Vintage Motorcycle Madness! | American Pickers | History

Straighten up.
Bring it.
See him?
Just one moment.

Hey, what’s up, man?
You
How you doing?
I’m Joe.
I’m Mike.
Joe, how you doing?
Frank, you could tell right away from meeting Joe. He’s definitely a character.

Talked to Danny on the phone.
Yes, I did.
Okay, cool.
Yeah.

You said you might be willing to sell a few things.
Let’s go over the that building.
This one here.

Come in, boys.
All right.
Oh, man.
Whoa.

I think me and Joe are going to get along. Great.
Is any of this stuff for sale?
Absolutely.

All right.
This is nice, man.
Is it original paint?
No.

This guy’s got a 1942 WLA.
It’s been restored a long time ago.
Yes.

This is a military bike that Harley-Davidson made.
It’s restored a long time ago, so it looks like it’s original paint.
It’s got the sweat.
It’s got the dirt.
It’s got the patina.
It’s got the right look.

How much is this?
[Music]

Can we thank on it a few?
Hell yeah.

I could tell that I was overstepping my boundaries.
And that’s what you have to do as a picker sometimes.
You have to slow your roll.
You have to bring it back.

We got to get to know each other, exchange some stories, talk about riding, and then get into the prices.

Oh yeah, Frankie.
Look at that.
Oh, that’s pretty.

I look over in the corner here.
Here’s this 1972 cherry red Triumph.
This a 250?
Yes.
It’s like a Tiger Cub.
Yes.

This could be my icebreaker.
Tell me a little bit about it.
It runs great.
Okay.

I checked the tank for rust and it was surprisingly clean.
Is motor kick over, Mike?
I checked to see if the pistons were seized.
They weren’t.

Oh, man.
That baby’s ready for you, Frankie.
That’s pretty good.

Joe, what do you value something like this at?
Well, I could let it go today.
Within the next 30 minutes.
30 minutes.

For a grand
$1,000.

You know what?
There’s a little bit of money to be made on this, even at a thousand.

Come on, Fonzi.
Sit on it.
Yeah.
Oh, yeah.
There you go.

How’s it feel?
It looks like it was made for you.

How about 800 within the next 4 minutes?
Let’s go nine.

I knew he was going to come back at 900.
I should have said seven.
He’d have went nine.
I’d have went eight.

Eight cash.
Uh, he’s got to check the reserves.
Okay.

Yes. Deal.

That was a good motorcycle I’ve had in 20 years.
So, it’s it’s time to start letting a few things go.

We’ve only been in one building.
We’ve already bought one bike.
So, Frank can close the deal on his opening offer on this Triumph.
And I can’t even get a price on the Harley.
Something is wrong with this pick.

Where we going?
We’re going to this building to get this pick on course.
I need to find something I want to buy and Joe wants to sell.

Right this way, though.
Yeah, this looks like a nice building here.
Thank you.

There you go.
That’s what we like.
Oh, that’s nice, man.
Boom. There it is.

A Harley flathead 1935 restored.
All there.
Restore that.
Yes, basically.

I’d love to buy this thing.
Is this something you’d sell?
Probably.
Yeah.

When’s the last time it ran?
Eight years ago.
Mhm.

So, I’m thinking, okay, if he hasn’t ridden this bike, he’s not thinking much of it anymore.

How much is it?
What are you asking for this?
Rock bottom.
18 grand.

18 grand.
If this flathead had a 10-point restoration, that would be the landing number on it.

How come he said rock bottom?
Just putting all your cards on the table.
We don’t want you to go down.

For the restoration that’s been done on it and the fact that it doesn’t run
at $18,000.
I had to step away.

Come this way, boys.
All right, man.

Show me something I can’t live without.
Oh, this a graveyard.
This is my little graveyard.

There was a Honda there.
There was a Kawasaki.
There was an old dirt bike.
And right at the end, here’s another Triumph.

That’s the same bike you just bought, isn’t it?
I know.
It’s kind of
There you go.

Parts bike.
Could be a parts bike.

This bike is in Joe’s graveyard, but it makes a great project bike or a parts bike because it’s almost complete.

How much is the parts bike?
You make me an offer.

Frank’s got this big smile on his face like he opened up a box of moon pies or something.

$200.
That’d be the best I could do, but I could get out of your way for 200.

Probably no.
But then again, yes.

Dang.
This is Christmas.
Let’s go, Santa Claus.
Good deal.
There you go, baby.

Joe said he wanted to lighten his load and I think I helped him do that.

Daniel really took care of it today.
I mean, I’ve bought two motorcycles.
I got a great deal.
I met a great guy.
My side of the van is always more full than Frankie’s.

All of a sudden, I’m the guy that doesn’t have anything now on a pick.
You going up there?
Yeah, we got plenty.

I got the Triumph for $800.
I know I can get at least 1,500.
[Music]

We appreciate you calling, man.
I’m going to take my wife somewhere.
Oh, yeah.
With the money.
Yes.

All right.
She probably does.
I’m sure she deserves it.
Oh, yes.

Thank you so much.
Thank you so much for coming.
All right.
We’ll see you again.
All right.

I’m going to take my wife on a vacation and we’re going to sit back, enjoy everything like I’ve enjoyed today.
See you later.
[Music]

Where can we start at, man?
You got me jacked up.
Uh, we got this big bomb.
Hell yeah, man.

Any we’re there.
All right, let’s go.

Let’s try that.
Fresh stuff in here, Frank.
Piled up is in the windows.
Awesome.

Oh, you think piled up is what you’re looking at, huh?
Come on.
[Music]

Oh, wow.
Oh my god.
This is great.

Your dad got all this stuff out of the garbage.
This is actual stuff that came out of the trash.
His dad was sifting through that stuff and finding the jewels and then putting them away in the barn.

My father did have an eye for the old stuff.
[Music]

So, are you into bikes?
You got a lot of bikes.
I think that’s aisle six to the right.
Aisle six.

All right.
Aisle six.

In the corner there’s a Triumph motorcycle.
Oh my god, Frankie.
Look at that.
Wow.

This bike is a 1967 650 Bonavville.
You don’t find those laying in barns every day.

Seems rad, man.
It’s good.

So, this one’s nice and clean.
Yeah, the tank’s dry.
Yeah, it shouldn’t be no rust.

I kind of make sure there’s no
This is 67.
67, I believe.

They’re very iconic British motorcycles.
These things were made from 1959 to 1974, and they’re named after the Bonavville Salt Flats.

Is this something you’d sell?
If I was going to sell it, yeah, probably 4,000.

Paul said he wanted $4,000 for this Triumph.
Now, this is getting a little bit out of my comfort zone.

There might be a reason.
The bike’s been sitting there all of these years.

You pretty solid at 4 G’s on that.
Yeah, I paid
I probably paid like six for it.
Need a run.

I’d kick it and boom, I’m down the road.
Yeah, you might have to tune it up just a little bit, but

How about 3250?
No, I can’t.

35?
Yeah, 35 would be a deal.

Skim me.
All right, I’m breaking the ice.

Yeah, right.
I broke the ice.

That’s what we try to do is let them know that we’re serious and if they put something good in front of us, we’re going to buy it.

So, at $3500, this was a major breaking of the ice.

How far is the other building from here?
Not far.
We’ll have to cut the lock, I think.
Cut the lock.

We’ve been known to cut a few.

Nobody’s been in there.
Nobody’s been in here since uh my father passed away, if not longer.
So, it’s been 15 years that he’s gone.
God only knows where the key is.

He busts that pad lock off and we get into this thing for the first time.

Man, oh man.
Oh man.

This is the kind of stuff that we live for.
Old barns.
Stuff that’s been out of sight that hasn’t been seen for 15 years.

Oo, I like this horse racing game.
It’s a story on that.

It’s an old gambling machine.
Very unusual piece.
I’ve never seen one before.

Right then, I was thinking to myself, “Oh my god, I hope this isn’t one of those pieces that I find and he doesn’t want to sell.”

How much is this horse game that’s falling apart?
Honestly, I always liked it.
I always wanted to restore it.
300.

Make me feel like I’m getting a good deal.
How about 250?
I really don’t.
250.
No, I can’t.

Some things I budged on like no problem.
That I just always found was unique.

All right.
So, you’re at 300?
Yeah.
Yeah.

I had a feeling about this piece.
It seemed really old and unique.
I needed to have it.

All right.
I’ll take it.
[Music]

He wanted it, Paul.

This could be the piece that makes the whole trip worthwhile.

Just kick it.
Give it a kick.
Hurry up.
Remember where the break is.
[Music]

It’s heavier than I thought.
You got it.
You got it.

This arcade gambling device that’s got the horses on it is so cool.
I’m not sure the exact value on it.
I want to get it appraised.

This place turned out to be a real honey hole.

It was amazing to go through this stuff, climbing over, getting under things.
It was a great pick.

What can we say, man?
Time.

Seriously, I hope I see them again.

I hope they come by and even if we’re not buying and selling, we’ll just go for a beer.
[Music]

I’m junk drunk right now.
It was an awesome pick.
We needed that so so bad.

All right, Frankie.
Wa.
This is a lot up here.
Dang.

Yeah, there’s a few bikes up here.
Guys been collecting a long time.

This is a British invasion right here, man.

Everything in this building is basically British.
A lot of it’s vintage motorcycle racing.
A lot of it stuff I’ve never seen before.

Bino is schooling us.

This one I had in Europe for 20 years.
It’s a BSA Gold Star 58.

You were racing in Europe?
Yeah.

Me and my wife would go over there.
Yeah.
And we would go from England to the aisle of man, strip it down and race it.

You raced at the aisle of man?
Yeah.
Wow. That’s cool.

The International Isle of Man Tourist Trophy Race is one of the most prestigious races in the world.

It’s held at the Isisle of Man in England and is still a killer cool event to this day.

Love the aisle of man.

So, you were sitting there with a cappuccino on the corner watching him fly by.
No, I had a a logger.
Oh, even better.

This is insane.
You don’t get to see stuff like this, you know.

As much as I love this bike, I don’t even need to ask.
I know it’s not for sale.

That’s awesome that you still have it, too.
Yeah.

Oh, what do you got here, Veno?
What’s that?

That’s a 20’s cutaway Indian motor.
It used to be on the counter at my dad’s shop in Chicago where I was born.

That’s really cool.

This is an early Indian factory cutaway motor.
1922 was the first year of the Indian Chief.

Bino tells me that this was on the counter in the dealership ever since he was a little kid.

Now, I look at this motor and I see that this is not made for the consumer level.
This cutaway motor was only for dealers so they can show people how this motor worked.

This thing is cool.
You see the transmission on this?
Look, they even cut the carburetor bowl out.
See the float bowl there.

So, do you remember this thing?
Yeah.
Sitting on the counter.
You could turn it over and see all the parts move.
And it’s moving.

See it?
Yeah, it’s moving.
Everything’s moving.

Look at that.
When you crank the handle in the back, you can see the valves go up and down.

To me, it’s art in motion.

I’ve seen Triumph cutaways and BSA cutaways, but not the Indian motor ones.

This has the original paint.
It’s on the original stand.
It still has a little bit of nickel on the cylinders.

Can I make you an offer on it?
Sure.

How about 4,000?

I was born with it and I’ve had it a long time.

No, believe me, I can completely understand your family’s history with it.

What’s the bottom number that you would take on it?
I’d go 5,000.
You won’t find any more of them.

No, I know.
I’ve never seen one.
I’ve never ever seen one.

You know what?
I’m going to do the five grand.
I’ll do the 5,000.

I love it.
I absolutely love it.

It really speaks to the history of the dealerships and the company itself.

This is an amazing piece of Indian motorcycle, American motorcycle history.

What else we got on this shelf here?

There’s an 07 or 08 motor right there.
Oh, it’s got the oil tank with it.

It’s a cool piece.

Now, was this out of your father’s dealership as well, or is this something that you guys acquired?
This was too.
Yeah.

Not too long ago in Texas, Frank and I bought the rear section of an 08 Indian.

I picked that up for the swap mate.

What’s left of it there is enough to possibly work with.
Especially for a guy that’s got a motor.

If I can get this motor and this oil tank, that’s going to get me closer to being on the road.

The timer is broken right here.
It’s a threebolt pattern on the top.
So, it’s an earlier one.

It’s free, too.
Huh.
Yep.

The condition of this motor is amazing.
There’s really no chips in the fins.
The oil tank is there.
It’s intact.
It’s amazing that it still exists.

But, you know, what’s the value of that?
Um, probably 4,000.

I stood tall on this one.
I was at 5K on this one.

Yeah. Okay.

Timer’s broken on this.
They reproduce these, but I’d still have to step up to the plate and get another one.

Since I paid 5,000 for this one, would you do 28 on this one?
No, it’s a little bit low.
I’m thinking 35 would probably be better.

What about
I see this
this manifold and this carb.

I’ve got the opportunity to walk out of here with two really rare Indian motors.

I’m not going to show my cards, but I’m going to pull a Frankie and do a bundle.

This looks like Excelsier manifold to me.
Excelsiors were made by Schwin after 1911.

So, this carburetor in this manifold being for a 1912 Excelsier twin to me is motorcycle and bicycle a really cool crossover.

What are you thinking on this?
Probably about 600.

How about I come up to 32 throw on this?

I’d go 34.

So, you’re paying three for that.
You’re paying 400 for the car.

That’s what I’m saying.
So, I’m kind of stepping up on the carbon.

I can’t imagine leaving here without this Indian motor.
I’ve never seen one like this before, and I doubt I’ll ever see one like it again.

Um, how about 33?
33.
Yeah.
Okay.
33.

All right. Thank you, my friend.

This is the kind of stuff that keeps me up at night, man.
It’s American motorcycle.
This is an incredible piece.

Getting to hear Bino and Robin’s amazing stories made this a great day.
But walking out of here with not one but two Indian Motors really pushed this pick over the edge.

We haven’t had a pick like this in a long time.

I paid $3,000 for the 1908 Indian motor.
I think it’s worth 5,500.

All right, my friend.
Thanks for having us come.
Sure.

It was a good day.
It was a good day.

I guess I have attachment to all that stuff, but I’ve got plenty more.

That was awesome.
It was a great time.
Thank you.

Motor’s going to a good home.

Next time you guys are around, you need to go for a ride on my trail.
What? You got trails?
Yeah.

Let’s go riding right now.
Yeah.

What about this guy?
[Music]

Me and Mike are always out in the road and we’re always cooped up in the van.
So, when there comes a time that we can hop on a motorcycle and ride with a pro like Veno, it’s fantastic.
[Music]

Mike is Mr. VW.
He cannot even see me anymore.
He is totally bent on VW land.

Frankie, look at this one.
The corner glass model 23 window.

This is one of the last of the corner glass.
Yeah.
Okay, I got you.
[Music]

What do you value this van in this condition at?
$1,000.

$1,000.

Cuz I got somebody that’ll come from Arizona.
Oh, I bet.

Auction value for a good run in one of those is what?
40,000 now, right?
Yeah, it’s done.

But the thing is on a $40,000 vehicle, a lot of times they got 30,000 in the restoration.
Sometimes in your 40,000 vehicle, you got 60,000.
I know.

I’m really wanting to spend some money here, but everything is in really, really bad condition.
I’m talking Swiss cheese here.

I see you got some VW parts in here that are join the room.

A lot of the stuff is just years and years of hitting the junkyards.

All of a sudden, I discover this really cool VW badge from an old bus.

Is that an original uh badge?
Yes, it is.

That was in pretty good shape.
That’s off a deluxe model.
Yes, it is.

It’s a great item for somebody that’s actually restoring a car, you know, to have an original badge like that for the car.

What do you value that at?
I would say $50 on that one.

How about 40 bucks?
Yours.

Thanks, man.
All right.

I bought something.
Woohoo.
Wear a cape and have this on.

It was great watching Tim and Mike talk shop about VWs.
But you know what?
Danielle did say that this guy had a lot of motorcycles.

Look at that.
Yeah, there you go.
You know you want it.

Here’s a 1959 BSA motorcycle.
Now we’re talking.

This is the first year C15.
They made the C-15s from 59 to 67.

And it’s original paint on most of it.

And I rode it last night before I went to bed.

What do you value something like this at?
Um, it’s probably worth about right around $2,000 because you can get on it and ride it.

In the world of buying and selling, you always have to start somewhere.

Tim started at $2,000, but at $2,000, there just wasn’t any meat left on the boat.

The tires are weather checked.
One bad thing that’s really not going good is the side cover.
That’s a real kicker.
It makes it not look complete.

What was the best you could do on this?
I mean, your best final price.

I’m going to go by the offers I’ve received.
I could have sold it the day I got it home for 1,200 bucks.

Surprisingly, Tim dropped the price down from 2,000 very quickly, but it still wasn’t low enough for the picker and me.

You know, if it had the original side cover, but for me to be able to make a little bit of money on it.
Mhm.

I’ll tell you what, Tim, I’ll give you $800 cash today.
President’s pictures, you say?
That’s it.
Eight of them.

Good deal.
Thank you.

I’m so happy to have this pike.
Haha.

So, here’s two complete rolls of motorcycles.
Yeah, I’m calling it my living room.

This ain’t a bad place to be.
I like your style.

Right away, I was drawn to a couple more BSA motorcycles that really look great.

This one here.
What’s that?
That’s another Starfire 250.

I would do 2,000 on it.
I paid 2,000 for it.

Well, then you’d have 2,000 for it now.
No, I wouldn’t.
Where’s the motor work coming in?

All right.

The bikes that Tim kept inside were obviously too close to his heart because they were very, very expensive.

I like this bike.
It’s cool, man.
I like how sweaty it is.
I like how I can touch the ground.

I bought the motorcycle today for $800.
To the right guy, 1300.

One of the things that I did manage to buy from Tim was that early bus hood emblem.

For $40 on that piece, I was totally into it.
I can get $80.

The final killer Volkswagen micro bus.
I paid $50 for it.
I think I can get 75.

Thank you so much for letting us look around.

Seriously, I love looking at the buses.
I learned a lot about boat wagons.

Tim was a really cool guy and now him and I are buds.
If I have any questions on boat wagons, he’s the guy I’m going to call.

Drive safe.
All right, ma’am.