restore or original?

[swamp fox]

I found myself in such a spot earlier this year. I was fortunate enough to find this great bunch of guys who would help with all aspects of rebuilding my Bershire that had been in the garage for 30 years. I had torn down the engine back then, but needed some parts and just never got back to it. Don't ask me why, I don't know. After all these years, I thought it prudent to let Dr. Doug rebuild "Sachsy", just in case I forgot something about the disassembly. Well, she looked so good upon return, I felt like I had to strip down to bare frame and restore everything. Another reason for this, was the person I got the bike from had already slipped a 125 cylinder on it, making it not original. So I guess it wouldn't matter in my case.  To quote Sheryl Crow, "If it makes you happy..."

Robert Manucy
72 Berkshire

[Mark Annan]

As a follow-up to my previous post..

I to loved the nice condition "used" Pentons (as well as all the other vintage bikes) at the ISDT-RR.  I even had one there and added to it's used condition :-))  (#913 '70 Sixday)  I'm going to cut back on the use of that particular bike before I use it too much.  I have a nicely set up (fixed/restored) '73 to use as my competition bike.  I have another Steel Tanker (a '69) that I'm going to fix up/restore to ride in future ISDT-RR's and other trail rides.  As it sits now it is a perfect candidate for a rider bike.  It has been changed, worked on, modified, etc in the past.  It is not "original" or even nearly so.  It has most of the important parts but they all need attention.  When it is done it will be near it's original beauty and will be a lot of fun to ride.

Mark

[Mick Milakovic]

Hey guys, don't forget we had a great example from our own group of how much a perfect original will go for:  remember the Wassell trials bike that went for about $5000 on E-bay?  I remember it saying there was never even gas in the tank!

Mick Milakovic
Delphi, IN
765-268-2570

[Dennis Jones]

It's good to see all the opinions. I have a Wassell trials bike thats not brand new but is in like new condition. The only flaw is some paint flaking off around some welds and a few scratchs. I keep thinking how good it would look with shiny new paint but have so for resisted the temtation. This bike still has the rubber flaps between the knobs of the original tires. I think I will just leave it be.

Dennis Jones

[farmer58za]

I just bought a '76 400 (subject of another post). The bike is full of period bits and I want to preserve all of that. I will have to be strong to resist the temptation to restore beyond "good maintenance"

[t20sl]

I will put in my two cents worth on the restore/original debate.  I have seen many "restored" bikes and also original and even NOS original bikes with zero miles still in a crate.  Many restored bikes are far from what I consider restored.  Restored to me means any person should not be able to tell the difference from a new NOS bike.  Every item on the bike should be perfect in every way with no repro items.  This is very hard to do, especially with Pentons.  Most so called restored bikes are really refurbished not restored.  In the classic car field restored is an art unto itself.  So far I have seen a very low number of true restored bikes.  Restored means to me the inside is as perfect and new as the outside.  With this in mind I feel restored is worth more than original if the original has been ridden any at all. With this said, restored bikes are no fun, you can't ride them or the "value" is gone almost immediately just like the first time a new bike is ridden.