Cycling UK Forum

Hello,
I think this particular section of the forum is probably the best place to put this post. Is there anyone here who might know the History of "Falcon Cyles"?

I have done searches on the net and to be honest I am somewhat confused and I just wonder if anyone here can maybe unlock a few facts.

My interest in this builder is because I was the proud owner ,in Late 1964, of a Falcon Olmpic, and I just wish i still had it! Now this was back in 64 and the Falcon range then was considered to be an above average branding my olympic cost I think about £36 , this was a decent sum to pay for a bike back then I think the Team replica San Romo was about twice that price.

Mine was ordered with Campag Gran Sport 5 speed, it had alloy rims and large flange hubs, the finish was metallic Lime green with black contrasting panels on the seat tube, brakes Weinmann centre pull. The frame, Reynolds 531, had the classic Falcon wrap round seat stays also. The later feature, as far as I am concerned meant this was a real falcon made well before that name seems to be used as a Low entry brand.

I seem to remember the company addresss was Wills St , Smethwick and I had recourse to take the bike there after a few months to have a new rear hub fitted, the original one piece forging had a crack in the part that covered the bearing race and was replaced under the guarantee!
The factory, as far as I remember, had no referance to Falcon but carried the name "Coventry Eagle" and I assumed this is were they where manufactured.

I cant remember either "Elswick Hopper" having anything to do with the Falcon marque in the 60s but I stand corrected, as I said earlier information seems both confusing and contradictory so does anyone here have any knowlede, ot even better had connection with Falcon in the 50s 60s era?...........Best wishes

There is a brief history on Wikipediahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falcon_Cycles I would start there also search for Ernie Clements, who was the main man back in the 50s/60s/70s . Nice nikes I had a nice one in the 70's and there is still a (ladies) frame in my garage

I too had an Olympic as a youth, on this very forum I asked if anyone had one, with a view to restoring it. I was lucky enough to be given a tired early to mid eighties Falcon Professional by a lovely chap who had used it for amateur racing. In trying to find out more about its history I was involved with the following forum in the USA: http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showth ... ost2798695 ,it is a goldmine of information from some real Falcon enthusiasts.
Here is the Falcon, now completely restored.

82 Elswick

MikewsMITH2 wrote:There is a brief history on Wikipediahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falcon_Cycles I would start there also search for Ernie Clements, who was the main man back in the 50s/60s/70s . Nice nikes I had a nice one in the 70's and there is still a (ladies) frame in my garage

More like an Elswick Hopper History

Sounds very similar to the "about" on the Falcon website.

http://www.falconcycles.co.uk/Corporate ... cles.shtml

gentlemen, many thanks for your responses to my post, thats a lovely machine Johnny Mac and thanks Mike as well. I regularly search Ebay for vintage falcons and did infact see an Olympic but I would really like one with the wrap around single piece stays, the one for sale was probably a 70s version and did not feature this. I sold mine to a colleage at work and he had it refinished in white by that well known Major Nicholls, I did not see it in white but Im sure it would have looked good .

Wish I still had it

I bought a Falcon in 1982 after my Claud Butler was nicked in Manchester. It was Cro-Mo and was quite a decent bike. It had Shimano 12 gears which was a bit special. On the Falcon Olympic emblem on the headstock it had the slogan 'Designed by Ernie Clements'. I had no idea who Ernie Clements was.

I gave it away to a friend about 15 years ago as I never used it, having moved on to more modern and expensive bikes. He still uses it regularly.

A second-hand Falcon was my first sports bike around 1975. Again, it was "only" a cro-mo 5-speed; Huret or Simplex gears (I had both at various times, can't remember in which order) and mainly steel parts. My brother had saved up and bought a new Black Diamond, in blue or purple I think. Mine was white - I've often wondered what model it was. I must have known at the time.

Sadly I managed to crash it into a parked car when doing a paper round

Mine was bought in 1975 it was black with 531 tubing with a Sugino cotterless chainset and Shimano Titlist gears. It had straight bars a kind of early hybrid, but I didn't get on with these and fitted it with drops. Rode it to work and just about everywhere until 1989 when I got into the new craze of mountain biking. I then upgraded it to sprints and tubs and a Shimano "aero" groupset so it was a pure road bike. I sold it in 1992 when I was broke, to buy my daughter a new bike. That was a Falcon too in memory. The wife had an identical one to mine which we partexed in 1980 for our Peugeot tandem in the name of marital harmony, because she couldn't keep up with me!

Johnny Macs blue one looks identical to the one my mate rode in the late 60's early 70's. We all envied it. he had it fitted with a full Campag Record groupset - fabulous.

That looks a beauty!
Here's a link to a page on the Falcon racing team - with bikes which look rather like yours!

My first bike c.1972 was a Falcon - a kids bike which had the unusual feature of a removable crossbar, which facilitated handing it on to my sister. Wish I could remember what it was called so I could do a search on it and see a picture!

I think my Falcon Olympic went in a skip Lovely bike and very stable. Pretty quick too with a Campag 11-21 at the back and Deore 42/54 up front.

I bought a Falcon Olympic in about 1976, and covered many thousands of miles on it. Some low-life stole it in the late 1980's, I would love to still have it. It was blue, serial number 20390. At hte time it had some interesting wheels on it, can't remember the make but very few spokes in the front wheel and about 40 in the rear, and they were eliptical in cross section. They don't make 'em like that any more!

Hi Falcom 64, Johnny Mac and others,

My first new bicycle was an Ernie Clements designed Falcon bought back in 1960. Wrap around stays and all! I had campag gears fitted by Mr Webber (detail just in case anyone is from Smethwick / Bearwood!). I recall it was pretty well all steel - so not a light bike - but I was young then!

There was certainly some link to Wills Street - where co-incidentally my favourite Aunt and Uncle lived.

I still have the frame - and still use the saddle but I'm planning a rebuild and I fell over this site looking for a head tube badge!

Johnny Mac's Falcon looks superb - so, John, where did the badge come from?

At the time (1960) we seemed to have a number of famous cyclists running shops around Birmingham - I recall Bob Mansell [Smethwick High Street] and of course the Olympic medalist Tommy Godwin [Silver Street, Kings Heath] who is still about and who I see occasionally.

Regards all,

Roger

I'm a bit late with this post but stumbled on it when searching for information on Roberts Cycle Industries. I have assembled a pretty comprehensive history of Falcon Cycles as part of writing a book on Elswick-Hopper. From 1968 the stories start to entwine. So if anyone still has questions go ahead and ask. I do own an early Falcon - probably 1956, which is close to when Roberts Cycle Industries started to make them at the suggestion of Ernie Clements. Ernie hadn't been there long and so far as I know RCI was purely a producer of own brand bicycles - never making any under the Roberts name, which was probably just as well! The badge on mine is clearly labelled made by RCI and is the only one I have ever seen. It has a 531 sticker though is quite heavy, so...?? Anyway, I would be very interested in learning more about RCI and also about any other Falcon frames bearing the RCI name. The web is full of misinformation as usual. Ernie moved to Roberts in 1955, a couple of years before Coventry Eagle relocated to Hartford St, Hockley in 1957. They were short of space so after a short time bought the Roberts concern, and along with it the assets, including Ernie and his new Falcon brand. So Falcon bikes were made first by Roberts, and then by Coventry Eagle. In 1968 the Smethwick site was up for redevelopment and contacts between Douglas Mayo and Elswick-Hopper resulted in CE taking up an offer of buildings in Barton on Humber. EC was works manager and when Mayo had a car accident and retired Ernie bought him out and renamed the company Falcon Cycles. So that is the early part. Any information on Roberts Cycle Industries would be much appreciated!
Nigel

i have a falcon bike , had it since 1964, when new. it had campag 5 speed originally , now modified by me to 12 speed and repainted by me and is my winter bike, wrap around rear stays....dual pivot front brake, compact alloy chainring set nice mavic rear wheel, 27 inch wheels
pretty good for a pensioners steed

i have just done another modification to the old bike, with longer hollow axle in rear wheel, cold set the rear fork stays to take longer axle, fitted a 7 speed megarange freewheel and fitted a longer cage rear derailleur changer, and tested it, much easier on hills here in peak district, going out for 20 miles or so thursday (tomorrow) to see how it feels on a ride...

have another old bike to do a similar job on, a 1953 king of mercia....

here is my red feathered falcon (olympic)