Seen on the street: A rusty bike, an optimistic seller

“Needs a little cosmetic work” is an understatement.
(Photos © J. Maus)

For Sale, needs some work-3.jpg
For Sale, needs some work-2.jpg

If I had nothing better to do, I would love to just photograph and document all the interesting bikes I see locked up around town.

For example, check out this rusted-out old beast I noticed the other day. It was locked (with a bike chain) to a rack at the bottom of N. Albina and Interstate. The sign said, “Old bike, needs a little cosmetic work. Make offer.”

A little cosmetic work?!

I figured this must be someone playing a joke… but the next morning I noticed the bike was gone. I wonder how much it sold for…

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, contact me via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a paying subscriber.

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tonyt
tonyt
16 years ago

Looks like that sign went on there long after that bike was abandoned.

Nice!

Speaking of abandoned bikes. What is supposed to be done about an abandoned bike parked at a bike rack?

Do we have to wait til it becomes a pile of rust before the city will remove it?

The bike I am thinking of has been parked at a rack for probably the last two months. It has not moved. You can tell by all the debris building up under the wheels and the dust etc.

Elliot
Elliot
16 years ago

Sounds like a good feature to pair with the Sheldon Brown April Fools Day ride. 🙂

Qwendolyn
16 years ago

slap a fixed cog on that thing and post it to craigslist!

$800 OBO

Refunk
Refunk
16 years ago

#2–Bingo!

c
c
16 years ago

Yes, what does become of locked, abandoned bikes? Does Portland tag them as abandoned property like this every once in a while? I\’ve not noticed it.

Javen
Javen
16 years ago

I don\’t think the CCC would even huffy toss that bike–it\’s that bad. It\’d be the dumpster immediately for that bike.

That bike almost looks like it belongs in the Hiroshima atom bomb museum with all its rust.

naess
naess
16 years ago

#1 & #5:

i\’ve seen bikes with warning tags on them near the b-side powell\’s. probably one of those odot things.

Phil Hanson (aka Pedalphile)

Sold? I\’ll bet someone stole it. But, hey, there\’s nothing wrong with that bike that a new bike wouldn\’t cure.

Daniel (teknotus) Johnson
Daniel (teknotus) Johnson
16 years ago

I saw a beautiful bike locked up for a while. The day after it got the abandoned property tag on it it was parted. Made me sad.

Mr. Viddy
16 years ago

That was a pretty sweet wheelset.

Matthew
Matthew
16 years ago

I dig the lock. If it wasn\’t for the fact that I (and a lot of other people) carry a tool that will go right through one of of those…

Mike
Mike
16 years ago

I just finished a photostory on the Lifecycle of A Bicycle. I think this might be closest to a \”dead\” bicycle that I\’ve seen. Although with a few parts it\’d be pretty fancy.

k.
k.
16 years ago

Don\’t worry, I\’m sure it\’s not gone for good. I\’m thinking it\’ll probably reappear as the CCC\’s \”Bike of the month\” for April.