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All good things come to those who....

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beard1973:
...wait.   :daumenhoch:

I cast my mind back to being a boy of 10... its 1983 and BMX is HUGE!! I am desperate for a BMX bike.. a Raleigh Burner.

Robert White has a Night Burner and Scott Gamble an Ultra, my best mate Craig Glew has a Super Tuff... My Mum and Dad stretch themselves and I get a Raleigh Extra Burner.   :coolsmiley:  that summer I could not have been happier.

I remember flicking through a Raleigh Brochure adoringly, admiring each and every model. I'll be honest, the only model that I probably never took alot of notice of, as I knew they were just a dream, was the Mk1 Pro Burner. I never saw one in the flesh BITD and it wasn't until I paid Julian Taff a visit 25 years later that I ever saw one for 'real'.

Its more than obvious why they are so highly sought after... they are rare, they were Raleigh's first attempt at a 'Pro' BMX and they are so distinctive with their 'R' Gusset.

When I started out on this 'Burner' journey 5 years ago I always told myself 'I gotta get one of those!'... they are the final piece in any Raleigh Burner collection. BUT they fetch such crazy prices and everytime one appears on eBay it either disappears or goes through the roof. Wrecked and rotten frames fetching £250+   :D  :D

I did buy a broken Frame (with no forks) that needed serious repair to the gusset but I knew that the £££'s involved in getting it simply repaired and rechromed would make it an impossible project with my limited finances. So I let it go...   :'( :'(

I have watched survivors in France appear and sell for £1k+ I had convinced myself that the possibility of finding one for a price that would not spark a divorce was nothing but a dream...

Like most of you guys I do my regular 'internet trawling'... eBay, FreeAds, Gumtree etc etc.. using those favourite keywords 'Raleigh' 'BMX' 'Old' etc etc... every now and then you stumble across something decent but 9 times outta 10 your either too late or the bidding is through the roof as one collector forces the other to pay over the odds for 25 year old kids bike.

Tuesday afternoon I am sat at work watching the clock waiting for 5pm.. I log onto eBay.com and throw in 'Raleigh BMX' which usually comes up with the odd Raleigh item in the US, maybe an overpriced battered rampar and some Raleigh USA BMX trading cards... but not today... their is an Oldschool Raleigh bmx frame chrome listed.

I open the link and my heart skips about 30 beats... I don't think I can breathe...

Its been listed for about 8 hours and it has NO BIDS!! and there is a BUY IT NOW price of $200 (£123.06 to be precise)!!

I cannot click the BIN button quick enough, in fact I am that excited I think I missed it three times before being prompted to confirm my purchase...   :shocked:  :shocked: :shocked:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250544463140&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT

I finally have a Mk1 Pro Burner Frame AND Forks...  :coolsmiley:

She arrived this morning and the chrome is suprisingly good... there is the usually areas of surface rust but nothing that a decent polish won't sort.











I think the Serial No. suggests JULY 1982... so for 27+ years old she is in pretty good shape.

To say I am chuffed is an understatement, I've waited and waited and finally bagged one at a good price. I know £120 quid is not a small amount of money, but for something as desirable as this I am very pleased.

She is now gonna be put back in the box until the new year when she will get the bestest of treatment I can give.

I finally have a PRO BURNER.  :coolsmiley: :coolsmiley:

moley:
Nice one Dave!!  :daumenhoch:

Are ya gonna race it at some time?  ???

bobafett:

Congrats mate - always nice when you grab something you've been hunting for a long time - especially at a good price  :daumenhoch:

Haro82:
Ha ha, nice one Dave, I can imagine the moment you saw it on ebay with the BIN. I bet you nearly p*issed ya pants   :LolLolLolLol:

James Nada:
Congratulations Dave! £120 sounds like a bargain to me.

It good to hear that if you're patient enough, that elusive frame/bike/car/record/book/tshirt does turn.

Bring it back to blighty! :Great_Britain:

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