Once again I see the debate surfacing between the "Collectors view", the "Functional view" and the "Non Anointed view" of bicycles. Collectors, as you know, are a special bunch. We will seek out a hard to find part, pay through the nose for it and be happy to have it. We also hope no one else finds one so the relative value stays high. Is this an indicator of Quality, Craftsmanship or make the builder/manufacturer worthy of gobs of praise. I think not.
I am not above this phenomena but I do recognize it for what it is, a collectors mentality. If it were simply a matter of RH frames being so above and beyond all others, then why are the components so sought after and bring such high prices? Is MAXI CAR the best hub maker? is Mafac the best brake manufacturer? Did Simplex/Huret make the best derailleurs? By now you get my point. I have seen a lot of RH bikes dressed with Huret Alvit derailleurs and I am hard pressed to find a much worse derailleur past or present. Did this builder have a great eye for frame building but blurred vision when it came to derailleurs? No, I suspect it came down to economics and nothing more complicated than that. The Alvit is the tank of derailleurs, it is nearly bomb proof but so sloppy when shifting as to be a joke to be considered for use on a fine bike. Hell, they were standard equipment on Schwinn low end bikes including Sting Rays and Raleigh Choppers.
I know I am in the Heritic mode again on this forum but it needs to be said. Am I as guilty as the anyone, you bet. The only difference is my willingness to discuss it openly.
Lesson learned from a collector. I was seriously into both Balloon and Muscle Bikes in my past. I owned just about every collectible bike there was out there. As I began to change my taste and move more towards road bike collecting (thanks to Steve Willis) I began to sell off one collection to fund the other. My timing was fortunate. Just as I was selling off these bikes, Schwinn came out with the repop of the Sting Ray series including the Krates, Raleigh came out with the repop Chopper. Schwinn and Columbia came out with their repops of their flagship balloon bikes of the 50s.
Bikes that I owned that had a relative value in the $1000 range suddenly fell to half that price. It seems that when the repops hit, they dampened that market for people who wanted a nostalgic bike but did not care if it were original or not. This market went the way of the cheap repop and within a year the collectors value plummeted.
Ray Homiski
Elizabeth, NJ USA