Youtube- how Brooks saddle are made

Shame it is not in English, but still worth watching. I just starting riding a Brooks Swift after many years using Brooks Professionals on my fast bikes. It is very nice. My city bikes have always been Brooks B-72.

More information on Brooks is at their official website HERE

Anjou Vélo Vintage in France this summer

Anjou Vélo Vintage is a new Classic Rendezvous friendly event(CR has nothing to do with this event) happening in France this June. It is intended to help merge vintage bicycles, food, cycling heritage and camaraderie. Bikes are to be be made before 1987 and riders are to be dressed in period attire. Like in this video below.
If anyone who is fluent in French can translate what the use of white wrapping around his ankles is about, I would gratefully appreciate it. I have seen it used in old photos of racers before too, but I have no real idea, only guesses.

The ride is June 19th, 2011, and is the Loire valley region of France. Looking at profile maps of the ride, it appears to be rather flat. There are 3 lengths to choose from-30, 73, and 99km routes.

More info for the ride is HERE on their website(all french as well)

Random recent pictures taken around the office

some random pictures of some cool things around the shop and some recently sold pieces.

A nice display of handlebar double waterbottle cages.(Coloral, Simplex, etc)

I have never seen this Huret Allvit decal before, found on a lower end French bicycle.

Gran Compe 450 front brake

BSA Continental De Luxe front hub.

Humber headbadge.

Yellow Jo Routens Touring/Camping bicycle

At the Copake bicycle swap meet, there was an inaugural bicycle ride(see earlier post). A fellow Classic Rendezvous member showed up with this beautiful Jo Routens bicycle to ride. It is rather difficult to find one this large and it is interesting to see how the builder dealt with the size of the frame, by gusseting the lugs, to help stiffen and strengthen the frame. It must have been a 1940s-1950s model, with the use of the Le Chat style front derailleur. This french bicycle is outfitted with the obligatory Cyclo rear derailleur, Stronglight cranks and headset, Mafac brakes(happen to be the tandem model), and of course, an alloy rail Ideale saddle. It was built for 650b wheels, common among french camping and touring model bicycles.
I love the routing of the rear brake cable through the seattube. This is done usually by slotting the seatpost so the cable can run through the seattube unobstructed.

A history of Jo Routens can be found here.

(click on pictures to enlarge)

Chandez curved cranks

Chandez cranks, manuf. by Chalaye of St.Etienne, used by Harry Grant for hour motor-paced record.

These are an interesting find because they are for a square taper spindle, whereas the others I have ever seen have all been the cottered crank design.

from Peter Brueggeman's website of his beautiful Hetchins-

"...Harry Grant ... at his first successful attempt on the hour motor-paced record at the Parc des Princes, Paris, July 1932 and paced by Leon Vanderstufyt on a massive pacing machine with a roller 60cm behind the rear wheel, he broke the world records for five, 10 and 50km going on to set a new distance for the hour record of 52 miles 215 yards riding a Selbach taper tube pacing machine...."- Hilary Stone

vintage packaging for various chainrings

I have always liked bicycle ephemera with an affinity toward paper-catalogs and packaging. Below are some of the envelopes that chainrings were packaged in.

I love the boastfulness of this Stronglight envelope. (what didn't they win!)

For the Stronglight Mod. 63 Super Competition chainring

TA's logo was simple and beautiful

Earlier Campagnolo envelope, for 1"pitch track chainring.

early 1980s Campagnolo track chainring envelope.

French Aluminum cottered crank arm

This French aluminum cottered crank arm was manufactured after WWII in the late 1940s. Stronglight had already been manufacturing aluminum cotterless cranks for over a decade, so it seems a little strange that manufacturers didn't all move toward using square taper crankarms over cottered. All that said, TA did introduce their Criterium crankset that employed a cotterpin-like system on a pear shaped spindle around 1961, well after Campagnolo had started producing their iconic Record crankset using a square tapered spindle.

TA waterbottles

Nice selection of various TA waterbottles. I wonder what I would put in the hip flask?

Copake NY bicycle swap meet pictures pt.2

A hobby horse, precursor to the what we know as the bicycle. The rider would straddle the bicycle, and push along, it was before they employed pedals and drivetrains and tires and . . .you get the idea.

All the bells and whistles on this Monark Silver King. What a beautiful late 1930s aluminum bicycle.

A mid 1960s Schwinn Paramount that was for sale at the Copake swap. The handlebars and saddle were changed, to make it more casual.

Nice pile of Schwinn balloon tire bikes- Black Phantoms and such.

Jo Routens touring/camping 650b bicycle.
it was not for sale
(more pictures here)

Perkiomen trail ride

Nice 99.5 mile ride yesterday that included some great miles on the Perkiomen trail. It's nice to ride on gravel road closed off to cars. Sure it is relatively flat, but the slower pace because of the surface let's the surroundings sink in.


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Copake NY bicycle swap meet pictures pt.1

Here is the first series of interesting bicycles found at Copake Auctions annual swap meet. The weather this year was absolutely beautiful.

Unknown French build with modified Stronglight crankarms, Prior hubs, Lefol fenders, 650b wheels. Beautiful chrome bike, definitely in the "chrome bike club!'

1930s? Stayer bike frame. BSA fits on it and wooden rear wheel. this would take a smaller(24") front wheel and the fork would be turned around "backwards" so the rider could draft as close as possible behind a motorcycle.

very nicely restored 1880s Tricycle

Pair of late 1940s, early 1950s Shelby Donald Duck bicycles.

restored turn of the century pneumatic safeties.

Copake auction bike ride

First time the Copake Auction decided to hold a bike ride after the annual swap meet was better attended than anyone would have expected. The Wheelmen took part leading to quite a display of early bicycles. I really hope this becomes an annual event as it is an excellent chance to see what some collectors regard as coveted museum pieces being used for what they are, machines.
(pictures of the swap meet to come later)



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Hill Cycle show bike- Drillium at it's finest

A beautiful early 1970s Holdsworth decaled as a Hill Cycle, the premier pro cycling shop for many decades in the Philadelphia area. This was the show bike, detailing some of the high quality drillium that they were capable of doing. Back in the early 1970s, drilling and milling parts was all the rage in the pro-cycling world. Sure there was a limit to how much material could be taken out, but there was only one way to find out.
Check out the brake levers and the chainrings look like swiss cheese! The derailleur jockey wheels are even drilled for weight savings.

(some articles on Drillium is found HERE)

Via Bicycle open Sundays

The bike shop is now open Sundays for the spring and summer. 10-2pm. It is open for repairs and sales, not rare bike stuff though.

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