Thread: Vintage Chinese bikes
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#1 Vintage Chinese bikes07-13-2010, 10:57 AM
I know the CJ750s (etc) are "vintage", but how about some others?
I saw this yesterday ... an obvious copy of a Jawa 250. According to the owner, it is about 30 years old. It is called a Xingfu ("happiness"). It has some interesting "features", like a single cylinder but twin pipes.
I did a bit of research on the bike, and some guy in the States claims that these are "very rare" ... NOT because everyone wants one, but because every Chinese person does not want one!
Anyways, it looked kinda cool, and the build quality left MUCH to be desired (but that was one of the things that made this so uniquely Chinese vintage).
By the way, this is my first attempt at adding attachments, so I am not sure if I am doing it correctly.
Have you seen any vintage Chinese bikes? Share them.
Xingfu 08..jpgXingfu 02..jpgXingfu 11..jpgXingfu 04..jpgXingfu 03..jpg
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#2 Re: Vintage Chinese bikes07-13-2010, 02:01 PM
Very nice, I have read Chinese doing copies of Javas, but this is the first I have seen.
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#3 Re: Vintage Chinese bikes07-23-2010, 09:56 AM
Very interesting bike, i had no idea these existed! I like how the headlight wraps around the handlebars.
There are a couple of very ancient chinese vehicles at the local CJ shop here in suzhou. They're not bikes but i will try to get a shot of them and post them here sometime soon!
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#4 Re: Vintage Chinese bikes07-28-2010, 03:33 AM
I rode one of these bikes a few years ago. Loud, smelly, gutless, everything an old Chinese 2 smoker could ever aspire to be. It was actually a pretty fun bike to ride just because of the looks you got while riding it.
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#5 Re: Vintage Chinese bikes07-28-2010, 03:40 AM
I give you the other Chinese 750cc Side car bike. The bike looks like it is based on a British 750cc twin. Glad it was never made too popular. Chinese quality and British design doesn't sound like the ideal combination for a reliable bike
I also rode one of these. It was a little smoother than the CJ750 and the suspension was obviously better. I actually thought about buying one for a while
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#6 Re: Vintage Chinese bikes07-28-2010, 01:00 PM
Yes, the Donghai is an interesting bike. You see a few around every now and then.
One of Sabine's bikes (the vintage BMW) has a Donghai sidecar bucket, as does Jim Bryant's personal ride (also a vintage BMW ... that went around the world!). The Donghai sidecar buckets are nice, and Sabine's is extra nice because she had it customized by Jim ... extending it several inches for more legroom.
I was just at Jim's shop and noticed that he is storing a Xingfu for some absent owner. So, the "Happiness" bikes are definitely out there ... but probably ridden very little. Jim said he rode it once and his opinion was, well, "it is an old Chinese bike with character".
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#7 Re: Vintage Chinese bikes11-15-2011, 01:53 AM
Update on the Xingfu 250A (Happiness):
After seeing my first "happiness" last year, I started researching the bike. Here is a little synposis ...
They were first made by the Shanghai Bicycle Factory circa 1959/60/61 ... a time when China was experiencing the terrible consequences (widespread famine) of "The Great Leap Forward". After making a few prototypes, the "leaders" decided that the bike needed to be named "Xingfu" (happiness) to try and create a positive spin. Hence, marketing was also important in diehard communist states.
The bikes were originally made in very limited number, and primarily for the military and government deliveries (e.g., post office). Therefore, the earliest "customers" could choose any color, as long as it was green. Reminders of Henry Ford.
In the 70s and into the 80s, the Xingfu 250A started becoming available for the "public", although one can imagine how difficult it would have been for an average person to acquire one. This was the start of the red ones. The "people's bike"
In 1995, the Shanghai factory decided to make a limited edition 10 year anniversary (stories vary on what exactly it was a 10th anniversary of). It was limited to a production run of 999 bikes, and was painted in a gold color with a silver frame. Some claim that the paint, brought in from Hong Kong, had real gold put into it, but this may just be an urban myth. This limited production run had the bikes' engine, frame & plate serial numbers sequentially numbered from 001 to 999. All three should match on an original bike.
Accurate records are difficult to come by, although some estimate that fewer than half the original 10th anniversary bikes remain. The red Xingfus are quite common, with high production numbers. The green Xingfus less so, but still many many times more than a gold 10 year anniversary.
The Xingfu 250A was discontinued in the late 1990s, and replaced by the more modern Xingfu 250 that copied the squarish Japanese motorcycles of the day.
It is a unique classic ... 2-stroke, 6 volt, combination kick-starter/shift lever, with the "finest materials" and "quality control" of the day.
Here's a little video of my most recent acquisition ... I managed to find a one-family-owned, 10 year anniversary in a small village in Dongbei. The youngish son wanted to sell the bike because it was "old & ugly" and he wanted a sport bike style. I was happy to buy the Xingfu because it matches me!
Super cool Chinese history! I'm now chasing down an original QingQi motor-bicycle.
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#8 Re: Vintage Chinese bikes
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11-15-2011, 02:37 AMWow. That's just amazing and awesome, Richard. What a find. So how DID you find it? And don't you have other gems squirreled away up in Dongbei?
Was the Xingfu the only "production" bike in China during those pre-reform years? What about pre-revolution?
Great thread and a great project!jkp
Shanghai
2010 JH600 "Merkin Muffley" (in Shanghai)
2000 KLR650 "Feezer Ablanalp" (in California)
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#9 Re: Vintage Chinese bikes
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11-15-2011, 03:12 AMG'Day,
The Xingfu company had a big showroom and service center down on the bund (Shanghai) near the now called area "Cool Docks". A huge motorcycle was mounted on top of the building. The green Xingfu bikes were used by the post office in Shanghai up to 93-95 as far as I recall. Must dig through some old pictures......
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#10 Re: Vintage Chinese bikes
- Join Date
- Dec 2009
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- mostly Shanghai, sometimes northern California
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11-15-2011, 03:55 AMI definitely remember the China Post Xingfus. Would be great to have one of those. Wonder what China Post does with them as they are taken out of service?
So the Xingfu is the Hongqi of motorcycles.
I want a green one with postal insignia!jkp
Shanghai
2010 JH600 "Merkin Muffley" (in Shanghai)
2000 KLR650 "Feezer Ablanalp" (in California)
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