Re: [CR]Vintage Bikes Most Desired.

(Example: Component Manufacturers:Chater-Lea)

In-Reply-To: <3CE5ECF4.809E4272@earthlink.net>
References: <3CE5AA3D.8FCFD25F@optonline.net> <3CE5BF0C.53ADEEED@earthlink.net> <3CE5D36C.9040905@aol.com>
Date: Fri, 17 May 2002 23:16:19 -0700
To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
From: "joel metz, ifbma/sfbma" <magpie@messengers.org>
Subject: Re: [CR]Vintage Bikes Most Desired.


>The older I get the more I prize and covet originality in bicycles. I'm
>sure some may wonder why I don't get some of my "rougher" bikes
>repainted though. Maybe it's an acquired taste not shared by everyone?

youre not the only one, chuck....

heck, ive always preferred a blemished (even severely, sometimes) original finish to a perfect restoration... for me, i liken it to erasing the bikes memory or something - washing it clean of the stories it has to tell... when it comes to parts, im the same way... cosmetic dings and scratches add "character"...

at the same time, i can understand the desire to restore to "as new" condition (or as close to it as possible) - its just not *my* style...

but then, ive kinda got a soft spot for anything with a "used" or "aged" look... crisp newness never did it for me... i like my furniture dinged, my dishware chipped, and clothes broken in... :)

-joel

--
joel metz : magpie@messengers.org : http://www.blackbirdsf.org/
bike messengers worldwide : ifbma : http://www.messengers.org/
po box 191443 san francisco ca 94119-1443 usa
==
i know what innocence looks like - and it wasn't there,
after she got that bicycle...