Crikey its quiet in here ..iet in here...in here... here..

General scooter chat, any scooter related non technical info.
johnny650
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only 2x posts yesterday and its well into summer ! where does everybody go to chat scoots these days ?

its just as quiet on the LCGB site too. :(

Are we seeing another decline in interest in scooters I wonder ? there seems to be a lot of stuff for sale on ebay these days that isn't getting sold for months at a time , if at all . You see the same stuff going round and round every week. :roll:
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LI150
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Hope there is a decline in price if interest is wavering but I don’t think it is just look at the numbers attending rallies especially Scarborough. I reckon it’s a loss in interest in forums. Most experts/dealers use their own Facebook accounts so there lies the interest imo.
mick1
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Forums have been in decline for some years. Facebook and other media being one of the reasons.

I also believe quite a few have left or no longer post, as most questions (technical and the like) have already been answered, with several posts repeating themselves. People get bored with the same questions being asked.

Some of the "big hitters" (technical guys who know their stuff) no longer post, and don't pose the technical questions that used to cause a lively debate. There doesn't seem to be any new blood coming through with the technical questions or originality.

The "scene" it self seems to doing ok with LCGB numbers and attendances increasing. The Nationals are becoming more auto orientated, with auto's that are pretty much ride and forget, with little customisation involved (no need for technical help on forums).

.........................obviously i may be wrong.........
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drunkmunkey6969
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The ease with which people can scroll and post on FB, and the sheer number of fragmented groups where people can 'fit in' and tell each other what they want to hear (or flame each other) makes social media an easy option to surf in a superficial manner. Especially on the ever popular 'smart' phones these days... always at hand, usually on the bog or when bored for a few minutes!

Forums are 'old tech' to a certain degree, which is a shame, because the quality of information on this one and some others is very high, as is the ability to retain that info in an archivable and searchable manner... always there for future reference.

Posts made on 'smart' phones are quite often reactionary, and not structured or thought out as well as ones crafted at a keyboard. There also tends to be a lot more inflammatory posts on social media, and posts made under the influence of booze. It's like the wild west of the internet!

The other thing is, that when this forum was first founded, it was done so under a glut of posts constantly crafted and regularly loaded, usually by myself, surrounding the work done at the Scooterotica garage by Sean and me. But with me now focusing on my position as the editor at Scootering magazine, and Sean working on his projects, there just doesn't seem to be that regular and consistent drive of interest in the subject matter anymore. One post often encourages another, and they snowball.

This is still a very welcoming, friendly, knowledgable, and useful place... with a large amount of regular traffic as people constantly search the archived info on here... I can see that from the stats. And there are certainly seasonal peaks n troughs with respect to fresh posts. But the new content is certainly not as high as it used to be. Shame really because FB is like a reel of bog roll... people capture a fleeting glance at a post or video for 2 minutes and then its scrolled past and disappears into the distance. FB feels instant, yet disposable. Whereas topics on here have much more 'legs' and duration about them. Such is life.
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johnny650
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couldn't agree more with all you've said especially the advantage of readily accessible archived info and the ability to expand posts into meaningful conversation instead of clipped abbreviated text speak from cellfones u no wot i men.....

Speaking from a purely selfish point of view as a retired senior citizen ahem.... I have lots of time to myself to mess about with my various passions and hobbies and I have really enjoyed sharing those daily experiences with others of a similar age group on these forums over the past 5 years .

There has also been a noticeable slowing down of interest in classic motorcycles too over the past 3-4 years . Fewer parts for sale on ebay and one of the most popular forums on the net for bikes the XS650.com forum has dwindled from 100s of post daily to as few as 30 these days.
I bought my XS650 79 special for £750 back in 2014 and now you couldn't buy a similar decent example for under £3-4000.

They are no longer fun classic vehicles accessible to everyone ...but expensive valuable investments for the well heeled

I suspect that the peak interest in these classic scoots and bikes has passd as the intense interest has driven prices well above what the average bloke can afford . Everything follows cycles and I think we are well and truly on the downturn but I may be wrong
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drunkmunkey6969
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Not sure we are on a downturn, traders are doing well, rally attendance is good, prices are holding. I think maybe things are just naturally evolving and developing down different avenues... (?)
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Tractorman
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Perhaps everyone was going to Seahouses!
Meds1
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Looking at the prices being asked for run of the mill scooters no wonder stuff isn’t moving. Stuff that’s worth the money is shifting.

I do miss the scooterotica builds and threads- it would have been interesting to follow a Quatrinni build along the same lines as the RT kit
johnny650
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Meds1 wrote: Sat May 18, 2019 7:04 pm

I do miss the scooterotica builds and threads- it would have been interesting to follow a Quatrinni build along the same lines as the RT kit
yeah me too...... :(
Its not just on here its quiet though I have noticed a sharp decline on a few other sites I used to visit daily like the XS650.com and the PCGB and Ford Transit site and others.
There is so much apathy too. Some posts receive over 200 views and not one person can be bothered to respond ?

I think once you lose those few members that used to post regularly and enthusiastically then everything just fizzles out and dies .
These forums are a real lifeline for many that are retired and maybe isolated , disabled or live alone .
Meds1
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Face blooks a much easier platform to build/video picture threads and control negative and trolling Input.
I’ve helped a few mates with wiring problems using Facebook built threads-
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