The sunny side of the classic world, with the VJMC’S Steve Cooper

There’s little doubt that the classic bike world is getting more expensive. Both old bikes and the parts needed to keep them running are beginning to become thinner on the ground. That’s not to say there’s going to be definitive dearth in the immediate future but don’t expect anything to get cheaper. It’s simply a case of supply and demand etc. Everyone has a different perspective of how cost versus value relates to both their world and that of the bigger classic scene but sometimes you cannot help but ask if people are on the same planet as the rest of us. One of my associates owns a late 1980s Honda that recently failed its MOT due to notchy head race bearings; it’s a well-used bike so nothing too unusual there. However, said owner casually asked how much it might be to replace the bearings as he was pressed for time. To say he was rocked back on his heels by the quote would be an understatement – how can anyone justify £800 to change 38 ball bearings and four races? Was this a cynical attempt to actually turn away business because the firm really didn’t want an old bike cluttering up their nice shiny workshop? Yes many modern dealerships don’t want the hassle of working on old bikes with their quirky, old fashioned and antiquated carburettors but this was a simple, straightforward job that they’d do any day of the week on a two-year-old scooter and not think twice. Just where does a figure close on a grand come from? Your guess is as good as mine. And there are chancers out there in pretty much every aspect of the classic world looking not only to make a quick buck but also to fleece the desperate, the naïve and the gullible. Looking for some reference material recently I found numerous sellers offering one particular book, second hand, for £170. And there were more than a dozen copies up for sale! I thought perhaps I might be hallucinating when I ill-advisedly clicked on a link that took me to a restoration guide book for the same series of bikes. So that’ll be £485 for any of the used copies or £688 for a brand new copy. Really? Are they mad? Who pays that kind of money for a book? When Honda was still offering brand-new, chromed, mudguards for their older machines at £70 in the early 1980s many baulked at cost. Now a re-chromed one will happily sell for £250 and there’s likely to be a feeding frenzy if it’s up for sale on ebay. £70 in 80s money is actually £250 in today’s world… isn’t it strange how some things are bargains while others are total rip offs?