OzVMX Forum
Clubroom => General Discussion => Topic started by: Slakewell on May 14, 2015, 11:26:03 am
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Are you a Collector or a Hoarder?
We all know someone who has X amount of some certain make or model.
I would never tell anyone what to do with there bikes.
As I approach the other side of 50 I started to do the maths and I'm also slowing down with the time it takes to rebuild as I get older. Cold lonely nights in the shed are something of a distant memory and other priorities like overseas adventure riding use up time I once spent in the shed. It now takes me over 12 months to get a full restore done even when I'm cashed upped.So it's more like 2 years now and I'm slowing fast. I'm finishing off one rebuild and have most the stuff for another so there is the next 3 years. I will stop buying projects as I have done the math. Maths is a bit like death and taxes you cant beat it so unless I win lotto and hire someone to build them for me I will never finish. So if you do your maths how do you stand up?
Are you a Collector or a Hoarder?
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I am a reformed hoarder Mick. As I get less interested in VMX I become less inclined to build the projects I have hoarded away. I'll stick to my dirt track tackle and slowly sell off most of my VMX projects. I never thought it'd happen but I'm over VMX thanks to the politics and rubbish that goes on. I'm going to Classic Dirt in the hope that I can restore my VMX mojo but sadly, I think the bird has flown.
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That is why i go to work, just as normal, and pay a professioal to build the bike. In the end you get a far superior product with absolutely none of the grief. For me it is far cheaper as well. Just maintaining them is plenty for me to do
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No doubt it's probably cheaper Ted, but restoring for me is 1/2 the fun of these things... can't take it with ya !!
An example is that I am running a spreadsheet on the total costs to restore my 1983 KX500 - and it's scary.... almost at 7G..... and I am not paying anyone else labour costs!!
It's funny that you bring this question up Slakewell - I have recently accepted the fact that I am a hoarder of Green things ...
Now... anyone got a KX for sale? :o
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So in your opinion Dave, do you think the KX5 i bought, with the unobtainable Worrell pipe, good buying at 9K. I have had not one issue with it
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I think I'm a hoarder of many things, but I agree Hardo, the building of bikes is 50% or better for me. Might be because I am not great as a rider.
Wish I had more free time to do it. The added side of getting someone else to do it is a trust issue, as I have seen some travesties from "Proffessional Mechanics"
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Building bikes is my hobby, the pride in the finished product is my joy. Even though I am selling up many of my unfinished and even some complete bikes, I'll still always have a bike in the build process. It's the same as before, just the type of bike has changed from VMX to flat trackers and roadies. At 65 I'm too old to keep a shitload of projects for a few years time. That time is now.
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I am a collector albeit a small one. decide on what bikes I wanted for what eras - YZB for pre 75, RMB for pre 78 and a 1980 CR250 to do up as a garage queen and that is it. I don't have a lot of trust in my major mechanical skills but happy to maintain where I can based on that lack of skills - if not work what I can do with replacement parts of pay for it. Have less time than I used to so want to enjoy them more than having them just in the shed.
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So in your opinion Dave, do you think the KX5 i bought, with the unobtainable Worrell pipe, good buying at 9K. I have had not one issue with it
Doesnt really matter what anyone else's opinion is mate. Youre happy with it so all good. (I don't wanna steer this thread to another cost/price convo!! :o )
Your A1 KX5 is great.
I am just amazed the actual cost when you add up all the NOS goodies.
Maybe I should delete the spreadsheet ... I'm not even finished yet... but close! Geoff... where's my pipe! .... ;)
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Building bikes is also one of my hobbies and I enjoy doing my own builds and I really like riding stuff I have done myself.
Most of my engines are a collaborative effort with my mate Pete , but still the works all done in our sheds.
If the existing parts are quite worn its also great fun tracking a new or used parts
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I do like chasing parts for mine - good fun there.
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(their bikes not there ;)) I am with Firko and Wasp, 90% of the projects gone along with a waning interest. Still willing to help out if I can but it keeps growing harder now to do so. Tim754
Yeah chasing and locating parts used to be a pleasure too. Sadly that fun finally hit rock bottom for me last year when I asked on here if anyone had a set of reasonable/rough Early CR125m or TL125 alloy wheels. Got one reply from a bloke ,he wanted $450 for bare wheels ,as in no backing plates ,axles ,spacers ect, OK ..... I gave him ealier the rolling frame they were coming from for nothing so he could finish his special keeper for ever build..... >:(
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I don't think I am either. If I can't ride it, I don't want it in my garage. There is never enough room as it is. When I am on top of my work, the wife and kids are satisfied, I am not exhausted, then I do enjoy working on them, but not if it is to a deadline. If there is an impending race meeting, I am not ready, and I have to burn the midnight oil to get the bikes ready, that's not fun. This time around I have enjoyed understanding how the systems work, especially the suspension. In my youth, I tended to ride them as I bought them, and didn't spend a lot of time tuning them.
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There is a different way of looking at a shed full of unfinished bikes.
Check out the old farts on the retirement village adverts on tele and be glad that you have 2 lifetimes of projects in front of you.
If the highlight of your week is Thursdays lunch special at the RSL then you may as well be dead I rekon.
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i once brought a shed with a house on it ,bikes are all that matters
now i to understand that i can,t get all of them back to glory
so i sold off 32 and gave away 40 or 50 ,a slap to the back of the head
said someone could be riding these bikes rather than rusting away
i only kept 9 the one,s that ment the most in my life, the real one,s
when friendship was everything and still is
bumper
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Bumper your life story mirrors mine ;) Cheers mate Tim754
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I think i have wasted a hell of a lot of time.
It all started with 1 rider. Then I found that bike was so much fun i bought another. A guy cant let a good bargain go by so I bought a few more. All those bikes would surely need a few spares so maybe add a few more just to be on the safe side.
Seems that scenario may have happened a few times. 23 TS185s later i figured i cant ride them all and passed most of them along to people who could use them and maybe discover just what i seen in those old heaps of crap.. Still got a few but I could have saved a lot of time if i stopped a lot sooner. I did try and curb my interest with a few different brands but once bitten twice infected.
perhaps when Ive got nothing left to do apart from watch the grass grow i may start collecting/hoarding once again.
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25 ts 185's?!! :oyou need to see "Suzuki's anonymous" :-[
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I'm a little confused to what you would class me as. A lot of you blokes wouldn't get out of bed for my wages. Most of my bikes are from the tip or crap left down the side of houses. I do the best to get them running & enjoy the shed time. If I die before there done my son can do what he wants with what's left. It's not about getting things finished it's about doing shit while your above the ground.jimson
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I tend to only hoard things I think I will use one day, unfortunately lots of things fall into that category.
My project list crept up to 15 a while back and when doing the maths for the dollars & time needed to have them all running I calculated that I don’t have enough years left in me.
Not all that interested in garage queens, I just want them neat & reliable but that in self can be 2 3 grand a bike.
Sold off my KX 500 project earlier in the year and will sell off some more later on, just want to focus on getting certain models ready for certain events and then focus on getting to more events.
I do enjoy working on my own bikes but only when I don’t have other pressures biting at my heels.
I am just amazed the actual cost when you add up all the NOS goodies.
Maybe I should delete the spreadsheet ... I'm not even finished yet... but close! Geoff... where's my pipe! .... ;)
Nearly done ;)
(http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a393/gmcloa/Pipes/KX%20500%20bits%203_zpssphkmjjl.jpg) (http://s15.photobucket.com/user/gmcloa/media/Pipes/KX%20500%20bits%203_zpssphkmjjl.jpg.html)
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;D ;D ;D
So cool.... cant wait to see it fitted !! ;)
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There is a different way of looking at a shed full of unfinished bikes.
Check out the old farts on the retirement village adverts on tele and be glad that you have 2 lifetimes of projects in front of you.
If the highlight of your week is Thursdays lunch special at the RSL then you may as well be dead I rekon.
I've been involved in the VMX scene for 29 years, pretty much longer than anybody else. In that time I've restored or built from parts over 40 bikes. I've also been retired from work for nearly 10 years and retired from racing for 15 years so I've have finally realised that there is far more to life than motorcycles, old or new. For twenty years the bloody things dominated my life, I still loved to manhandle a sidchrome on a bike project but the heart pumping passion has faded. There comes a time when Thursday lunch at the pub with my mates, walking my little dog in the park or a cruise in my classic Ford Ranchero bring me me contentment and happiness. I genuinely love seeing you guys being so dedicated to your bike hobby and really hope you all keep at it for a long time yet but eventually a time will come when it doesn't seem as important as it once was, that's when it's time to move on to other stuff. I still love old dirt bikes and will still build them but it won't have the priority it once had. There is too much travel to experience and new things to try before I die.
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I like to build budget bikes, with the challenge being the primary motivator. Obviously this pretty much precludes nut and bolt restorations, with frankenbikes being the end result. I am getting close to retirement and, as mentioned by Mike, don't want to have to look forward to the lunch specials at the local.
I have a lot of bikes, but not many of them are of any real significance to anyone other than myself. It's hard to resist a junker that has a good set of alloy rims or clean forks, just begging to be used on a special.
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It's not about getting things finished it's about doing shit while your above the ground.jimson
Ill second that Garry ;D
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So many blokes I can relate to here. Good stuff.
I don't know if I'm a hoarder or collector. I don't think I'm a collector as a lot of the bikes I have restored or rebuilt have long been sold. IT's, PE's and CR's were my obsession. It was getting out of control for a while there with 32 bikes in various states of quality and I was spending every spare few hours in the shed building bikes. The house was getting neglected.....(so was my relationship) and even the dogs were growling at me when I came inside and I was even dreaming about the next project and how I would do it. And when it came to actually getting to a race meeting, something would always go wrong with one of my race bike as they too were being short changed. Sure, oils were changed, filters cleaned etc but little thing like loose bolts, frayed cables and loose spokes/sprockets meant I was even working on bikes when I was supposed to be riding them!
Now that I've wound the restorations back a lot, my race bikes don't miss a beat, the mrs actually talks to me, the dogs let me pat them and the house is well maintained.
Don't get me wrong, there are still bikes being built and others waiting patiently, but without the pressure I was putting on myself to get them all done. The bikes I have left are all bikes I wanted/owned in an earlier life. There are only 2 shed queens. Well, the XR75 and B44 special are in the house but my CR/RC replica that cost a small fortune to build has now got my race numbers on it. I think I will take it out to play this year.
I don't think I can be labelled a collector. Maybe a hoarder.......
I don't know where or what I'd do If I didn't have something to work on, but now I share the love around. And I enjoy building bikes. It's very gratifying to get praise for the machines I have built.
In between doing bits and pieces on my latest 2 wheeled project, even my car projects have had some time and money spent on them instead of sitting quietly collecting spiders and dust. Hell, I might even join a car club to go and do some cruising with the Mrs when I'm not riding.
Now I take my time. I don't have to do everything at once. And when I am retired full time, I will still have something to twirl the spanners on.......
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I understand what firko is saying...we go through phases in life and no one knows what lights the fire but when it burns its hot. (25 ts 185's....incandescent!) but doesn't take much to alter the perspective and ive hit it now. working hard on a project after two years of idle time I have a box of parts for the husky sitting on my desk and it will be there in a weeks time or more if I can just get enthused to start work.
the Hopetoun Vinduro is coming up and that's bound to get enthusiasm levels up!
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I'm hoping CD11 sparks my drive.
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I had a lot of fun taking complete shitheaps and turning them into reasonable race bikes.
I had fun chasing/owning stuff that I'd always wanted to own.
I enjoy building bikes.
I can't imagine a time where I don't have an active project - I reckon my head would explode about 3-nano-seconds later.
So yeah, there was a time when I had 45-50 bikes at once.
But a few things have changed my thinking, and now I reckon 15 is the right number for me. I've also happily sold a few that I had said I'd never sell - and not regretted any of them.
1. There's a limit to the number of bikes you can ride in a year. Most of them will be lucky to be dragged out twice/year.
2. If you have a mortgage, you are effectively paying interest on every asset. A bike that sits there unused is effectively costing you money.
3. I needed the head-space. My brain was far too crowded with inventories of old bike bits.
4. The KDX I built up for the Four Day has ruined me a bit. I'm not overly impressed by shiny things, but it is great walking up to a vintage bike and knowing it is right - not wondering how many more hours you'll get out of that unknown big end, whether the shock would work better with new oil, or any of that - a 26 year old bike that's as tight, reliable and "nice" as a brand new bike.
This has meant that I'm not happy with my old style $1500 rebuilds anymore - and therefore I can afford to do a lot less of them!
5. I literally got sick of moving bikes and bits around.
So yeah, less is more.
The hope and optimism of dragging home a new toy is great, but it comes at a cost beyond the dollar value.
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Some random philosophy:
Bikes are a tool for turning money into fun. They do a great job of it, too.
The challenge is finding the balance between how much money vs how much fun vs what sort of fun.
For most people reading this, the fun isn't just about riding, it's also about shed time, making friends, learning skills, the thrill of the hunt, and a stack of other things.
There's no wrong answer to this, but I think it's easy to forget about the big picture when it's late a night, and a bike you lusted over 30 years ago pops up on eBay - if you already own 28 KV75s, is another one really going to make you life better? Or is it just more shit to clutter your shed and (more importantly) your brain?
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"an idle mind is the devils playground"
If it keeps you busy, happy & healthy, then its got to be good for you ;)
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Caught the "yellow" (Suzuki) disease a few years ago . Really enjoy building the bikes. It's an achievement to turn them in to running bikes again. Probably get more out of rebuilding them than riding them ( gotta change that). Had a real proud moment recent when the future son in law rode my rm 250b. I didn't know that I could produce something that went so quick. Gotta get him on the 370 I'm building...... Anyone got a spare connecting rod?
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I fall into a whole other category - lets call it selective acquisition.
I don't have a whole heap of bikes and probably never will. I do have a variety of select toys & projects though.
I have my ZX10R road bike that I got new & will never part with. I work on it myself, and take great pride in my immaculate 40,000km bike. At some point I will acquire an identical model to build as a track bike.
I've always wanted a late 80s CR250 and for a few years have wanted to do a reno, two birds one stone. I pick up an 87 CR250 tomorrow, will restore it and I will keep it for ever and don't see the need for any more bikes.
I have my guitars, each with a specific purpose; The thrasher, the soloist and the project which I have customized to the Nth degree to explore the nuance of tonal variety . I have a Marshall amp and customized pedal box. I don't need any more.
I have my compound bow & accessories - just one and that will suffice.
As my forum name suggests I have a decent SLR camera and lenses. My old profession is still a hobby, but I don't see the need for a house full of gear, just what I need/use.
With a variety of interests I am kept occupied and everything has it's use. No wastage, no need to compromise cost due to other projects or worry of over investing and nothing gathers dust - I have what I like/need/use and I enjoy my life immensely. You could say I'm not entirely immersed in a particular scene, but variety is the spice of life and hopefully I'll never get bored or lose interest in any of them.
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I guess i am a bit bonkers. Either that or incredibly smart. You can choose I just like those little bikes as they epitomise the early 70s for me. Cheap and reliable and the best performing Jap trailbike in its class. a few tweaks and they go even better and will always get you home. i just wish other guys wouldnt like them as much so i could find decent condition parts a bit cheaper but seems no one looked after old trail bikes so most need a lot of work. keeps me out of the pub and away from wicked women..
These days most of my spare time is spent scraping the pegs on my old 500 moto guzzi and klr650 but the 185s are still my favourites, i just wish I had more money and time to play with the suzukis. a new pair of knees would help a bit too.
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"I just wish I had more money and time to play" very well said Pokey! In my opinion that's nearly the complete picture for the majority of us.
Forgive me as I slightly amend your fine statement to "I just wish I had more money ,time and health to play." Cheers Tim754
Confession time, I still tinker now and then with the small handful of bikes I have kept and enjoy it. Other hobbies I amuse my self with are ,keeping my old Holden one tonner in reasonable going order (no bloody computer controlled electronic ,multi valve ,fuel infected ,plastic covered snot there..) and my 45mm gauge (aka G or Number 1 gauge) garden railway I am building in the back yard............. ;)
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Blokes are powered by optimism: that pretty girl who was never going to say Yes; that race you were never going to win; that jump you were never going to clear; that project you were never going to finish; that project you were never going to begin...
It sounds cynical, but you can see it everywhere if you look - and most of us can't ever see it in ourselves... That optimism is often a positive, and often a negative, depending on how well the optimism matches reality.
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Some may say I have too many bikes and I will have never have enough time in this life / or have the money to bring them back to life. But I look at it this way I'm over 3/4 the way thru my hoard of bikes being rebuilt, and as long as the passion is still there and the body is willing It's all good .
Next year should see a some nice projects coming from 'Oldfarts Museum " ;)
Stay posted
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I had been hoarding a Nissan Navara for a while I bought it in 1990 and was my pride & joy for a while but it had just been an ornament for the last 10 years after one of the kids borrowed it and ran it out of oil.
Could write a book on the adventures of the Mighty Nav.
Was always going to fix it and it just recently qualified for classic Reg. which would have been great for the occasional weekend use.
I had started to unbolt the motor but just never got any further, always other projects to do, like bikes.
Was offered a cheap motor Xmas before last but then the reality of the hours involved putting it back on the road overwhelmed me.
Just sold it last Jan after 25 years
(http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a393/gmcloa/My%20bikes/Nissan%20goodbye-1_zpscajbgp1f.jpg) (http://s15.photobucket.com/user/gmcloa/media/My%20bikes/Nissan%20goodbye-1_zpscajbgp1f.jpg.html)
The money I got for it is still going towards counseling
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G'day
Lucky for me I'm married to the cure ;D
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I can see all your answers and understand . I too have been involved in vintage dirt (started with twin shock trials late 90s) for a while now . Im a bit over racing (wobbling in my case ) but the hunt for that part worldwide is fun for me the chase I suppose . At present count the list is around thirty (bugger don't even know the real figure) of which 13 are runners none are show queens but I think they are good looking bikes well sorted for me . Im a hoarder and proud of it . All my bikes have been wrecks at the start ok Ive spent way too much money on them (once I kept receipts for a YZ250d scared the crap out of me never do that again ) Im a loner so Im happy in my sheds playing . don't drink much , don't gamble , no Kids , so why not . Firko when is the sale I would like first option on a Cpl of yours . Iain
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Guys, I think I'm ok - I'm a collector of hoardings! :)
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Hey Pokey, don't stress, lucky its only Suzuki 185's.. the real badly hooked guy I know had 50 husqvarnas! :P
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When I first started talking about retiring I new that I had to find something that I could continue doing for years and not get sick of. I am lucky because I have managed over the years to build myself a good workshop, many blokes don’t and so some join men’s shed groups to get some shed time that way. I have had mates that were going to travel around Australia after retiring only to find that with the price of fuel they can’t afford to do it and so they mow the lawn twice a week and sit around watching TV waiting to die, one has even taken up playing crocket he loves it , I would rather have a plaster on my arse.
My missus told the wife of a mate that she doubted we could survive spending all of that time together with me under her feet all day, now she rings me on my mobile to see if I want to come down to the house for a coffee or should she bring one up to the workshop. My obsession as she calls it started with the restoration of my old DOT and that has led to one after another and always on the lookout for more projects, knowing that I will never finish the bikes I already have.
So I suppose I am somewhere in the middle of being a collector, a hoarder and an enthusiast but all I know is I love it and can’t see me changing any time soon.
Zane
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50 huskies? :o Cheese and crackers grommet, Im just a novice. Ive had two and should have kept the 240 but....
I reckon i might know a guy like that who hasa thing for suzuki gems that are just too nice or rare or just odd to part with. I do have to say there is nothing like gazing across a sea of old bikes. They get me dreaming of what if and i smile.
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Lucky for us lot that bikes aren't free......or there would be all sorts of counseling required ::)
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50 Huskys, That has a lot of merit! Bloke typing this at one stage had 40+ Hodakas thats just sad.... ::)
And Fourstroke many were given to me for free as well, nobody wanted them ;) another reason I gave most of them away later on after the intense "counselling". ;D
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i think i may be in the hoarder part of this thread.. i have a weakness for the 1980 G series IT yamahas...there are the makings of 4 IT 125's in the shed somewhere ::)
so i made an effort today to pull my finger out and get some bikes back together...albeit a 175 and get back into the collectors column.. the 125's will have their turn oneday ;D
cheers
tony
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Your bikes are all good looking, solid bikes Tony. Still was tempted by that 175 from Cooka. And that other one I spoke with you about over the phone.
One overriding thing that I am seeing on this thread is something was was said to me many years ago, when my dad retired, and that was without purpose, humans have no need to be on the planet.
As soon as you lose that purpose, for whatever, RSL lunch, croquet game, tennis match, you don't have a longing or need to be here.
Thankfully, my dad is still here but he is becoming more of an obstinate bastard and wont even come for a mothers day dinner this year. His life revolves around the telly, and crosswords.
I reckon he is waiting for the plug to be pulled despite being in pretty good health for a man in his mid 80s. I reckon he needs a dirt bike.