Reminiscing about catalogs - Page 3

Red Tornado · #31 01-20-2022, 10:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

The one's I remember being excited to get:

Campmor
JC Whitney
Jegs
The Sportsman's Guide

Ah yes, used to get their publication in my pre-cycling, muscle car days. Also got the Summit catalog.

El Chaba · #32 01-20-2022, 10:29 AM

There was definite lifecycle to a cycling catalog company. They would generally come on the scene as a small company- perhaps as a side operation of a retail shop- selling quality merchandise at a discounted price. If they survived and grew, the transition to house-branded items of varying degrees of inferior quality would start to infiltrate the offerings. Eventually, the entire catalog would be filled with the house-branded items exclusively. The next phase was for the company to go bankrupt or to be merged into the operation of another company slightly behind on the lifecycle. The whole lifecycle was not unlike that of a star with the red giants either going supernova and leaving behind a black whole or just a white dwarf. Performance is the example that comes to mind. There were YEARS that performance put out a decent catalog, but nothing of any quality was generally in stock…just the house branded, poor substitutes.

Hindmost · #33 01-20-2022, 11:00 AM

"Performance is the example that comes to mind."

Performance had an aquatic/scuba division. They put out a catalog with the same layout as the cycling one.

Coffee Rider · #34 01-20-2022, 11:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by El Chaba

There was definite lifecycle to a cycling catalog company. They would generally come on the scene as a small company- perhaps as a side operation of a retail shop- selling quality merchandise at a discounted price. If they survived and grew, the transition to house-branded items of varying degrees of inferior quality would start to infiltrate the offerings. Eventually, the entire catalog would be filled with the house-branded items exclusively. The next phase was for the company to go bankrupt or to be merged into the operation of another company slightly behind on the lifecycle. The whole lifecycle was not unlike that of a star with the red giants either going supernova and leaving behind a black whole or just a white dwarf. Performance is the example that comes to mind. There were YEARS that performance put out a decent catalog, but nothing of any quality was generally in stock…just the house branded, poor substitutes.

FWIW, I was generally pretty pleased with the house brands and miss the really good deals that were sometimes to be had on them.

El Chaba · #35 01-20-2022, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hindmost

"Performance is the example that comes to mind."

Performance had an aquatic/scuba division. They put out a catalog with the same layout as the cycling one.

Oh…A binary star system….

mhespenheide · #36 01-20-2022, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hindmost

"Performance is the example that comes to mind."

Performance had an aquatic/scuba division. They put out a catalog with the same layout as the cycling one.

Does anyone else remember that Nashbar had a volleyball offshoot for a while, "Spike Nashbar"? I never got that catalog, but remember them advertising that they had it.

BikePro was amazing when it lasted, though. Better information and photos than anyone else out there.

Coffee Rider · #37 01-20-2022, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mhespenheide

Does anyone else remember that Nashbar had a volleyball offshoot for a while, "Spike Nashbar"? I never got that catalog, but remember them advertising that they had it.

BikePro was amazing when it lasted, though. Better information and photos than anyone else out there.

I remember Spike Nashbar, but also never saw a copy. I remember BikePro, but I don't think I was ever on their mailing list and only remember it from an online presence.

Elefantino · #38 01-20-2022, 11:40 AM

I used to jones over the Performance and Nashbar catalogs. Started back in the mid '80s. More than 30 years later I was working at Performance, first in stores and then at the HQ.

Life is funny.

Nomadmax · #39 01-20-2022, 11:49 AM

There was a poster from either Branford Bike, Colorado Cyclist or Excel that pistured a road rider standing on the pedals looking back over his shoulder. I've been looking for one for ages. Heck, I can't even find the image on the net.

Coffee Rider · #40 01-20-2022, 11:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elefantino

I used to jones over the Performance and Nashbar catalogs. Started back in the mid '80s. More than 30 years later I was working at Performance, first in stores and then at the HQ.

Life is funny.

I really do miss the old Performance. They had some great house branded stuff, which was on sale a reasonable amount of the time. I still have a box of the Lunarlight tubes.

texbike · #41 01-20-2022, 12:49 PM

I was cleaning out a bunch of old bike stuff over the holiday and found a couple of catalogs/booklets that were really neat. One of them is a catalog/guide called "The Complete Handbook of Cycling" from Big Wheel, Ltd (in Denver). It's dated 1971. The guide/catalog is a series of ads and articles about different bikes and parts. At the back of the catalog is a price list. A few examples for you: Cinelli SC - $350, Masi GC - $450, Pogliaghi - $345, and a PX-10 - $175. Cool stuff...

Texbike

johnniecakes · #42 01-20-2022, 01:11 PM

I used to spend a lot of time looking through the bike catalogs mentioned here. I the early eighties I was also running quite a bit. East Bay and Road Runner sports both put out great catalogs to ogle over all the running gear

AngryScientist · #43 01-20-2022, 01:24 PM

Speaking of the demise of paper catalogs, I continue to be amazed by the amount of junk mail i receive. flyers of all sorts, junk magazines, coupons, sketchy charities begging for $, etc.

I stand on my porch and throw 95% of the mail directly in the trash most days of the week thinking what a waste it is to circulate some much worthless paper these days.

BryanE · #44 01-20-2022, 02:06 PM

History lesson time.
Gene Porteusi, I've been told, was the first to have a mail order bicycle catalog. He moved to Cadillac from Detroit in 1970. He enjoyed the outdoors and moved for that reason. I purchased a Puch from him in 77. I wanted a Schwinn, he said they were junk. Two 80.00 payments and it was mine. We called him The Italian.

mhespenheide · #45 01-20-2022, 02:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coffee Rider

I really do miss the old Performance. They had some great house branded stuff, which was on sale a reasonable amount of the time.

When I was racing juniors USCF back in the day, one of my coaches rode a Performance house-brand frame of (lugged) Tange #1 tubing. Candy-apple red, if I remember correctly. He said it was great.