"new" barn finds...

[20scout]

I'm with rwm on this one and have seen this stuff go on for years. One auction I was at had the auctioneer claiming that someone behind me was also bidding on the lot. When I turned around to see who it was, I discovered that there was no one there! We had words later about that.........



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[rwm]

most of my dealings have been in antique furniture and bronzes.i do find it odd that they can offer a $100,000 bike with a bill of sale only.i know a bill of sale is good,but for that kind of doe ray me,they should make the seller get a tittle.you can see in the description of the bike they have recreation printed.i 'd like to hear from somebody who had a bike there.it would be nice to let them have 2 weeks to calm down from the auction then tells us how it went.
you could accumulate quite an exspense by taking a bike there .if it don't sell i'm sure they want something.if you place a reseve on your bike and they don't reach it.they want a fee.anybody out there have a bike at this auction? tells us how it went.tells how they charged .

[flat-happy]

i put one piece in an auction one time and luckily i knew how crooked they were. when they tried to short hammer me i bid on my own non reserve item and luckily won it. that experience cost me $300+ but it was a lesson well learned. i'll never auction anything again. they didn't even try to find bidders in the crowd. later i found out that the guy who came up to me after the auction trying to buy the bike was the brother in law of the auctioneer. i told him that because he was such a crook he didn't have money enough to buy it. man don't they hate it when you tell them that!!!!

[c.o.]

Check this out......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-onN9RBD4k

[Greg H]

Amazing, now that is scary!

[c.o.]

Here's a clip of some of the bikes that were to be auctioned........

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYTQqElxElU

[Dave R]

Some interesting comments by Paul d'Orleans on his blog, concerning the Lake and Jefferson "board track racers" at the Mid America auction:


http://thevintagent.blogspot.com/201...odium-pt3.html


Two other 'star' machines, which had much press and TV coverage (see below), were the Jefferson and Lake (above) Board Track Racers, built by Jeff Haberman (see the story on the Jefferson here). They formed the backbone of our Classic Motorcycle Roadshow display, and we had shot footage of Jeff discussing his family history of the bikes, etc. It all seemed an attractive package, but I had taken a phone call from a very well-connected motorcycle impresario the previous day, who explained the 'word on the street' was the bikes were 'fakes'. Ouch. When they came up for auction, there were no bidders at all, just a lot of histrionics from the team on the floor, and phantom action (perfectly legal, up to the reserve price) from the auctioneer.

Which brings up some interesting questions about Replica machinery... all of which did poorly this year. Haberman's machines were indeed replicas, built around as many original parts as he could find, from blueprints he had diligently uncovered in his search for his own family connection to these machines. In the case of the Lake, only an engine was found, but the Jefferson had original frame and other parts. The catalog description didn't include these facts, which may have left MidAmerica and/or Haberman vulnerable to the accusation of 'fakery'. It is typical of an auction catalog to include the best description possible, and it is sensible to leave out untidy details; any rational buyer expects this, caveat emptor. Perhaps it is time, though, for replicas to be clearly advertised as such in all cases; people regularly buy replica machines at auction for good prices, there is a clear market for them, so why not simply advertise the fact? As my friend Josiah quotes, 'I'm just sayin'

[c.o.]

I personally admire Jeff's machines for what they are. The historical accuracy is debatable but the effort he put into them should be appreciated. I guess one couldn't say that the auction house was less than honest on their descriptions but they can be faulted for lacking details. I believe there is a market for replicas or "fakes". I also believe they should be advertised as such. There are likely more people on the planet that desire a Jefferson, Harley eight-valve, Cyclone or OHC Excelsior than there are bikes available. The case of the X is there aren't any to be had. If you want one your going to have to settle for a "fake". The part that really bothered me was the thought that these bikes could be displayed in an office or den as an art object. I'd love to see that Lake on the track in Davenport just to see what it could do!

[Tommo]

This Rudge has sat in a shed for the last 54 years following Dads purchase of it in March 1956.
Never run or ridden in Dads time but now after 3 weeks of tender loving care it's a rider again.
I'm off to the 100 years of Rudge celebrations with it next week.
I'm not sure if it's a Barn Find but it is a runner again after all these years and it's all genuine and not an artifically aged thing.

[LouieMCman]

Very nice Tommo. It's nice to see an original bike after looking at all the fake board trackers out there.

[Tommo]

Louie,
I thought you might like to know that I did the 100 years of Rudge celebrations and the old girl never missed a beat.
I did some demo laps at the Pukekohe Classic race meeting and saw close on 55 mph down the back straight.
In the attached photo I'm at about 30 mph.

[c.o.]

Now that's ridin' in style! We can't see it from the photo but I'm sure there's a grin there somewhere! Great shot Tommo!! I'm glad to see that old sickle cruisin' down the road as it should be!

[flat-happy]

Thank You Soooo Much For The Pic And Info---is There Any Chance You Might Bring It To Barbers In Birmingham Alabama Next Year?