C
I was browsing old catalogues and a testimonial letter caught my eye:
http://www.nostalgic.net/pictures/796.htm
From 1900 to 1930, he rode 65,000 miles out of Gunnison, deep in the
Colorado Rockies, back when the roads were almost all dirt, back and
forth over the Continental Divide 8 times, numerous passes, and so on.
(True, that's only 2,000 miles per year, but consider the snow in
Gunnison and the Rockies and riding dirt roads on a single-speed
shaft-drive no-brake fixie, Columbia model 65.)
His left crank broke the first year, a manufacturing flaw.
One front wheel cone wore out, and the rear wheel failed at the splice
(probably what we call the rim joint), both after 24 years.
A front crank race wore out after 28 years.
When I looked for a 1900 Columbia model 65, I got lucky--here are 12
pictures of a model 65 from 1900 on eBay. His spokes, for example, may
have lasted because they were a weird no-bend ball-end instead of a
normal elbow (see 4th picture).
01 view from left indoors, showing metal or maybe "armored" wheels
(metal-sheathed wood), maybe clincher, maybe cement rim:
http://i22.tinypic.com/29loaz7.jpg
02 view of shaft drive, showing oil filler cap, plus left rear
mounting peg (stand on it with your left foot and push to get going),
offset spoke holes, and--very tiny--special tie-and-solder fittings:
http://i20.tinypic.com/2yotyc2.jpg
03 view looking down at oil filler cap, showing crank and cross-brace
over chain--er, lower stays:
http://i20.tinypic.com/aui6fl.jpg
04 Weird ball-end spokes, tie-and-solder pieces, rear mounting peg,
note the odd hub drilling for the ball-ends (hard to tell if there are
grooves leading out of the holes in the hub):
http://i22.tinypic.com/wrbapw.jpg
05 rear of shaft drive, with a tie-and-solder dingus visible, plus
some badly bent spokes:
http://i22.tinypic.com/10rpurt.jpg
06 odd pedal shape, symmetrical inner flanges, but only a single outer
flange:
http://i23.tinypic.com/287oeg4.jpg
07 Columbia model 65 badge (There was a lady's model, and the 66 came
out later the same year):
http://i24.tinypic.com/9jio28.jpg
08 seat, old-fashioned seat post design and massive springs:
http://i22.tinypic.com/r25dzc.jpg
09 Maybe the seat post clamping bolt:
http://i20.tinypic.com/33m8yaa.jpg
10 wooden grip with tattered wrapping:
http://i23.tinypic.com/hvvz3m.jpg
11 Mass-production tie-and-solder dinguses, sort of like little round
clips (I keep looking for them in catalogues):
http://i22.tinypic.com/xbbjpg.jpg
12 view from left outdoors:
http://i21.tinypic.com/2u5yjpu.jpg
Cheers,
Carl Fogel
http://www.nostalgic.net/pictures/796.htm
From 1900 to 1930, he rode 65,000 miles out of Gunnison, deep in the
Colorado Rockies, back when the roads were almost all dirt, back and
forth over the Continental Divide 8 times, numerous passes, and so on.
(True, that's only 2,000 miles per year, but consider the snow in
Gunnison and the Rockies and riding dirt roads on a single-speed
shaft-drive no-brake fixie, Columbia model 65.)
His left crank broke the first year, a manufacturing flaw.
One front wheel cone wore out, and the rear wheel failed at the splice
(probably what we call the rim joint), both after 24 years.
A front crank race wore out after 28 years.
When I looked for a 1900 Columbia model 65, I got lucky--here are 12
pictures of a model 65 from 1900 on eBay. His spokes, for example, may
have lasted because they were a weird no-bend ball-end instead of a
normal elbow (see 4th picture).
01 view from left indoors, showing metal or maybe "armored" wheels
(metal-sheathed wood), maybe clincher, maybe cement rim:
http://i22.tinypic.com/29loaz7.jpg
02 view of shaft drive, showing oil filler cap, plus left rear
mounting peg (stand on it with your left foot and push to get going),
offset spoke holes, and--very tiny--special tie-and-solder fittings:
http://i20.tinypic.com/2yotyc2.jpg
03 view looking down at oil filler cap, showing crank and cross-brace
over chain--er, lower stays:
http://i20.tinypic.com/aui6fl.jpg
04 Weird ball-end spokes, tie-and-solder pieces, rear mounting peg,
note the odd hub drilling for the ball-ends (hard to tell if there are
grooves leading out of the holes in the hub):
http://i22.tinypic.com/wrbapw.jpg
05 rear of shaft drive, with a tie-and-solder dingus visible, plus
some badly bent spokes:
http://i22.tinypic.com/10rpurt.jpg
06 odd pedal shape, symmetrical inner flanges, but only a single outer
flange:
http://i23.tinypic.com/287oeg4.jpg
07 Columbia model 65 badge (There was a lady's model, and the 66 came
out later the same year):
http://i24.tinypic.com/9jio28.jpg
08 seat, old-fashioned seat post design and massive springs:
http://i22.tinypic.com/r25dzc.jpg
09 Maybe the seat post clamping bolt:
http://i20.tinypic.com/33m8yaa.jpg
10 wooden grip with tattered wrapping:
http://i23.tinypic.com/hvvz3m.jpg
11 Mass-production tie-and-solder dinguses, sort of like little round
clips (I keep looking for them in catalogues):
http://i22.tinypic.com/xbbjpg.jpg
12 view from left outdoors:
http://i21.tinypic.com/2u5yjpu.jpg
Cheers,
Carl Fogel
