Archive for the ‘retronews’ Category

What Is It About Vintage Trek?

Tuesday, August 31st, 2010

Over the summer, my BRW co-author somervillain and I both acquired vintage Trek roadbikes. These events were completely unrelated, and the bicycles themselves are of different models and vintage. And yet we had similar reactions to these intriguing creatures.

Initially, somervillain had planned to “flip” his 1988 Trek 560. As an aggressive, racy roadbike, it was not really his style, he thought. But the more he tried riding it, the more surprised he was to discover that it was a comfortable and pleasant ride – despite the aggressive handling.

Fast forward a month and the bicycle became a keeper. Fenders were installed, handlebars wrapped in cork tape and shellacked, a bell was mounted, and a Carradice bag attached. Not your typical Trek 560 set-up, but who needs typical?

My 1982 Trek 610 was a similar experience. I wanted to try this type of roadbike just for fun, but did not expect to keep it. I already had a perfectly good touring bicycle and did not need anything more aggressive. Well, I guess I did need it, because the Trek remains with me and is ridden frequently. Like somervillain, what got me hooked is that (unlike other vintage roadbikes), the Trek feels comfortable despite its racy handling. Riding it is downright addictive.

Vintage Trek collecting is its own microcosm, and if you are interested in exploring it the best place to start is vintage-trek.com. There you can learn the date and model of your Trek by its serial number, and even find the specs of its build in scans of the original catalogues. These bicycles have a mystique and a cult following that I did not understand until I got one myself.

What Is It About Vintage Treks?

Sunday, August 29th, 2010

Over the summer, my BRW co-author somervillain and I both acquired vintage Trek roadbikes. These events were completely unrelated, and the bicycles themselves are of different models and vintage. And yet we had similar reactions to these intriguing creatures.

Initially, somervillain had planned to “flip” his 1988 Trek 560. As an aggressive, racy roadbike, it was not really his style, he thought. But the more he tried riding it, the more surprised he was to discover that it was a comfortable and pleasant ride – despite the aggressive handling.

Fast forward a month and the bicycle became a keeper. Fenders were installed, handlebars wrapped in cork tape and shellacked, a bell was mounted, and a Carradice bag attached. Not your typical Trek 560 set-up, but who needs typical?

My 1982 Trek 610 was a similar experience. I wanted to try this type of roadbike just for fun, but did not expect to keep it. I already had a perfectly good touring bicycle and did not need anything more aggressive. Well, I guess I did need it, because the Trek remains with me and is ridden frequently. Like somervillain, what got me hooked is that (unlike other vintage roadbikes), the Trek feels comfortable despite its racy handling. Riding it is downright addictive.

Vintage Trek collecting is its own microcosm, and if you are interested in exploring it the best place to start is vintage-trek.com. There you can learn the date and model of your Trek by its serial number, and even find the specs of its build in scans of the original catalogues. These bicycles have a mystique and a cult following that I did not understand until I got one myself.

What Is It About Vintage Treks?

Sunday, August 29th, 2010

Over the summer, my BRW co-author somervillain and I both acquired vintage Trek roadbikes. These events were completely unrelated, and the bicycles themselves are of different models and vintage. And yet we had similar reactions to these intriguing creatures.

Initially, somervillain had planned to “flip” his 1988 Trek 560. As an aggressive, racy roadbike, it was not really his style, he thought. But the more he tried riding it, the more surprised he was to discover that it was a comfortable and pleasant ride – despite the aggressive handling.

Fast forward a month and the bicycle became a keeper. Fenders were installed, handlebars wrapped in cork tape and shellacked, a bell was mounted, and a Carradice bag attached. Not your typical Trek 560 set-up, but who needs typical?

My 1982 Trek 610 was a similar experience. I wanted to try this type of roadbike just for fun, but did not expect to keep it. I already had a perfectly good touring bicycle and did not need anything more aggressive. Well, I guess I did need it, because the Trek remains with me and is ridden frequently. Like somervillain, what got me hooked is that (unlike other vintage roadbikes), the Trek feels comfortable despite its racy handling. Riding it is downright addictive.

Vintage Trek collecting is its own microcosm, and if you are interested in exploring it the best place to start is vintage-trek.com. There you can learn the date and model of your Trek by its serial number, and even find the specs of its build in scans of the original catalogues. These bicycles have a mystique and a cult following that I did not understand until I got one myself.

Early Raleigh Tourist and Raleigh Dawn Tourist

Monday, August 2nd, 2010

I am re-posting this from Lovely Bicycle, as I thought it might be of local interest. Great deal here on some rare bikes!

Today I visited the bicycle collector Neal Lerner and photographed some of his beautiful bikes. I am posting pictures of these two in particular – not only because they are rare and stunning, but because the owner is offering them for sale [note: both bicycles are now sold]. Here is more about the bicycles, for your viewing pleasure and for longevity:
The loop-frame bicycle is a 1938 Raleigh Lady’s Tourist. This model was the predecessor to the DL-1.  The frame is 22″ with 28″ wheels. It is a similar bicycle to the one I wrote about here; only this one is in ridable condition.
The main difference between the earlier Tourist and the later DL-1, is that the older bicycles are not quite as long – meaning that there is less distance between the saddle and handlebars. At the same time, they look “taller” than the DL-1, because the head tube extends quite a bit higher. Another difference, is that the older Tourists have a lugged connector between the downtube and the “loop” top tube which is absent from the later DL-1 model.
The handlebars on these older models are quite short and narrow – which makes sense, because of how closely the rider is seated to the bars.
The bicycle is in ridable condition and rolls surprisingly nicely (I’ve ridden it for a short distance).  The shifting needs to be worked on (the gears slip) and the rod brakes need to be adjusted, but it is a stable and buttery-smooth ride. Sadly, there is a piece missing from the rear of the chaincase; it is so difficult to find these chaincases intact. The shifter, saddle and grips are replacements and are not original to the 1938 model.
Being from the WWII period, this bicycle has some “blackout” components – including the headbadge.
The second bicycle in the pictures is one I’d never heard of before: It is a 1948 Raleigh Dawn Tourist. The Dawn Tourist was apparently the predecessor to the Sports. It was lighter and more agile than the original Tourist, and featured a straight step-through frame instead of a loop frame. The frame size of this bike is 21″ with 26″ wheels.
Unlike the later Sports, the Dawn had rod brakes, just like the Tourist did. However, its handlebars were wider and had considerably more “sweep”.
The seat-cluster of the Dawn looks just like that of the later Sports (whereas the seat clusters of the original Tourist and the later DL-1 were bolted together).
The rear fender with original glass reflector are in very clean condition on this bicycle. These reflectors are highly thought after (both of the bicycles pictured have them).
The middle bit is missing from the original full chaincase, but otherwise it is intact.
“The all-steel bicycle” is written on the downtube. The pain on this bicycle is in very nice, even glossy, condition throughout.
It is rare to see even one of these bicycles “in the wild”, let alone two – so I felt privileged to take these pictures before these beauties go to new homes. Hope you enjoyed the show and tell.
……..
Note: If you have a vintage bicycle to sell that you feel will be of interest to local readers, feel free to contact us about it. Please include good pictures and a description that is of historical interest. 

Early Raleigh Tourist and Raleigh Dawn Tourist – For Sale!

Sunday, August 1st, 2010

I am re-posting this from Lovely Bicycle, as I thought it might be of local interest. Great deal here on some rare bikes!

Today I visited the bicycle collector Neal Lerner and photographed some of his beautiful bikes. I am posting pictures of these two in particular – not only because they are rare and stunning, but because the owner is offering them for sale… for 0 each! If you are interested, please get in touch with him directly. Here is more about the bicycles, for your viewing pleasure and for longevity:
The loop-frame bicycle is a 1938 Raleigh Lady’s Tourist. This model was the predecessor to the DL-1.  The frame is 22″ with 28″ wheels. It is a similar bicycle to the one I wrote about here; only this one is in ridable condition.
The main difference between the earlier Tourist and the later DL-1, is that the older bicycles are not quite as long – meaning that there is less distance between the saddle and handlebars. At the same time, they look “taller” than the DL-1, because the head tube extends quite a bit higher. Another difference, is that the older Tourists have a lugged connector between the downtube and the “loop” top tube which is absent from the later DL-1 model.
The handlebars on these older models are quite short and narrow – which makes sense, because of how closely the rider is seated to the bars.
The bicycle is in ridable condition and rolls surprisingly nicely (I’ve ridden it for a short distance).  The shifting needs to be worked on (the gears slip) and the rod brakes need to be adjusted, but it is a stable and buttery-smooth ride. Sadly, there is a piece missing from the rear of the chaincase; it is so difficult to find these chaincases intact. The shifter, saddle and grips are replacements and are not original to the 1938 model.
Being from the WWII period, this bicycle has some “blackout” components – including the headbadge.
The second bicycle in the pictures is one I’d never heard of before: It is a 1948 Raleigh Dawn Tourist. The Dawn Tourist was apparently the predecessor to the Sports. It was lighter and more agile than the original Tourist, and featured a straight step-through frame instead of a loop frame. The frame size of this bike is 21″ with 26″ wheels.
Unlike the later Sports, the Dawn had rod brakes, just like the Tourist did. However, its handlebars were wider and had considerably more “sweep”.
The seat-cluster of the Dawn looks just like that of the later Sports (whereas the seat clusters of the original Tourist and the later DL-1 were bolted together).
The rear fender with original glass reflector are in very clean condition on this bicycle. These reflectors are highly thought after (both of the bicycles pictured have them).
The middle bit is missing from the original full chaincase, but otherwise it is intact.
“The all-steel bicycle” is written on the downtube. The pain on this bicycle is in very nice, even glossy, condition throughout.
It is rare to see even one of these bicycles “in the wild”, let alone two – so I felt privileged to take these pictures before these beauties go to new homes. Hope you enjoyed the show and tell.
……..
Note: If you have a vintage bicycle to sell that you feel will be of interest to local readers, feel free to contact us about it. Please include good pictures and a description that is of historical interest. 

Cataloging bike collections

Sunday, July 25th, 2010

As I began accumulating bikes over the past four years or so, I decided I needed a system for cataloging my bikes.  Occasionally I’m asked by others who see my bikes to provide them with “build lists”– detailed accountings of every component make and model on the bike. With one or two bikes, this information isn’t difficult to remember, but once you amass a small fleet of bikes, it becomes difficult to keep track of your builds. In addition, I’ve been cataloging the dimensions and geometries of my bikes, as well, to closely compare them. The reason is that when I find a bike with a comfortable fit, I can look back at the “spec sheet” and try to understand what dimensions and angles are associated with that comfortable fit. I can use that information to alter another bike by adjusting stems, seatposts, handlebars, etc, so that it can more closely match the bike whose fit I want to reproduce.

Thus, I began creating spec sheets for each of my bikes. To do this, I simply created an Excel worksheet for each bike. To spruce things up and “personalize” each spec sheet for the bike it describes, I used Excel’s border and fill colors to approximate the color scheme of the bike. If you don’t have Excel, most any word processor has basic table functions that can do the same job. And, most programs allows you to export the tables in pdf or jpg formats for posting online.

Here’s an example:  My Raleigh Competition GS. This is the bike:

And this is the spec sheet (click on it for full-size):

Easy!  Of course, keeping a database isn’t only pertinent to bikes, nor is it particularly novel.  But for someone who likes to keep track of a bike collection, it’s a neat and visually pleasing way of doing it. 

BRW June 20 Meet and Ride Report

Monday, June 21st, 2010

The Boston Retro Wheelmen had their third meet today. The agenda was coffee, a short ride, and a wheel truing workshop. It was a hot and humid day, with the threat of showers, but thankfully the rain held out until after the event was over!  To beat the heat before and after the ride, there were shady trees outside of Peet’s and, more importantly, in Cycler’s back yard for the truing workshop. In all, about a dozen people showed up.

Heading out from Harvard Square, we made a short pit-stop at Cycler’s house to drop off the truing stands for the truing workshop. We then headed out along Memorial Drive toward Watertown.

We looped back around Cambridge Cemetery, and headed back to the Square via Mt. Auburn Street.

No group ride is complete without a group shot, so we detoured through Longfellow Park to pose with our bikes.

Time trials, anyone?
Back through the Square, and off to Cycler’s house for Wheel Truing 101. Cycler graciously provided cookies and lemonade, in addition to the discarded practice wheels she picked from Menotomy Bikes for the exercise.  Brian and I provided the truing stands and spoke wrenches. Ironically, the salvaged wheels were perfectly true. No problem, Brian made some random spoke adjustments to one to throw it out of true, then demonstrated how to bring it back to lateral true-ness.

What quickly became apparent is that there is no one “correct” way to true a wheel: it’s a nuanced art and everyone has their own methods and tricks of the trade. Brian and I shared our own nuggets of truing wisdom, and I think everyone learned something– including me and Brian.
Thanks to everyone who made it today, and thanks to Cycler for the shady space, the practice wheels, and the lemonade and cookies! All in all a great time. Next meet will probably see a longer ride, but still end with a workshop. Ideas and input for the next workshop are welcome… Hub rebuilding? Headset rebuilding?
More photos from today’s event can be seen here.

BRW June 20 Meet and Ride Report

Monday, June 21st, 2010

The Boston Retro Wheelmen had their third meet today. The agenda was coffee, a short ride, and a wheel truing workshop. It was a hot and humid day, with the threat of showers, but thankfully the rain held out until after the event was over!  To beat the heat before and after the ride, there were shady trees outside of Peet’s and, more importantly, in Cycler’s back yard for the truing workshop. In all, about a dozen people showed up.

Heading out from Harvard Square, we made a short pit-stop at Cycler’s house to drop off the truing stands for the truing workshop. We then headed out along Memorial Drive toward Watertown.

We looped back around Cambridge Cemetery, and headed back to the Square via Mt. Auburn Street.

No group ride is complete without a group shot, so we detoured through Longfellow Park to pose with our bikes.

Time trials, anyone?
Back through the Square, and off to Cycler’s house for Wheel Truing 101. Cycler graciously provided cookies and lemonade, in addition to the discarded practice wheels she picked from Menotomy Bikes for the exercise.  Brian and I provided the truing stands and spoke wrenches. Ironically, the salvaged wheels were perfectly true. No problem, Brian made some random spoke adjustments to one to throw it out of true, then demonstrated how to bring it back to lateral true-ness.

What quickly became apparent is that there is no one “correct” way to true a wheel: it’s a nuanced art and everyone has their own methods and tricks of the trade. Brian and I shared our own nuggets of truing wisdom, and I think everyone learned something– including me and Brian.
Thanks to everyone who made it today, and thanks to Cycler for the shady space, the practice wheels, and the lemonade and cookies! All in all a great time. Next meet will probably see a longer ride, but still end with a workshop. Ideas and input for the next workshop are welcome… Hub rebuilding? Headset rebuilding?
More photos from today’s event can be seen here.

Male bonding

Friday, June 18th, 2010

With the girls away, the boys got to play. That is to say, Velouria’s co-habitant’s Motobecane and my Jeunet got to engage in some male-bonding sport and earn a little street cred without having to be on their best behavior in front of their “better halves”. After hittin’ the pavement and agitatin’ the gravel, the two fellas shared a proverbial pat on the sweaty back at the end of a spirited jaunt.



These guys look forward to being able to get together for more good times, maybe even doing some training together.

BRW group meet, ride and workshop: Sunday June 20

Wednesday, June 16th, 2010

Join us this Sunday, June 20th, for our 3rd Boston Retro Wheelmen group meet. This meet is going to be something of a departure from, and expansion of, the first two meets: this one will include Wheelmen’s first group ride, followed by our first hands-on workshop! The theme? Wheel truing! Need your wheels trued? Want to learn how to do it yourself? We’ll provide the truing stand, spoke wrenches and hands-on instruction to turn anyone into a pro in no time. You bring your wheel… and if you don’t feel like using the wheels you depend on daily as guinea pigs, Cycler might have some old salvaged wheels on hand to practice on.

Of course, you might have no interest in learning how to true your wheels. In that case, just come for a leisurely ride, talk shop with vintage bike fanatics, or simply show your your vintage ride (and ogle others’).

We’ll meet starting around 9:30 am at Peet’s Coffee, Harvard Square (corner of Mt. Auburn and JFK streets). There’s plenty of lawn space for the bikes and benches for hanging out while we coffee up.

Around 10:15 we’ll depart on a leisurely ride heading out of the square toward Fresh Pond, maybe working our way around the pond or around nearby Mt. Auburn Cemetery, and return to Peet’s around 11:15 to re-fuel and catch up with anyone else who wants to meet just for the workshop.

Back at Peet’s, we’ll head to Cycler’s house, just a few blocks away. Cycler has graciously offered her back yard for the wheel truing workshop. We’ll wrap up around 1:00.

Looking forward to seeing you and your vintage rides!