Anyone ever heard of this? TIM? found this on a vintage MX site.

(Sorry for the small pic. Thats all that was on there)

[img]http://alltheracing.com/DSC02382[/img]

Hey MC, I found this on BMX Museum ...
"The bike is a 20 inch bike & is missing the metal fenders & the plastic Varroom motor .The bike is also a mid 1960s bike & was way ahead of its time this is most likely the very first bmx bike made .I just figured someone would like to know."


[ March 17, 2007, 01:29 AM: Message edited by: mikkopeters ]

very cool bikes ! I think they were 1964. someone posted pics with an original ad.

I ran a few searches on the net and found these on the bay...



The v-rroom motor...

Is that the goodhousekeeping seal on that ad?

Thanks Mikko! Kind of cool to see Mattel made life size toys!

That does look like the Good Housekeeping logo.

Here's a '64.

hEy Mark, hows it been? havent talked in a couple weeks. Dan Ulwelling and I talked about this Mattel bike a couple years ago. He had always heard they were junk. I was of the opinion they were "sturdy"/cool. I assume since he was already a big kid in the 1960's this would have seemed like junk to him. To me it's ....amazing! Leave it to Mattel. They are just SO very SOuthern CAL!!!!!!!!!
Not Huffy or any of the other back East industrial companys would have had the coolness and insight to do this. like I always say... Cal was the center of everything cool from 1960 to 1980!!!!now it seems like it has moved on .....somewhere......

Mattel, Inc. Willard, OH

Mattel, Inc. Hawthorne, CA USA

Use this serial number when wirting to:
Mattel, Inc. Willard, OH

OK fellas I feel I have to get some facts strait in regards to this bike. the subject of the Mattel bikes comes up on this site every now and then and someone always makes a statement like this:

quote:

---

this is most likely the very first bmx bike made

---

The fact is no it's not. I say this because I was born in 1958 and my age group was the target market for these bikes. I remember them very well because I wanted one as a kid. (who wouldn't)

At this point in time in the good 'ol USA (1964/1965)the Honda motorcycle craze was at a fever pitch. Especially on the west coast. Those were the days when Honda's were constructed mainly with stamped sheet metal pieces. The fad/craze was so big at the time that bands like the Hondells were writing songs about these motorcycles. And were big on the music charts of the day.

1961 Honda Benly

notice some of the styling cues?

1966 Honda CL-160

you'll notice in this Honda history that they did not get serious about their dirt bikes until the latter half of the 1960's. and that's right in line with rise of dirt bike racing in the USA. the early part of the 60's more about road racing and street bikes.

Some Honda history

These bicycles were patterned after Japanese street bikes of the day and not dirt bikes. But that's not to say that once they got into the hands of kids they never saw dirt. You know they did. but that was not the design or intent of the manufacturer Mattel Toys. It was more like Mattel's way of cashing in on a craze. So as far as these being the fist BMX bikes made? From the point of my personal life experience my vote is no.

[ March 17, 2007, 02:39 PM: Message edited by: Sodbuster ]