Several list members have emailed me for an opinion on George Mounts bike. Previously, per his request to me, I emailed a response to Jim Cunningham regarding the bike, jerseys, and hairnet.
While I have an opinion as to the value of Georges items, another benchmark may be what I have paid for comparable items over the past couple of years.
Baseline: Earlier this year I purchased the bicycle that Freddy Maertens was riding when he won the Professional Mens World Championships in 1976. He continued to use the bike the following year and rode it during his victories at Paris-Nice and the Vuelta. At the Vuelta, he won the prologue plus 12 stages, a record that still stands. The bike itself, exclusive of the tires, was transferred to me in absolutely original condition. The only things I have replaced are the rubber, cable/housing, bearings, and one rusted dome nut on the brakes. I have kept all the replaced parts in a storage bag in the event that someone someday may wish to take the bike back to the absolute original state.
I purchased the bike directly from Freddy as part of a larger deal of his cycling memorabilia. Freddy and I agreed to a value of $4,000. Had that been the only item I purchased from Freddy, I would have probably been willing to pay a bit more, perhaps going to $5,000. I feel confident that I would have walked from the deal rather than to pay $6,000.
2nd Baseline: A couple of years ago I bought Rik Van Looys six-day bike (Van Looy was the 1960 and 1961 road world champion and winner of 12 six-day races.) The bike was completely original except for the front wheel. Near the same time I bought the stayer bike of Peter Post. While Van Looy was a solid six-day rider, his prominence really came on the road. Post, at number 4 on the all time six-day list, is an unquestioned king of the track. I view the bikes values to be about the same. Why? The Post bike, while completely intact with all the original parts, was repainted somewhere along the way. While its possible it was repainted while he was still racing, I am not yet convinced as such. Bottom line, I would rather have a bike with its original paint job.
Personally, when I look at acquiring a race used bicycle I want two things:
1. A bike ridden by a prominent rider in an important race.
2. Condition that is as close to original as possible, particularly components and paint.
I know that I may have a difference of opinion with other list member as to the nuances of the second point. Personally, I would rather take a bike that has its share of original bumps and bruises and revel in its worn torn beauty than one that was repainted and restored with NOS parts. As a general rule, I refuse to replace parts simply because they are worn out, particularly the primary components. My goofball feeling is that with every original part you take off the bike, you take a little of its soul. However, I would be inclined to replace parts with the correct ones had a next generation owner upgraded the bike.
As to paint, unless the second owner had painted over or in some other way absolutely destroyed the original finish, I would never consider repainting a historical bike. I think a historically significant race used bike should be held to a different standard than that of a Concours d'Elegance type bike. I feel it is one thing to strip down and rebuild a 1952 Bianchi that was ridden by Guido Sarduci. Its quite another to do the same if that bike had been used by Fausto Coppi. While I realize that in the arena of race used motorcycles and automobiles that stripping down and building it up again is acceptable, I choose to disagree with this approach with historical bicycles.
In terms of international cycling prominence, I would respectfully suggest the Maertens road bike is more important that Georges bike. However, in relative terms, an American might look at Georges bike the same way someone from Portugal would look at a bike ridden by Joaquim Agostinho or a Brit might view Beryl Burton. These riders meant and still mean a great deal to the history of their respective second tier cycling countries. Unfortunately, these riders have ultimately garnered little more than footnotes on the global cycling scene.
My perception of value on Georges bike would be influenced as to the degree of restoration. For his bike in totally unrestored but original condition I would place a value of $3,750. If this specific bike were repainted, I would drop it by $750. As the parts get replaced (whether or not NOS) I would drop the total value by $250 for each major component replaced: brakes, cranks, rear due, and each wheel. I feel replacing the seat would devalue the bike $150. With parts like stem, bars and seat post, I feel replacement devalues $50 for each item. (These values are relative. A bike used by Merckx or Coppi would have a relatively higher value but the impact of restoration would also be higher. A bike raced by the famous Chuck Schmidt would be priceless in any condition.) My guess is that George Mounts bike as pictured would command around $2,500 if sold here in the US to a passionate American. I doubt the bike would fetch even $1,200, completely original or restored, if it were auctioned in Europe.
Synopsis: Presently, with rare exception, there is very little real market activity in race used bicycles, jerseys or trophies. The market is very thin, Europeans simply dont see this stuff as worthy of premium pricing, and supply is almost zero. My wife and I spend 4-6 months a year in Europe hunting this stuff. It is really, really tough to find quality items that represent the top tier of the market. Very few racers kept much of anything from their careers. Also, it is fairly common, even to this day, to reuse trophies and pass down bikes. Sadly, most of this stuff is ridden into the ground and ultimately ends up at the dump.
Hope this helps.
All the best,
Brett Horton
San Francisco, CA