SECRET STASHES & STRETCHING OUR DOLLARS
We’ve all heard stories of the old bikes forgotten in the barn, or bitter wife selling her husband’s bikes cheap in a divorce battle. But how many of us will ever actually stumble across opportunities like these in real life? Not many. At least that’s what I thought until I recently got a phone call about a secret stash of old bikes that might be for sale.
The call came from my pal Pete saying he knows of about 20 old motorcycles and literally tons of old bike parts that for years have been getting dusty and rusty in an old warehouse. He said there is a good chance they might all be sold off, and he wanted to know if I was interested in any of them. This kind of call always gets my attention. Old bikes in a long-forgotten warehouse? I took a moment to catch my breath and let my racing heart slow down. Then, trying not to sound as excited as I was, I asked about what the bikes were. Some people, hearing about quarter-million-dollar Crockers, think their old motorcycles are worth their weight in gold. Others have more realistic values in mind. Pete felt the prices might be reasonable but wasn’t sure.
Turns out the seller was an old packrat Pete had known since he was a kid. And he’s been buying up old bikes and parts for decades. Most of the machines were just rolled into his old warehouse and left exactly as he bought them. Pete said he thought he could have a look around in the warehouse in the next week or so and let me know what he found. When he e-mailed me photos of some of the bikes I studied them looking for clues of what was socked away there. I could see an old Harley JD, some flathead VLs, at least two old Indians, a real nice-looking Harley WLA, some old choppers, a couple of Shovelheads and more. I sat back and fantasized about what else was there and digging through this old stash finding rare and wonderful bikes.
As is typical in these deals, every week I was told I’d have to wait another week before I could look around. And each delay convinced me that this wasn’t going to happen for me. When I finally got the call from Pete to come down and have a look I cleared my calendar for the next day and arranged to ride down the next morning. I didn’t want anyone else to get in there before me.
Jim Sims and I rode our Harleys down to Pete’s place in New Jersey, about 90 minutes away. We hooked up with Pete to check out the stash. And it was everything I had hoped. Except someone had already gotten there before we did and bought four bikes, three of which I’d have liked to buy. Oh, well, you snooze you lose. I did manage to buy a cool- looking 1931 Harley flathead V for myself, and, knowing an old pal was in the market for a cheap flatside Shovelhead project bike, bought most of the parts for him to put one together out of two rolling machines. I suspect we will have one or both of these bikes done and sorted out to feature in these pages in a year or so. Details and photos to follow.
I enjoy classic American motorcycles and want to learn more about them. If you feel the same, check out our Classic American Iron online bulletin board at
www.caimag.com. It’s free to use and there are a lot of friendly people there willing to share their old-bike knowledge and experiences.
STRETCHING OUR DOLLARS
I’ve often heard and believe that most Harley riders would cut out expenses in most parts of our lives before we skimp on our motorcycles. Well, it’s time to test that theory. The economy is tough on us all. So, you might have noticed in the last year that we have been featuring fewer high-dollar customs and focusing more on affordable options. We feature at least one big-buck ride each issue to give you ideas, but most of the featured machines, products, and tech are more affordable.
Just because we have to stretch our dollars more these days doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy or upgrade our motorcycles, and we at
American Iron Magazine http://www.aimag.com want to help identify and share these techniques. Knowing there are a lot of smart and creative people reading this magazine, I invite you to share your best ideas and discoveries with us. You can do this by posting them in the Dollar Stretchers section of our free bulletin board at
www.aimag.com, or mail them to Dollar Stretchers,
American Iron Magazine, 1010 Summer St., Stamford, CT 06905.
Let’s see what clever ideas you have to share. If we print your suggestion or tip, you will win a free one-year subscription or extension to American Iron Magazine. So please include your name and address (with e-mail please) with your ideas and include photos, drawings, or illustrations with your suggestion. I look forward to seeing what you come up with.
Ride safe, ride smart, have fun.
Buzz Kanter
Publisher/Editor-In-Chief
Nov 2008 - Secret Stashes & Stretching Our Dollars 
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