Value of Vintage Mx bikes----Part 2

In my shopping experience, there are 4 price levels for vintage mx and enduro bikes. Level 1 is the left for dead/possible diamond in the rough specimen. I don't know about you all, but in my area of the northeast there isn't much left that fits this description. I think of this as sub $1000. The next level is the one almost everything fits into, from rolling pile of shite to well cared for runners you can ride and race. I'd say 90% of the market is here, and it's $1500-3000, a mere $1500 wide, which is a shame. Above that you have well done restorations, original, low milage stuff, Maicos, Husky's, CZ's, open class bikes, Elsinores, etc. That seems like $3500-5000. Above that, you get into examples that have documented history like the Pro Circuit Husky mentioned earlier in this thread, ex-works bikes. I think this starts in the 7's and goes to infinity, but 90% of these stay close to 7. I see lots of bikes parked on ebay with buy it now's higher than my numbers, but they don't seem to move.

Coming from the road racing world and old British bikes, vintage mx bikes are a fantastic deal. However, none of them allow you to get back what you put into them. I had to get over that long ago. My goal isn't to lose money on the purchase price (also don't care if I make anything). All the costs in between are what keeps the hobby going, the cost of doing what I love, the thing that keeps me in shape, or if I'm in a bad mood, the extent of my foolishness.

I had a good buddy in my car racing days who used to justify his race car spending to his wife by saying " I'm not really buying the whole car, just the depreciation". If you look at it that way the VMX thing doesn't seem nearly as fiscally irresponsible. For example- At Barber Vintage days this year I picked up a sad looking but (under the years of crud) surprisingly original and low hour '77 Husky CR390 for $700. I'm just winding up the resto and when done I'll have about $4200 all in including the bike purchase. I had a couple of big ticket items; a $900 pr of Race Tech G-3 shocks and another $600 for a Mossbarger reed set up and a new Mikuni. Huskys seem to hold value pretty well and I can probably race this bike for a few years and get $3000-$3500 out of it. So after three years I'm out a grand. That's a hell of a lot of fun for a few hundred dollars a year depreciation. Not only the fun of racing but also restoring and working on the bike, learning about it (its my first Husky), and getting to know other Husky enthusiasts. You are not going to play golf regularly for a few hundred bucks a year. Hell my gym membership costs me more.


This is probably the only way you can look at any type of motorsport hobby and have it make financial sense.