoring a 1947 Cushman "Step Thru scooter which is very similar to the Allstate in the picture. It is a shame that it will sit there and rot, I just don't get people.
 
#11
That is an "Allstate" which was made by Cushman and sold by Sears. I am currently restoring a 1947 Cushman "Step Thru scooter which is very similar to the Allstate in the picture. It is a shame that it will sit there and rot, I just don't get people.
Holy smoke; look who crawled out of the woodwork. Seems like it's been years since I've see you on here. Glad to see you're still into the mini/scooter restoration business. When you finish that Cushman I'll get you started on a Fox Campus. Nice to hear from you again. Ogy
 
#13
Ogy,I will hold you to that. I am always looking for a Fox Campus, nicest mini ever made and has historical significance with my childhood. The Cushman project that I am doing now is very cool.

Be Well,
thebronc4019
 
#14
Worst part of It Is that when he passess on, his kids will probably sell It for scrap or give It to someone that will scrap it . What a shame !
Scrap, thats how i aquired my first mini bike, a 1971 Kawasaki kv75, just last October. Got it for $30 from the local junkyard. Unfortunately, had to sell when my truck broke down. It ran, but it smoked a lot and hardly moved. I put new rings in it.
 

pomfish

Well-Known Member
#15
Here's the Deal,
When people show these kinds of barn finds and say they are not for sale, they are really saying, "Say the magic price so I can let go of it."
Otherwise, it would stay out of sight.
And when they clam up and give you the old "It's too sentimental to me to sell" , then Eff em, let the kids sell it for pennies.
Got no time for some people who dangle the carrot and then fold.
Life is short and they are plenty more mini bikes to buy.
Later,
Keith
 
#16
The man that owns this Mini never showed it to me. I was looking at his rotting collection of @ 100 cars when I opened the door to this van and there this mini sat. I will be working on trying to pry it from him. He rode it as a kid and he is in his mid 60's. I have yet to finish any of the ones that I started on. lol
 
#17
I do hate to see stuff sit but at least it's in a van and not in the weather, still a shame to have it sit but I let stuff sit so I'm as guilty as that guy. Allstate scooters are cool, my Dad said he rode one as a younger man and said they were more reliable than Italian stuff that other guys had. He later raced a Henry J which a version of was sold as an Allstate through Sears. He and I later had Henry J's but mine was a mess that was a straight axle nightmare on the street where his FatMan cross membered with nice steering. Allstate Motorcycles were all made overseas but I think the scooter was a motoscoot or something American made. The Kaiser Frazier Henry J and Allstate cars were made in occupied Kawasaki Japan by Henry Kaiser and some say the tooling is still possibly there somewhere.
 

markus

Well-Known Member
#18
the allstate pictured was a cushman. But since it says Allstate the value/following is half of what a cushman is. They used the "allstate" name on all sorts of stuff. We bought a '67 allstate that came out of a Museum collection in tennesse a couple of years ago, at that point they were using Puch made bikes (Austria). Fan cooled kick start 2 stroke with 3 speed twist grip shift :eek:ut:
 
#19
:thumbsup:
I do hate to see stuff sit but at least it's in a van and not in the weather, still a shame to have it sit but I let stuff sit so I'm as guilty as that guy. Allstate scooters are cool, my Dad said he rode one as a younger man and said they were more reliable than Italian stuff that other guys had. He later raced a Henry J which a version of was sold as an Allstate through Sears. He and I later had Henry J's but mine was a mess that was a straight axle nightmare on the street where his FatMan cross membered with nice steering. Allstate Motorcycles were all made overseas but I think the scooter was a motoscoot or something American made. The Kaiser Frazier Henry J and Allstate cars were made in occupied Kawasaki Japan by Henry Kaiser and some say the tooling is still possibly there somewhere.
Cool story Ace.......love this kinda of history..........Thank you:thumbsup:
 
#20
If there's a wife in the picture, try to make sure that the she is present the next time you inquire. I had similar situation with an old Ford 8N tractor. The thing had been sitting for decades, but the owner didn’t want to let it go. I walked away, but a year later I was traveling in the same area and stopped in to see if it was still there… it was, sitting in same spot. I knocked on the door again and this time he and his wife answered the door. When I asked if he had changed his mind, he hesitated and his wife piped in, “go ahead and sell it”. He asked what I would give for it and I shot an offer of about half of what I was willing to pay. He quickly countered with a price that was still less than my threshold, so many years later, it’s still in the wildman fleet and after a lot of work, looks like this...
P6090013.JPG
 
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