Yes, the postie bikes are also super cool!

In my search for the 10th anniversary, I came across many different types of Xingfus, including a couple of actual postal bikes, complete with original postal bags, in near perfect condition. One is sitting in Shanghai, and I've been going back/forth with the owner about selling. Nope, I won't reveal its exact location, just yet.

Another very interesting find was some of the military bikes with Cultural Revolution slogans written on the forks and side panels, applied by the factory. Again, super cool. Those are bikes with a very unique historical value.

From what I heard, talking to some Chinese "experts", many of the postal bikes & military bikes (as well as many 10th anniversary bikes) were scrapped as junk.

There are a couple of guys in China who are starting to recognize the future vintage value of these bikes and are trying to snap them all up (ha ha ... maybe me included?). At present, they are a steal, IMHO. They are still considered "old and ugly" by most local people. Any red-blooded young guy is going to want some super-sport bike (or a Harley) to attract the girls ... definitely not some "old and ugly" Xingfu that his father/uncle/whomever gave him! Not many hot girls will be oo-ing and ah-ing at some guy on a Xingfu!

Fine by me ... I'll take it off your hands! I think it is a very important part of China's two-wheeled history.

Oh, how did I find these? With the help of super smart ex-students who know the ins/outs of where/how to look. Still, however, my ex-students think I am truly the crazy professor chasing after these "old and ugly" bikes. Nyeh, fine by me.