16 replies to this topic

[rotrax]

Hi, I have decided to part with my two Motocourse books,1977/78 and 1986/87. The older one is ,of course, the Barry Sheene Kenny Roberts year,and appears to be highly valued.It is in fair condition, with dustsheet but is far from mint. After all,I have read it and used it for reasearch many times. I think £300.00 is about right for that one.The 86/87 one is in better condition and £80.00 seems to be the going rate. I have owned both of these from new. If you have any interest PM me for a deal. In Sport,Rotrax.

[subh]

I wish I could afford £300 for that earlier one, as it’s one of only two I don’t have. Sadly, I can’t. Good luck to someone who can. If the condition is good I would think you’re probably right on the value. I’d like to read the whole thing, but if anyone can scan or photocopy the race result pages it would be helpful. Thanks, etc.

[ravenous25]

I think the first one 76/77 is worth about £500 now - got every single one, all in excellent condition and soooo glad I have, never gonna part with them!

[mfd]

I think the first one 76/77 is worth about £500 now - got every single one, all in excellent condition and soooo glad I have, never gonna part with them!

How much would you say is added by the WC's signature on appropriate years?

[fil2.8]

How much would you say is added by the WC's signature on appropriate years?

Whatever you can screw out of someone , I guess , Mike , double , perhaps ??


It's like autographed programme's , how do you value them ??

[picblanc]

Anyone want to buy a 1976/1977 copy in lovely condition?

[mfd]

Whatever you can screw out of someone , I guess , Mike , double , perhaps ??
It's like autographed programme's , how do you value them ??

It's a tricky one Phil. Theoretically anyone owning Motocourse could try to get each one signed. It would need a lot of determination & planning to be in the right places to do it. Some would be more difficult than others...

[bobness]

Indeed.
I guess there would be fairly few on the open market with original autographs these days, if any.
What are they worth? What someone will pay I guess. I've seen 76 copies got for well over £400 without an autograph. God alone knows what a 76 with Bazza's scrawl on it may fetch.
As said above, the first 4 or 5 are worth serious money now, the first 2 especially. Better minds than mine know the exact way to tell a first edition from a reprint etc, the first edition being more valuable.
Strangely the 93/94 year (Schwantz's title) is also pretty valuable for some reason, and it can help if you know that.

I went into Sport in Print (a UK wide famously cavernous cricket/football book/programme shop) on Trent Bridge about 4 years ago "on spec" as it were, and happened to see, all alone on a shelf, amidst books like "A History of Accrington Stanley 1895 - 1965", a 93/94 Motocourse, as well as the "Motocourse Grand Prix Riders" book. Not having the riders book and knowing what the 93/94 could be worth, I went to the girl sat at the back and asked what I could take them both away for. She looked puzzled, as they didn't have a price on, and rang the owner, the spectacularly moustached Peter Wynne-Thomas. Some haggling between those 2 ensued and she put the phone down, looked at me apologetically and asked with raised eyebrows "£3 each?".
I didn't have the heart to try and beat her down to a fiver the pair.

I sold the Schwantz one on ebay for £55 I think.

Now, having unburdened myself, I feel so guilty that I'll donate the profits to charity this very weekend.

I also have one of the 75 numbered 25th anniversary leather bound editions in a slipcase. Have only ever seen one on fleabay, and it didn't go for much over £100 as I recall, which I was mildly surprised at. I wonder who has the other 74? Would they have gone to luminaries, riders, journos or just, like me, fans?

Edited by bobness, 17 February 2011 - 09:22.

[mfd]

I guess there would be fairly few on the open market with original autographs these days, if any.

Thanks for your post, it reminds me of a lot. My 76 edition was bought at the Ally Pally show early 1977. I went with Steve Henshaw & we joked about it being "spoilt" as some bloke had scribbled in it. BS had signed a few because it marked his first big year. Quite different from a biography, where a rider signs a lot for the book launch.
When I started getting the others done, I was lucky to be in the GP paddock at the right time, some were easy like BS book 2, Kenny Roberts astounded me by saying he didn't have his own version of year 2 & could I get him one! There was a drama getting Fast Freddie to sign, like going through someone else, just to take it to the motorhome, when the books came back they had the most beautiful signatures in them. Rob McElnea got Eddie Lawson to sign his years & he stuck his head out of the motorhome and said he didn't think he had any fans in the UK...

I stopped collecting signatures on the books in 1991 finishing with Rainey, as I said before some things are unrepeatable. I had Motocourse until 1995 so it gives me a smile that even though unsigned, I do have the Schwantz edition, although until now (I just checked) it was a book I thought I'd given away ;)

Your Trent Bridge tale reminds me of similar finds in old bookshops. Realistically the Bike books are undervalued by shops who see it as fringe interests, whereas I picked up a pristine 1972 Autocourse at the old covered Newark market for a princely £2.50, so that was a once in a lifetime find. A dozen years ago, a friend with no specific interest in the books themselves, bought at auction a job lot for about 20 quid that contained a 1966 Autocourse, which he promptly sold on to a dealer for £200.

There is one thing that you mention - have they done reprints of early Motocourse? I know this was considered by the current owners - Twinny worked for them for a while, he might know.

Edited by mfd, 17 February 2011 - 10:47.

[ravenous25]

I've got the 25th anniversary edition but not leather bound or numbered

I was quite fortunate to pick up the 4 issues between 1980 and 1983 quite cheaply (about £30 each) as a chap in New Zealand had got divorced and was clearing out his garage. Maybe the 93/94 Motocourse is high in value due to it being the year of Wayne Rainey's accident thus the last year in which he was racing?

My 79 Motocourse is signed but 'only' by Graeme McGregor and Jeff Sayle on a picture within the Dutch GP report!

I'd say the most valuable signed book I have is Barry Sheene's autobiography from late 1975 called 'The Story so Far' (I think) - addressed to the family and signed by both Barry and Stephanie.

[Twin Window]

There is one thing that you mention - have they done reprints of early Motocourse? I know this was considered by the current owners - Twinny worked for them for a while, he might know.

As far as I'm aware Mike that never happened, rather like most things planned from around that period...

[bobness]

Good stuff.
I know Autocourse's are pretty valuable, especially the early ones, but how much I don't know.

My 1976 MC is a US edition, I think. Well it came from the US at the very least. I think a realative bargain at $200. Bizarrely with what looks for all the world like a promo print of Johnny Cecotto pulling a wheelie in it, just loosely in the binding.

The 93/94 I had heard had a load of stock spoilt in a flood, but how true this is I don't know. Hence the rareness.
For the serious book/programme collectors, have you ever been to Pooks Bookshop near Leicester? I could spend days in there...

There was a bit on BBC Radio Nottingham ("Pensioner FM" as I like to call it) about autographed memorabilia becoming less valuable these days, as people nowadays have cameras in their phones etc and the autograph is being replaced by the photo of "me and celebrity X outside place Y".
Damn shame.
I got KR's auto at the 1980 Race of the Year at Mallory (I think, certainly Mallory, not 100% re the year. I can remmber the 100mph lap being done that year by KR, 48.6 seconds IIRC..) and it was a featureless scrawl, but I looked at it every 5 minutes for the next 6 weeks. In my defence, I was only 12 in 1980.

[mfd]

I got KR's auto at the 1980 Race of the Year at Mallory (I think, certainly Mallory, not 100% re the year. I can remmber the 100mph lap being done that year by KR, 48.6 seconds IIRC..) and it was a featureless scrawl, but I looked at it every 5 minutes for the next 6 weeks. In my defence, I was only 12 in 1980.

My KR autographs are scrawled too, however it is the same as the printed one on the Motocourse Champions introduction page. Interestingly (or not) he did 2 x Motocourse and the Coleman biography for me and his signature expands to fill the space available So I have two that are about ten inches long & one about four, but all identical Also IIRC, none of my books say to Mike not by choice but as it happens, the dedicated ones are less desirable.

[picblanc]

As far as I'm aware Mike that never happened, rather like most things planned from around that period...

Only 1976/1977 Motocourse had a limited reprint done @ the same time as the 1977/78 copy was released, their was an advert for it in Motorcycle Racing magazine @ the time, as far as I know no other years have ever been reprinted.

[mfd]

Only 1976/1977 Motocourse had a limited reprint done @ the same time as the 1977/78 copy was released, their was an advert for it in Motorcycle Racing magazine @ the time, as far as I know no other years have ever been reprinted.

Thanks for the explanation Graham, I didn't realise they did a 2nd edition (in 1977) It's funny I wore colour off the photos looking at that book many of the black & whites are so poor, but that was how it was then.

[Bjorn Kjer]

Post 6 : And at what price ?

[picblanc]

Post 6 : And at what price ?

£450.00