Ted,
>I am one of the guys who prefers VBQ to BQ.
The title matters to those who don't read the magazine, whereas
readers care about the contents.
>The main reason I hesitated to subscribe to VBQ was
>the price. I think I bought a few issues at $7.50
>each.
That was years ago... when the magazine was 24 pages. Now it's 48 for
$ 8.50, which is a lot cheaper - thanks to more subscribers that have
reduced the per-unit cost.
>Does it really cost that much to print and
>distribute VBQ? If it does, I apologize. I bought
>the one where I believe you interviewed the Herse
>(Rene) family. I also have the one where you did the
>report on the Singer shop. Both articles were very
>informative.
That is the same question frame builders get: "Well, a set of tubes is $ 100, lugs are another $ 100 maybe, brazing compound another $ 5-20, refills for the welding equipment another $ 5 per frame, paint $ 25, so how come your frames sell for more than the $ 250 it costs to make them?" (The numbers are made-up, but probably not that far-off.)
Since $ 30 a year (or less than 10 cents a day) is a lot for you, I am willing to trade magazine subscriptions for work. If you stuff 500 envelopes and stick address labels on them, I'll give you a one-year subscription. If you proofread 48 pages (about 35,000 words), I'll trade you two years' worth of Bicycle Quarterly, but deduct an issue for every two typos you overlook. And if you find a 1940s Cinelli in original, presentable condition with the correct parts and do a photo shoot for us, I'll trade you three years.
There are a lot of resources on bicycle history out there, many free on the web. Their quality varies from made-up fairy-tales to excellent. But anybody who wants to provide accurate information, insightful articles, well-written ride stories and thorough technical evaluations will have to spend a lot of time and resources to do so. To put out Bicycle Quarterly in a timely fashion has become a full-time job and more. It pays poorly, but it is what I love to do. -- Jan Heine Editor Vintage Bicycle Press c/o Il Vecchio Bicycles 140 Lakeside Ave #C Seattle WA 98122 http://www.vintagebicyclepress.com