You can’t spell Classic without Class

Tee shirts are probably America’s favorite casual wear, so commonplace that most people will hardly give one a second look. So what people look for is a quality product, that has a pleasing and different design, and one that makes a statement about the wearer.

Like interesting people, an interesting tee shirt has something to say. It can be a conversation piece, which is why I think the trend is now to have the design on the front. A person would be unlikely to tap you on the shoulder and say, “Hey, I like the design on the back of your shirt.”

When I did an online search to find out what cycling related shirts were available, and what was trending, I was surprised, and somewhat disappointed, to find the choices limited, and often pretty generic. Hardly worth a second glance, or an “I like your shirt,” comment.

So I set about designing my own. My most recent one is at the top of the page, designed with the Vintage Bike enthusiast in mind. The bike picture I used was from an ad I placed in Velo-News back in January 8th, 1982, when I was still working in the Masi shop and trying to get my business off the ground. (See below.)

The original was a hand drawing from a photo of a bike I built in the late 1970s when I was back in England. The artist I only know as “Gustavson.” I don’t remember much about him, and I don’t think we actually met, he had contacted me by phone offering to do art work for me. Remember this was back long before computers and Photoshop.

One of my other recent designs (Above.) is my “Retirement Plan” shirt. The bike and rider is a modern one, I did not want to limit sales to “Vintage” bike enthusiasts. Designing tee shirts is just another way to keep my creative juices flowing.

To be successful in any venture one needs to be first, better, or different than everyone else. I can hardly be first, tee shirts have been around longer than I have. But I can produce a quality product that looks good and is different from others being offered. That business model served me well when I built bicycle frames. Wish me luck now. 

The shirts are available here: www.davemoultonstore.com Also eMail me davesbikeblog[AT]gmail[DOT]com if you would like the Classic design in a Hoodie Sweat Shirt, I am taking pre-orders. On the Hoodie the design will be on the back with a smaller design on the front left side. Let me know your size and color preference. 

Footnote: The Facebook Group for Dave Moulton Bikes is knocking on the door of 400 members. (396 at the time of writing this.) Check it out you don't have to be an owner to join.

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An Appeal for Help

I have been reluctant in the past to ask for help, but then I realized that organizations like PBS regularly ask for donations. Things don’t just run on their own.

I have always given of my time freely, and I am prepared to continue doing that. But last year I ventured out and went on a speaking tour of the West Coast.

The response was good, but I have come to realize that my following, when it comes to active owners of bikes I built, numbers are only around 400. Not a huge number.

On the Tour, people were kind enough to offer a place to stay which was a wonderful experience and cut the cost of hotels. However, there were still some hotels, air fares, and car rental. The idea was that tee shirt sales would cover this cost. But with a relatively small following, this didn’t happen, and I am still left with a number of tee shirts unsold.

I was also left with $6,000 of credit card debt, which when one is on a limited income like me, it is an extremely stressful burden to pay off. I will do it, it is my obligation, but I will not do it again, not without help. Which is where this appeal comes in.

I can continue with my blog and my Bike Registry as I have been doing for a number of years, but to be active outside of that, I need some help. First I have left over tee shirts to sell. They are part of the debt I incurred. To move them out is my first priority.

If you own a bike I built and haven’t done so already, please buy a tee shirt. If you don’t yet own a bike I built but are waiting for one your size to come along, buy a tee shirt, and maybe the Karma with cause a bike in your size to appear. If you are a regular reader of my inane scribblings here, you may like to contribute a dollar or two.

I have a new tee shirt, a “Life is all about Ass” design, which is part of the lyrics to a song I wrote.

My plans are to record the song, and put it on YouTube. People tell me it may go viral, and my problems might be over.

If I can sell the tee shirts I have, I hope to bring out more creative and desirable designs.

If you don’t have $26.50 to plonk down on a shirt ($20 + $6.50 *postage.) then a small donation would be appreciated. I have added a PayPal Donation Button in the left column of this blog. No donation is too small, especially if you make the donation re-occur monthly. (That option is on the PayPal Donation page.) In that case $1 or $2 a month would be greatly appreciated, and is all I would expect anyone to contribute on an ongoing monthly basis.

I know in these hard times there are many charities with their hand out for money. If you cannot contribute, I understand. In fact I would not want anyone to contribute or commit to more than they can afford. But if you can spare a small amount  it would be greatly appreciated.

I would prefer to sell worthwhile products, rather than ask for handouts, but until my online store gets going I have to ask for donations too. My 80th. birthday is in two weeks, think of it as a birthday gift.

 *Sorry, USPS increased postage rates.

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My New On-Line Store

I have just opened a new online store: www.davemoultonstore.com

The initial purpose is to sell the surplus of tee shirts left over from my October West Coast Tour, but I am hoping it will grow from there, and I can provide quality products that people will want to buy.

I knew before the tour that I was probably ordering more tee shirts than I would sell, but I was heading into uncharted territory. I had no idea how many people would show up and participate.

I didn’t want a situation where the people in Oregon and Northern California, scarfed up all the tee shirts and I had none left by the time I got to Los Angeles. As it was I did run out of certain sizes.

I have to be realistic, I still have a relatively small following, there are some 400 owners listed on my Bike Registry. Although quite a large number when you consider I retired 22 years ago, and I was just an individual builder, and my total lifetime production can be numbered in the thousands. Whereas the big Italian names had factories with a production numbering in the tens of thousands.

On the other hand I did build 2,400 Fuso frames, 300 John Howard, 200 Recherché, plus all my custom frames. So 400 frames on my registry is only really just scratching the surface, and there is potential for that number to grow.

I don’t consider my frames to be collector items. People are buying them to ride, not as an investment.

And that is fine with me, I make absolutely nothing when a frame sells somewhere on eBay or Craig’s List, whether it sells for $200 or $2,000.

I get a much greater satisfaction knowing someone enjoys riding a bike I built, over the idea that someone might make more on the sale of frame than I did when I built it.

It is still a buyer’s market out there. A brand new, Fuso LUX frame, built in 1986, that had never been built into a bike recently sold for $600.

An absolute bargain when you consider you could not get a new hand built frame from any reputable builder for that price today.

So here’s the deal. I am retired, I only do as much work as I care to do. I give of my time freely to my blog and the Registry, and the small amount of cost is covered by advertising here, and donations on the Registry. However, an online store is a different issue. There are monthly fees, inventory to buy and maintain. Only time will tell whether I can make it successful or not.

A following of 400 is enough to get things started, but will not sustain a venture like this for any length of time. I have an unknown following here on my blog. I get around 1,500 or 2,000 hits a day, but that is from around the World, and unfortunately shipping costs make it prohibitive for me to sell product outside the US. Also many of the hits are from Google searches, and there is no guarantee they stayed or will ever come back again.

I would love to do an event like the West Coast Tour again, maybe a Vintage Bike Show somewhere. Be assured that if the store is a success, any profit will go into running such an event.

The picture at the top is a tee shirt/sweat shirt design that I have planned for the near future. I hope it will have a wider appeal than the 400 or so ‘dave moulton’ bike fans. Your feedback as always is appreciated.

Udate 12/21/15: I now have XXL and XL in stock.