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A revisionist view of 80s BMX ... What do you think?

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factory pilot:
So I was talking to Andy (DTTDB) at MK and the phrase .... "It's only a TA " came up in conversation and got me thinking how certain bikes, brands and parts have almost become devalued( in terms of nostalgia not monetary terms ) in recent years...
What I mean is as a kid I would have died to have seen ( let alone own ) TA's, Streetbeats, Pro Performers, Quads, Rippers, Pro Burners etc, etc

In today's world of OSBMX they don't seem to carry the love they once held for many of us....
At the other end of the spectrum things that are now rare are valued higher ( both in esteem and monetary value ) ... I'm talking your VDCs, GJSs, GHP Trix etc

As a kid my Haro plate made me feel a million dollars ...

Can those Radsters who've been back in the scene the longest share their thoughts and a possible time line of how things were found and how the perception of various bikes has changed over time ?

What about you newbies too.. What excites you .. What floats your boat .. What is your Grail?

oldschoolace:
For me it's overexposure. Think I may have even mentioned it at MK.
EVERYONE does their TA white or chrome with the usual red, white and blue colour scheme so they end up a little boring
( There I said it  :LolLolLolLol:  )

Haros are the same, the world is overrun with masters, fst's and sports and few stray from the expected colourways. I don't know if it's a lack of individuality, wanting to fit in, wanting it to look like the magazine shots bitd or just a need to keep the resale value high? Probably a bit of all of them, but as a result we get bored and seek the exotic or unusual.

I hang my head in shame but I actually said to Rich on seeing the haro tent "ah it's just a load of stock haros"
I did have a look round in the end on the Sunday but I did find myself a little bored looking at over restored bikes. The odd survivor was a joy to behold

I guess what I'm trying to say is familiarity breed contempt

Gnarlyscoots:
After ruining my Grifter on many occasions, the sight of 'real' Bmx's hitting the streets back in 1979 was what got me excited. Mongoose, Diamond Back's and Puch's were the bikes everybody was going for, but I decided on a Raleigh Super Burner. Bad choice I know  ;D

But it was the magazines that showed me what was coming out of the US, and we were so behind here in the UK, in reference to the local bike shops. The lad over the road was a spoilt urchin, and his parents bought him a Torker. Well, I was hooked. The twin top tubes, the chrome, the superb decals. I wanted one, and worked damned hard to get one. I also remember back then that the parts we fitted, or wanted to fit, were the top end items, and were so cheap compared to todays asking prices.

I think Clint said about all there needs to be said though. EVERYBODY builds their bikes the same, and they all work off getting the bike to match the decals.

TA's.......Red, Blue and white or chrome. All the same parts, all the same colour's. And that is boring, thus "Oh look, it's just another TA".

Haro's.......I never even heard of them back then, living in a small town, and now there are thousand's of them in the scene. All looking exactly the same, all the same colour's, catalogue specific.

Very few people dare to step outside of the "norm" and build a bike like we did as kids, and I think a lot of that is solely down to re-sale value. Too many people look at their bikes as an investment, or try to recoup every penny spent on building it. Sad, but true.

I have 2 Direct Links, 1 Profile Prostyler, 1 Astron Pro, 2 Puch Trak Pro's, amongst others. All are relatively unknown, but I have them because they are 'different' from the norm, and different to what most others have, which is what I was like back then, and still am today. I have been guilty of buying and fitting 'exotic' parts to accentuate my bikes, but I have slowly been replacing those parts with items that are more becoming of what I would have been able to buy or afford back then  :daumenhoch:

MartyC:
Many of the "rare" bikes we see a lot of today were not favoured back in the day which may explain why they pop up a lot today; they just didn't sell in large numbers but lots of stock may have been purchased.  I think I was lucky to see a lot of good bikes as I rode with a lot of sponsored riders plus I was sponsored by and worked at Heffs Bike Shop so got to see lots of exotica and a lot of tat (although we weren't a Raleigh dealer, we left that to Mal Rees! LOL).  I remember the following as desirable:

CW Phaze 1
Patterson
SE Quadangle
Redline PL/Carerra
Torker
Hutch
Haro Freesytler
PK Ripper (although a lot of the ones we sold broke)
Bandito
Skyway TA
DB Harry Leary
Champion
Kuwahara Laserlite
Vector
March
PR Racing

Like quite a few others, I don't remember VDC much, I remember GJS and a few other makes that weren't available in the UK through mainstream distributers like Astron, Powerlite, Panda and Ross.

Today the scene goes in circles and collectors want to get what they thought was rare and desirable bitd and build it to a top spec when in reality only a few people had Flight cranks or Profiles, most had Suntour/Sugino 3 piece cranks or 1 piece.  I remember when Tony Brennan got a fully loaded Redline with pinchless Flights, they were amazing cranks although I think he used to hate me having a go on it for fear I might break them!  There are a lot of high end builds with the best of everything on them that were actually rare bitd but it's whatever floats your boat!

monkian:
I don't know how anyone could get bored with looking at a TA. I think maybe over time you might develop a sense of what looks right or wrong on a build but beyond the date of parts used that's always pretty subjective. There's probably more build options on a TA with the white or Chrome frames, team bikes etc than say a Laserlite but I never get bored of looking at one of those either. I guess maybe we might have stronger personal connections with bikes or brands or get inspired by a build and look to do something similar and things outside of that interest might have to work a bit harder to get your attention. I'm not sure there's general feelings or moods about these sort of things on any sort of universal level but I can see how trends might influence what's going on for a while. Maybe after years in the game and the more you learn about BMX history, the fringe brands will start to appeal and that only helps liven up the scene. For me it always comes down to a personal thing but that's not always fixed so maybe what's good on a goose won't always be good for your gander ;)

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