Cycling UK Forum

We still occasionally ride an ancient tandem that the guy we got it from reckoned was pre-war. We done a bit of research on it and think it may be a 1938 Freddy Grubb. The cranks and chainrings look as old as the bike. They're solid steel and have no visible wear. Most of the other bits on it are modern though.

My Gillott is from the 1950s I think (older than me)
B17 is a bit tired, that and the bars have not been changed since I bought the machine 1982

Who is using the oldest tyres?

A friend showed me this.
I thought it quite neat.
It's pretty old.
An oil can but it fits into the handlebar end.
For touring in days of yore no doubt.

We have a late 60s Dawes Kingpin (non-folding). It is proportioned small for a child, but the shopper type design is such that it can be ridden by the same child for several years. Mini V has now outgrown it, and Littlest rides it some. He also has a Giant MTB, but the BB is higher, and he's still more comfortable on the Dawes. It's been a great bike for us. Mini V rode it for almost 4 years.

The orginal parts are:
frame (cleaned & resprayed)
handlebars, stem and headset (new bearings in 2011)
bottom bracket & crank (new bearings 2011)
chainring and sprocket
seat pin (new saddle & clamp)
mudguards & rack
wheels (I keep meaning to replace them with alloy ones, but haven't gotten round to it)
Weinmann brake levers & brakes (new pads & cables)

The tyres I got it with are useable, but not nice. I don't think they were the original ones, but certainly date from the 70s. The rim tape looked like my granny knitted it

p.s. nothing like some of the older stuff on here, but there probably aren't many children's bike parts so old that are still in use!

Vorpal wrote:We have a late 60s Dawes Kingpin (non-folding). It is proportioned small for a child, but the shopper type design is such that it can be ridden by the same child for several years. Mini V has now outgrown it, and Littlest rides it some. He also has a Giant MTB, but the BB is higher, and he's still more comfortable on the Dawes. It's been a great bike for us. Mini V rode it for almost 4 years.

The orginal parts are:
frame (cleaned & resprayed)
handlebars, stem and headset (new bearings in 2011)
bottom bracket & crank (new bearings 2011)
chainring and sprocket
seat pin (new saddle & clamp)
mudguards & rack
wheels (I keep meaning to replace them with alloy ones, but haven't gotten round to it)
Weinmann brake levers & brakes (new pads & cables)

The tyres I got it with are useable, but not nice. I don't think they were the original ones, but certainly date from the 70s. The rim tape looked like my granny knitted it

p.s. nothing like some of the older stuff on here, but there probably aren't many children's bike parts so old that are still in use!

Kiddies bikes are so sweet, just like kiddies
But unless one has many children or lives in a commune they may have to go. Or maybe one could put them away for 20+ years until the grandchildren come along, the bikes should last well, never do many miles
The same with childrens clothes, I saw a new business planning to hire them out
Rdwyn hofi plentyn/we love children!

I will probably keep the Dawes. My own blood, sweat & tears went into making it useable

Other outgrown kids bikes will go. I've already given some away to neighbor kids. Until quite recently, all of the bikes the kids have had were acquired free or low cost (max £30) because they needed some TLC, including the Dawes. Mini V commutes to school by bike when the weather is decent (she takes the bus now; she won't ride in winter). She had outgrown her last bike and needed something reliable. I didn't find anything used in her size that was suitable, so I bought her a new Trek 7.2 FX. She rode it every week day from the start of school until freezing weather arrived at the end of October.

As the other bikes haven't cost us much, I've been happy to just give them away to someone who will use them.

IIRC the Dawes Kingpin uses 500A (440) size tyres. These have been hovering dangerously on the verge of extinction for at least 30 years! But you can still (just...) buy them in the UK which is testament to the durability of the Kingpin, which is pretty much the only bike that was ever sold here in any quantity with this size tyres fitted.

What you can't do (at all I think) is buy aluminium rims in this size, so if you want aluminium rims it is something like 406 (which requires a 12mm increase in an already long brake drop or (a better fit brake-wise) 20x1-3/8" (451) size rims and tyres instead. Of course there is no guarantee that these will continue to be available, either.... But I have occasionally sourced some nice rims (Sun CR18 in 36 drilling for example) in the 451 size.

cheers

Brucey wrote:IIRC the Dawes Kingpin uses 500A (440) size tyres. These have been hovering dangerously on the verge of extinction for at least 30 years! ...

Like the dinosaurs, they may last awhile yet
What can one do if tyres/rims are unobtainable?
I would wager that a good handyperson could modify rims of the next larger size, just cut them down a bit. But what about spoke holes?
Might be a bit harder with tyres

Vorpal wrote:We have a late 60s Dawes Kingpin (non-folding). It is proportioned small for a child, but the shopper type design is such that it can be ridden by the same child for several years. Mini V has now outgrown it, and Littlest rides it some. He also has a Giant MTB, but the BB is higher, and he's still more comfortable on the Dawes. It's been a great bike for us. Mini V rode it for almost 4 years.

The orginal parts are:
frame (cleaned & resprayed)
handlebars, stem and headset (new bearings in 2011)
bottom bracket & crank (new bearings 2011)
chainring and sprocket
seat pin (new saddle & clamp)
mudguards & rack
wheels (I keep meaning to replace them with alloy ones, but haven't gotten round to it)
Weinmann brake levers & brakes (new pads & cables)

The tyres I got it with are useable, but not nice. I don't think they were the original ones, but certainly date from the 70s. The rim tape looked like my granny knitted it

p.s. nothing like some of the older stuff on here, but there probably aren't many children's bike parts so old that are still in use!

I've a pair of 19676 folding ones. Very useful and handy bikes. I use them for shopping, fold up and throw in the car on holiday etc. I converted one to 406 wheels by using a diy drop bolt to lower the brake. I still have the original 500a wheels and tyres but the rubber is coming adrift from the tyre carcas on one wheel.


and heres the other.

My Mercian frame is from 1971. The bike was refurbished in 1996 so many parts date from then.

Anyone riding an older frame?

Al

I too have a Dawes Kingpin folder, from 1973. Suitably modified to uprate brakes and lower gearing. It even has the tartan cardboard rack bag.
I have a 1956 Higgins Ultralite, and all of my machines have parts that date back to 70s/80s, even my newest which is 2012 with mostly modern parts.

al_yrpal wrote:My Mercian frame is from 1971. The bike was refurbished in 1996 so many parts date from then.
Anyone riding an older frame?
Al

Riding?
I could ride it as it's in full working order and have ridden it in the last year or so.

My Raleigh RSW16 as shown up thread.

Not mine, but when I worked in our LBS 20 years ago, and American customer has a restored 1908 something or other. After he returned to the US, he phoned up about getting a 28 X 1 1/2" rear wheel as the original got bent, and he could no longer do his morning commute into Phildelphia that he had been using it for.

i inherited a huge array of tools recently. beautiful things some of them. made in england too!lovely signs of real use on them too. they mean alot to me.

what's in your toolbox that has some age that you still use on your bike?

ps. my hub in the OP is no longer

PDQ Mobile wrote:A friend showed me this.
I thought it quite neat.
It's pretty old.
An oil can but it fits into the handlebar end.
For touring in days of yore no doubt.
image.jpg

I have one of those tucked away in the garage somewhere!