Do not open until Christmas

[[email protected]]

Oh, look, Santa brought me a copy of "Collecting & Restoring Antique
Bicycles" by G. Donald Adams!

(Actually, he didn't. It just happened to arrive today. If you like
these detailed photos, pictures, and texts about older bikes, buy
yourself a copy like I did. The fat guy in the red suit better bring
me a copy of Pryor Dodge's much more expensive "Bicycles," or someone
else is gonna get nagged for my birthday.)

***

~1868 Pickering velocipede front-wheel spokes, crank, and pedal
details:
http://i12.tinypic.com/89g36gm.jpg

About $110 to $155 back then. About a thousand times as much now.

***

Highwheeler mushroom mounting peg:
http://i1.tinypic.com/6uq7wk1.jpg

Who wants boring straight-peg mounting pegs?

***

Don't be afraid, there will be no deluge of highwheeler pictures,
though the book is full of them--weird handlebars and grips, odd
spokes, exposed seat mechanisms, how to put wire-center tires on them,
how to make new saddles, and so on.

That is, no deluge of normal highwheelers.

Everyone's seen the photo of the Star safety highwheeler descending
the Capitol steps, so here's a pair of Stars playing polo:
http://i13.tinypic.com/6ybsjmg.jpg

***

How do you stop and dismount from a Star, Eagle, or other
small-leading front-wheel safety highwheeler?
http://i9.tinypic.com/89tdfg8.jpg

Dismount first, then stop.

***

Gorgeous detail of Springfield Roadster highwheeler treadle mechanism:
http://i2.tinypic.com/6k5njo2.jpg

The guy on the right is posing next to one:
http://www.oldbike.com/Photo Gallery/bikers.jpg

The pedals wave up and down behind the axle.

***

First remote-steering Starley Rover safety, with enough detail to see
that the mounting peg is adjustable, like a seat post:
http://i11.tinypic.com/6k8y4ic.jpg

Nice coasting pegs, too.

***

Non-adjustable mounting peg on later normal-steering Starley Rover
safety, with a cross-frame on the far page:
http://i4.tinypic.com/6t59q46.jpg

So far, still no explanation why Starley moved to the cross-frame
Psycho shortly after the success of the Rover.

***

On the left, 1889 Columbia front suspension, coasting pegs, and enough
detail to see the old-style spoke bends that let the manufacturer
drill 18 holes straight into a hub flange instead of angling 9 holes
one way and 9 the other:
http://i12.tinypic.com/821jasy.jpg

On the right, a clear view of how an 1889 Columbia adjusted its chain
tension at the moveable bottom bracket.

***

A shop tried to sell me this kind of frame a few years ago as brand
new technology:
http://i4.tinypic.com/6pgdrow.jpg

The new bike lacked the dainty mounting peg, so I didn't buy it.

***

The pedals on the White Flyer go straight up and down:
http://i17.tinypic.com/82ntyj6.jpg

So much for pedalling in circles.

That's the author, G. Donald Adams, carefully trimmed so that he looks
as if he's riding an almost normal bicycle. Buy the book if you want
to see the truth.

***

Another double spread:
http://i18.tinypic.com/7wsyw79.jpg

On the left, a small table showing how solid and cushion (hollow
no-pressure) rubber tires were wiped out by pneumatics between 1890
and 1894. Dunlop patented the pneumatic tire on December 7th, 1888.

On the right, Victor's man-hole-in-the-rim valve, with
side-thumb-screw and clip. You have to look at it for a while to see
how it works. No wonder someone came up with the thin Presta and its
tiny hole in the rim.

***

On the left, Victor's straight-line sprocket with odd teeth to shed
mud and grit. I'd read about it elsewhere, but never seen a decent
picture:
http://i11.tinypic.com/6ufd9hs.jpg

On the right, the Victor Spinroller chainless shaft-drive, with odd
crank arms.

Sager sponsored Major Taylor on the same thing, supposedly more
efficient than ordinary gear-teeth on a shaft-drive:

http://books.google.com/books?id=FR...&lr=&as_brr=0&sig=r8EeYS8m4wWyKmtt1PY0fzO88Wk

***

Okay, so if rollers are better than gear teeth on shaft drives, why
not use rollers on chain drives?
http://i5.tinypic.com/8b6gvt5.jpg

Inch-pitch probably helps that design.

***

Everyone's seen the picture of the old safety bike with the Colt
machine gun mounted on the handlebar:
http://bulgier.net/pics/bike/CoolBikes/1896_army_bike.jpg

But that hardly seems Christmas-y, unless you like Futurama, so here's
a peaceful firefighter's bicycle:
http://i15.tinypic.com/6p48krk.jpg

So that's where you carry an axe on a bicycle!

***

On the left, a nice rear band brake and a gratuituous mounting peg.
Look closely, and you'll see one brazen little tie-and-solder peeking
saucily over the back of the hub:
http://i16.tinypic.com/8bzosnq.jpg

On the right, inch-pitch BioPace for Sheldon.

***

Where have I seen this crank before? It looks awfully familiar.
http://i3.tinypic.com/6kicdae.jpg

***

An odd seat post:
http://i3.tinypic.com/82by6nq.jpg

Note that the upper ends of the seatstays are just as weird. On that
frame, the seatstay bridge must be necessary. Nice view of the old
style seat front flaps, too.

***

You say that you want under-seat steering and different wheel sizes,
but not a recumbent:
http://i16.tinypic.com/89kmzkg.jpg

The rider faces to your left. It was supposed to promote good posture
by making the rider sit upright and not lean on the handlebar. Note
doohickey below downtube.

***

No, they're not cross-frame bikes like the Starley Psycho, but what
else can you call them? X-frames?
http://i5.tinypic.com/6stuu61.jpg

On the left, it's hard to see how crossing a mixte with a normal
diamond frame turned it into a featherweight model.

On the upper right, evolutionary improvement to a pure X top-tube.

And that's G. Donald Adams again, fully exposed this time on the lower
right while riding what he probably considers a boringly normal modern
bicycle.

If you like these pictures, his book has about 400 pages of such
stuff: "Collecting & Restoring Antique Bicycles."

***

I still want a bike stand like this, but I didn't order one in time
for Christmas:
http://i16.tinypic.com/6tf3yiu.jpg

Nice mounting peg, too. Note the ultra-light crank.

***

Hope Santa brought you something just as nice, rideable or readable.

Merry Christmas!

Carl Fogel

 

[Zoot Katz]

Okay
This one's a keeper too:

----
There was a bike shop in small Quebec town that was usually busy in
the run-up to Christmas however this year business was slow because
the local mill had been shut down. There were far more repairs than
new sales. One day, a young boy wandered in, dirty-faced, poorly
dressed and obviously from a not very well-to-do family. Although at
first the staff were worried about shoplifting, it soon became clear
that the child was harmless enough - he would just come in, look
closely, one at a time, at the new bikes that were being brought in
for the Christmas sales, and then stand out of the way in the corner
of the room and watch the men work. Whole mornings would pass this
way: the staff wheeling old and new bikes in and out, doing repairs,
joking, having coffee, laughing, working - all the while the young
boy watching silently and intently. And then, without warning, the
kid would just walk out and away to wherever he was from. But the
next day he'd always be back.

This went on for some time. He seemed to spend more and more time
watching the repair part of the shop. And then, one day, after a
large group of customers had just left, the young child made a
beeline over to where some of the men were working. He laid a rusty
old bolt on the counter in front of them.

'Excuse me,' he said politely, 'would you be able to put a bike on
this bolt?'

The men laughed. It took a child - a bike on a bolt instead of a bolt
on a bike! They hadn't realised how young the kid was. The boy wasn't
yet skilled at instrumental thinking. He'd grasped the thinking that
connected two objects, but didn't yet know the proper progression
between them.

Their laughter, even though it was not intended to be mean, stung the
boy. He didn't understand, but he knew something he had said must be
wrong. He backed away, looking up. They caught themselves and felt
badly but by that time the kid was gone. The men ran outside after
him. But he had disappeared like a flash and didn't return.

About a week later, with as little explanation as always, he was
back. This time, however, he was even more reluctant to make contact
with anyone at the store. He looked carefully at every new bike on
display, as always, carefully scrutinising each in turn. But this
time he kept his head down whenever anyone else came near. Then he
took up his accustomed place at the wall of the repair area, as if
he'd never left. But now his head was down, as if he were
embarrassed, or had done something wrong, and he kept fingering the
hole in his pants.

As the kid was making his silent exit, one of the men repairing bikes
called to him: 'hey kid!' He looked back. The men and women who
staffed the store were all there.

'You forgot your bolt.'

And with that one of the staff wheeled out and presented to the poor
child a freshly painted red bicycle made entirely from salvaged
parts that the mechanics had assembled on their own time.
-----

This story, sappy as it sounds, genuinely depicts the spirit of
cycling folk as I know them.
--
zk

 

[Scott Gordo]

On Dec 25, 1:57 am, [email protected] wrote:
> Oh, look, Santa brought me a copy of "Collecting & Restoring Antique
> Bicycles" by G. Donald Adams!
>
> (Actually, he didn't. It just happened to arrive today. If you like
> these detailed photos, pictures, and texts about older bikes, buy
> yourself a copy like I did. The fat guy in the red suit better bring
> me a copy of Pryor Dodge's much more expensive "Bicycles," or someone
> else is gonna get nagged for my birthday.)
>
> ***
>
> ~1868 Pickering velocipede front-wheel spokes, crank, and pedal
> details:
> http://i12.tinypic.com/89g36gm.jpg
>
> About $110 to $155 back then. About a thousand times as much now.
>
> ***
>
> Highwheeler mushroom mounting peg:
> http://i1.tinypic.com/6uq7wk1.jpg
>
> Who wants boring straight-peg mounting pegs?
>
> ***
>
> Don't be afraid, there will be no deluge of highwheeler pictures,
> though the book is full of them--weird handlebars and grips, odd
> spokes, exposed seat mechanisms, how to put wire-center tires on them,
> how to make new saddles, and so on.
>
> That is, no deluge of normal highwheelers.
>
> Everyone's seen the photo of the Star safety highwheeler descending
> the Capitol steps, so here's a pair of Stars playing polo:
> http://i13.tinypic.com/6ybsjmg.jpg
>
> ***
>
> How do you stop and dismount from a Star, Eagle, or other
> small-leading front-wheel safety highwheeler?
> http://i9.tinypic.com/89tdfg8.jpg
>
> Dismount first, then stop.
>
> ***
>
> Gorgeous detail of Springfield Roadster highwheeler treadle mechanism:
> http://i2.tinypic.com/6k5njo2.jpg
>
> The guy on the right is posing next to one:
> http://www.oldbike.com/Photo Gallery/bikers.jpg
>
> The pedals wave up and down behind the axle.
>
> ***
>
> First remote-steering Starley Rover safety, with enough detail to see
> that the mounting peg is adjustable, like a seat post:
> http://i11.tinypic.com/6k8y4ic.jpg
>
> Nice coasting pegs, too.
>
> ***
>
> Non-adjustable mounting peg on later normal-steering Starley Rover
> safety, with a cross-frame on the far page:
> http://i4.tinypic.com/6t59q46.jpg
>
> So far, still no explanation why Starley moved to the cross-frame
> Psycho shortly after the success of the Rover.
>
> ***
>
> On the left, 1889 Columbia front suspension, coasting pegs, and enough
> detail to see the old-style spoke bends that let the manufacturer
> drill 18 holes straight into a hub flange instead of angling 9 holes
> one way and 9 the other:
> http://i12.tinypic.com/821jasy.jpg
>
> On the right, a clear view of how an 1889 Columbia adjusted its chain
> tension at the moveable bottom bracket.
>
> ***
>
> A shop tried to sell me this kind of frame a few years ago as brand
> new technology:
> http://i4.tinypic.com/6pgdrow.jpg
>
> The new bike lacked the dainty mounting peg, so I didn't buy it.
>
> ***
>
> The pedals on the White Flyer go straight up and down:
> http://i17.tinypic.com/82ntyj6.jpg
>
> So much for pedalling in circles.
>
> That's the author, G. Donald Adams, carefully trimmed so that he looks
> as if he's riding an almost normal bicycle. Buy the book if you want
> to see the truth.
>
> ***
>
> Another double spread:
> http://i18.tinypic.com/7wsyw79.jpg
>
> On the left, a small table showing how solid and cushion (hollow
> no-pressure) rubber tires were wiped out by pneumatics between 1890
> and 1894. Dunlop patented the pneumatic tire on December 7th, 1888.
>
> On the right, Victor's man-hole-in-the-rim valve, with
> side-thumb-screw and clip. You have to look at it for a while to see
> how it works. No wonder someone came up with the thin Presta and its
> tiny hole in the rim.
>
> ***
>
> On the left, Victor's straight-line sprocket with odd teeth to shed
> mud and grit. I'd read about it elsewhere, but never seen a decent
> picture:
> http://i11.tinypic.com/6ufd9hs.jpg
>
> On the right, the Victor Spinroller chainless shaft-drive, with odd
> crank arms.
>
> Sager sponsored Major Taylor on the same thing, supposedly more
> efficient than ordinary gear-teeth on a shaft-drive:
>
> http://books.google.com/books?id=FRB-StA4vZ8C&pg=PA35&dq=sager+chainl...
>
> ***
>
> Okay, so if rollers are better than gear teeth on shaft drives, why
> not use rollers on chain drives?
> http://i5.tinypic.com/8b6gvt5.jpg
>
> Inch-pitch probably helps that design.
>
> ***
>
> Everyone's seen the picture of the old safety bike with the Colt
> machine gun mounted on the handlebar:
> http://bulgier.net/pics/bike/CoolBikes/1896_army_bike.jpg
>
> But that hardly seems Christmas-y, unless you like Futurama, so here's
> a peaceful firefighter's bicycle:
> http://i15.tinypic.com/6p48krk.jpg
>
> So that's where you carry an axe on a bicycle!
>
> ***
>
> On the left, a nice rear band brake and a gratuituous mounting peg.
> Look closely, and you'll see one brazen little tie-and-solder peeking
> saucily over the back of the hub:
> http://i16.tinypic.com/8bzosnq.jpg
>
> On the right, inch-pitch BioPace for Sheldon.
>
> ***
>
> Where have I seen this crank before? It looks awfully familiar.
> http://i3.tinypic.com/6kicdae.jpg
>
> ***
>
> An odd seat post:
> http://i3.tinypic.com/82by6nq.jpg
>
> Note that the upper ends of the seatstays are just as weird. On that
> frame, the seatstay bridge must be necessary. Nice view of the old
> style seat front flaps, too.
>
> ***
>
> You say that you want under-seat steering and different wheel sizes,
> but not a recumbent:
> http://i16.tinypic.com/89kmzkg.jpg
>
> The rider faces to your left. It was supposed to promote good posture
> by making the rider sit upright and not lean on the handlebar. Note
> doohickey below downtube.
>
> ***
>
> No, they're not cross-frame bikes like the Starley Psycho, but what
> else can you call them? X-frames?
> http://i5.tinypic.com/6stuu61.jpg
>
> On the left, it's hard to see how crossing a mixte with a normal
> diamond frame turned it into a featherweight model.
>
> On the upper right, evolutionary improvement to a pure X top-tube.
>
> And that's G. Donald Adams again, fully exposed this time on the lower
> right while riding what he probably considers a boringly normal modern
> bicycle.
>
> If you like these pictures, his book has about 400 pages of such
> stuff: "Collecting & Restoring Antique Bicycles."
>
> ***
>
> I still want a bike stand like this, but I didn't order one in time
> for Christmas:
> http://i16.tinypic.com/6tf3yiu.jpg
>
> Nice mounting peg, too. Note the ultra-light crank.
>
> ***
>
> Hope Santa brought you something just as nice, rideable or readable.
>
> Merry Christmas!
>
> Carl Fogel

Thanks. Great stuff! There's a Bicycle Museum down in Freehold, NJ I'm
hoping to visit over the next month or so. I'll take some pics (if
that's kosher with the man in charge.)

What _is_ that doohickey on the bottom of the not-a-recumbent?

/s

 

[[email protected]]

On Tue, 25 Dec 2007 07:32:04 -0800 (PST), Scott Gordo
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On Dec 25, 1:57 am, [email protected] wrote:

>> You say that you want under-seat steering and different wheel sizes,
>> but not a recumbent:
>> http://i16.tinypic.com/89kmzkg.jpg
>>
>> The rider faces to your left. It was supposed to promote good posture
>> by making the rider sit upright and not lean on the handlebar. Note
>> doohickey below downtube.

>Thanks. Great stuff! There's a Bicycle Museum down in Freehold, NJ I'm
>hoping to visit over the next month or so. I'll take some pics (if
>that's kosher with the man in charge.)
>
>What _is_ that doohickey on the bottom of the not-a-recumbent?

Dear Scott,

Well, it could be a turnbuckle strut in tension, but it's hard to see
what good it would do, being so small and at such a poor angle. But
its pull could be intended to prevent the long steering tube from
bending and binding.

Or it might be a spring in tension that acts as a primitive
motorcycle-style steering damper.

The text gives no clue:

"The Upright"

"Distributed by Herbert Torrrey of Boston, Mass., the Upright bicycle
of the mid-1890s (Fig. 7-48) was claimed to be the only one having
unqualified approval of all physicians. Its frame design enforced the
rider's sitting in an upright position, a posture favored by most
physicians at that time. The handlebar, which was of British design
and was called the Whattan, curved around the back of the rider to
provide a convenient pull when the rider was sitting perfectly
uprgiht."

"It is not known how many Uprights were sold, but there is one a
private American collection."

Google turns up nothing for Herb, his bike, or the Whattan handlebar,
much less that doohickey.

Cheers,

Carl Fogel

 

[[email protected]]

On Mon, 24 Dec 2007 23:57:40 -0700, [email protected] wrote:

>Don't be afraid, there will be no deluge of highwheeler pictures,
>though the book is full of them--weird handlebars and grips, odd
>spokes, exposed seat mechanisms, how to put wire-center tires on them,
>how to make new saddles, and so on.
>
>That is, no deluge of normal highwheelers.
>
>Everyone's seen the photo of the Star safety highwheeler descending
>the Capitol steps, so here's a pair of Stars playing polo:
> http://i13.tinypic.com/6ybsjmg.jpg
>
>***
>
>How do you stop and dismount from a Star, Eagle, or other
>small-leading front-wheel safety highwheeler?
> http://i9.tinypic.com/89tdfg8.jpg
>
>Dismount first, then stop.

An email complains that everyone has not seen the photo of the Star
safety highwheeler descending the Capitol steps, so . . .
http://i11.tinypic.com/8ak80wj.jpg

The wee-hours claim isn't supported by the shadows cast by both the
rider and the lamp above him (which is unlit).

Cheers,

Carl Fogel

 

[[email protected]]

On Mon, 24 Dec 2007 23:57:40 -0700, [email protected] wrote:

>I still want a bike stand like this, but I didn't order one in time
>for Christmas:
> http://i16.tinypic.com/6tf3yiu.jpg

It turns out that there are attachments:


http://www.auctionflex.com/showlot....tand&lotsortorder=lotnumasc&pagenum=1&action=

I'll wait for the price to drop.

Cheers,

Carl Fogel

 

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] wrote:

> On Tue, 25 Dec 2007 07:32:04 -0800 (PST), Scott Gordo
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >On Dec 25, 1:57 am, [email protected] wrote:
>
> >> You say that you want under-seat steering and different wheel sizes,
> >> but not a recumbent:
> >> http://i16.tinypic.com/89kmzkg.jpg
> >>
> >> The rider faces to your left. It was supposed to promote good posture
> >> by making the rider sit upright and not lean on the handlebar. Note
> >> doohickey below downtube.
>
> >Thanks. Great stuff! There's a Bicycle Museum down in Freehold, NJ I'm
> >hoping to visit over the next month or so. I'll take some pics (if
> >that's kosher with the man in charge.)
> >
> >What _is_ that doohickey on the bottom of the not-a-recumbent?
>
> Dear Scott,
>
> Well, it could be a turnbuckle strut in tension, but it's hard to see
> what good it would do, being so small and at such a poor angle. But
> its pull could be intended to prevent the long steering tube from
> bending and binding.
>
> Or it might be a spring in tension that acts as a primitive
> motorcycle-style steering damper.
>
> The text gives no clue:
>
> "The Upright"
>
> "Distributed by Herbert Torrrey of Boston, Mass., the Upright bicycle
> of the mid-1890s (Fig. 7-48) was claimed to be the only one having
> unqualified approval of all physicians. Its frame design enforced the
> rider's sitting in an upright position, a posture favored by most
> physicians at that time. The handlebar, which was of British design
> and was called the Whattan, curved around the back of the rider to
> provide a convenient pull when the rider was sitting perfectly
> uprgiht."

I have seen similar springs on city bikes. It's probably not so much a
steering damper as a travel limiter and spring-recentering device.

The steering geometry of that bike is whack-a-doodle-ding-dong, and it
probably suffers from really bad wheel flop. But in city bikes, the
return spring is mainly for keeping the wheel straight while parked, and
for preventing the bars from whacking the top tube, especially possible
when the front basket is loaded.

--
Ryan Cousineau [email protected] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"My scenarios may give the impression I could be an excellent crook.
Not true - I am a talented lawyer." - Sandy in rec.bicycles.racing