Contents 6 Foreword
7
The Power of the Wheel
8
How Did It Start?
10
Mobility for the Nobility
44 Speed 74 Comfort 110
Safety
132
Togetherness
178
Drive Mechanisms
206
Utility
222
Army
244
Restoration
250 Inventory 254 Bibliography 255
Glossary of terms
256 Acknowledgements
Foreword I am pleased and honoured to write the foreword for this beautifully presented photographic collection of early vintage bikes. My friend and colleague Paul Farren has been at the forefront of collecting veteran bikes in Australia since the late 1970s and has more than 200 bikes in his personal collection, which is one of the finest in the world. His collection is a reflection of his patience, passion and perseverance – characteristics which are essential to acquire, identify, renovate and maintain such wonderful machines. His outstanding knowledge of the mechanical, social and historical aspects of vintage bikes is unsurpassed, which is evident in his insightful descriptions in this book. He is unpretentious in his knowledge, which he willingly shares with everyone who visits the collection, whether local or from overseas. I was fortunate to be present at several International Cycling History Conferences where Paul gave papers. His presentations were informative, well researched, interesting and always well received.
6
I also congratulate Paul’s wife Charlie for her ongoing support for Paul’s passion and her contribution to this book. Although she insists that old bikes are Paul’s obsession, she contributes behind the scenes in a myriad of different ways, masterminding the loans to regional and provincial galleries, cataloguing and documenting the collection, organising rides and riders for numerous parades and community events and ensuring that this is a dynamic collection. Over the last three decades, Paul and Charlie have attended numerous international rallies and were instrumental in planning and developing the International Cycle Rally and Cycle History Conferences in Australia. For many years, Paul has generously supported many national and local veteran cycle events and community events, loaning machines and period costumes – another indication of his generous and trusting nature. The collection has been the catalyst for many bike-related adventures not only in Australia, but also in Japan, the USA, Canada, Europe
and Scandinavia, including a Melbourne to Sydney group ride on Penny Farthings to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Burston & Stokes’ Round The World Tour. As a curator and archivist I have a deep understanding of the complexity and knowledge required to establish a public collection together with the imperative to document all its aspects meticulously. It is refreshing to see the progression of this collection from a pile of rusty bikes jammed in a shed to such an impressive, catalogued and organised private collection. By his deeds and endeavours Paul has greatly improved the networks for veteran cycling collecting in Australia. His energy and enthusiasm have helped to make it an enjoyable and worthwhile activity for other collectors and enthusiasts of vintage bikes. I am proud to be associated with Paul and Charlie – this rare private collection is a lasting tribute to its owners.
Annemarie Driver
Curator of the Canberra Bicycle Museum & Cycle Resource Centre (1981–2008) Editor, International Veteran Cycle Journal
No.17 Dwarf Safety Roadster 1889 Quadrant Tricycle Co., Birmingham, UK
I acquired this Roadster from a deceased estate auction. It was heavily overpainted with multicolour paint as if in a circus and the front wheel was badly buckled. It was a thrill to remove the paint and find an almost perfectly nickeled bike underneath the paint.
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This beautiful semi cross-frame machine still bears its original expensive nickel finish. It has rather modern ball bearing steering (socket steering) but an archaic agricultural chain, and plunger brake at the front, with footrests on the front forks. The saddle spring is a large leaf spring arrangement with a large, comfortable saddle attached. For no obvious reason, the rear triangle is a removable structure. This model is well represented in collections around the world.
Mobility for the Nobility
33
Humber Pattern Tandem Tricycle 1884 Sparkbrook Co., Coventry, UK This tandem tricycle was said to be a little faster than the Penny Farthing when piloted by two crack riders, and was handicapped accordingly. It is convertible, as the front section can be unbolted and removed. It was made under licence to the Humber Co. and was copied by all the major manufacturers of the day, including the Sparkbrook Company, who manufactured this model. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his wife owned one of these machines and rode it regularly.
50
A loquacious collector from Warrnambool sold me this bike several years before he died, when he was still only in his forties. Always hard pressed for money, he purchased it sight unseen from a car museum, intending to sell it on to a Tasmanian antique dealer. It was an expensive purchase, which I had to think long and hard about. My wife Charlie was not happy and said we should not get it: a prime example of trying not to upset one’s better half, and failing! This is the bike illustrated in Collecting Antique Bicycles by Donald Adams. The description says it sold in London at a Sotheby’s auction in 1956.
Speed
51
Racing Bicycle 1893 Raleigh Bicycle Co., Nottingham, UK
A.A.A. Middleton
68
This model dominated bicycle racing all over the world for a three-year period. Visually it is a very slim-tubed, lugged machine. The wooden rims came at an additional extra cost. One of the great selling points of the Raleigh machines was the easily changed front chain wheel to alter gear ratios. It was popularised by the finest bicycle rider of the time, Arthur A. Zimmerman. He came to Australia in 1895 and visited all states, winning consistently and never used higher than a 69-inch gear. The first and second years the safety bicycle was allowed in the prestigious “Austral” wheel race at the MCG in 1893 and 1894, the Raleigh triumphed. Previous to this, all racing from the 1886 inception had been on Penny Farthing track machines. A. A. A. Middleton, who won the Austral in 1894, rode a Raleigh fitted with Dunlop pneumatic tyres 13 seconds faster than any previous rider.
Speed
69
Ladies Sprung Frame ‘Marlborough Club’ Tricycle 1886 Coventry Machinists Co., UK There is simple springing on the front wheel and a differential on the back axle. This machine was designed as a ‘step through’ for ladies or older men. There is a cam arrangement on the front steering tube which automatically returns the handlebars to the central position. The original saddle pivoted front to back and side to side.
Purchased from an antique dealer in Melbourne. He had shipped it from the UK with a container load of antique furniture, and had bought it for his kids to play on – but they abandoned it when the pedal broke.
78
Comfort
79
No.13 Safety Bicycle 1889 Quadrant Tricycle Co., Birmingham, UK This bicycle was the company’s first venture with a two-wheeled machine using their patented steering system, which had worked so well on their tricycles of the previous ten years. It turned out disastrously, alas – on a two-wheeled machine the steering action was slow and limited in lock, and thus it failed dismally. The bike was originally sold with solid narrow tyres but was retrofitted with pneumatic tyres by its original owner in the early 1890s, who used Welsh rims. The front steering mechanism allowed larger tyres to fit and the rear triangle, which was bolted on, could be widened with spacers. The band brake is fitted to the left side of the bottom bracket axle.
90
Purchased from a UK collector who remembered me taking an interest in it. Some eight years later he contacted me, offering it for sale.
Comfort
91
The deal with a Melbourne bicycle retailer was that I agreed to restore a damaged Penny Farthing in exchange for the frame of the Xtra. I later found the levers in Queensland and swapped them for a BSA sprung frame. The Penny Farthing I restored took far longer than expected and made me realise that working on bikes for other people was hell and I almost never did it again.
‘Facile’ Safety 1884 Ellis & Co., London, UK This machine was introduced in 1878 in an attempt to make the Penny Farthing bicycle safer. It places the rider further back to prevent ‘headers’ or going over the handlebars and was invented by John Beale. It was a very popular machine and a club existed in South London comprising only members who rode this particular model. The pedals are at the end of two levers, which are attached to extensions of the front forks. The levers are themselves attached to the cranks by a pair of connecting rods reminiscent of a steam engine. Many records over significant distances were set, including, for a while, the ‘end to end’ record of more than one thousand miles. As it is direct drive and has only a 42-inch wheel, it is relatively low geared.
This bicycle was generously given to me by a very old friend of Tim Palmer. He wanted several of his bikes to remain with Tim’s Collection. The machine was dismantled and in a box but was all there, give or take the odd part. It has a rusty patina all over, and straight bars, but is remarkably complete, given its heritage.
114
118
Purchased as part of a small collection, this was the best of the lot, along with a Rover Safety. In 1928 the owner’s father had bought a garage in the Adelaide Hills. He discovered all the bikes jammed into the roof of the building.
Safety
119
130
Coventry Rotary Convertible Tandem Tricycle 1882 Rudge Cycle Co., Coventry, UK
Also produced in a single version (the Rudge Rotary), this is convertible, making it possible to unbolt the rear seat and jettison your male stoker mid-journey! The chain on the front is set to the left and covered with a chain guard to protect the long skirt. The steering can be operated from the front or rear with a rack and pinion mechanism, so effectively the front and rear wheels turn in opposite directions, giving a tight turning circle.
138
Acquired in original working order as part of the Palmer Collection. We had trouble with the big wheel collapsing several times during parades and the hub tearing away from the keyed axle, leaving the hapless riders to carry the bike home. Some recent engineering and a new rim have solved these problems.
Togetherness
139
Ladies Victor ‘Victoria’ sprung frame 1890 Overman Wheel Co., Boston, USA This splendid bicycle coined the expression ‘Victor Victoria’, meaning of uncertain gender. It was very expensive and despite being extraordinarily heavy, offered the female rider a smooth ride thanks to the sprung steel front forks. This particular machine is fitted with the Overman patented semi-solid (cushion) tyres. This helps to date it to 1890, as they were made for a short time.
Purchased from a well-known illustrator and bicycle collector in a small gold mining town in California.
148
Togetherness
149
166
Togetherness
167
The Elliptic Chainless Cycle 1896 Elliptic Cycle Co., Peterborough, UK This lever-driven bicycle was introduced at the national cycle exhibition at Crystal Palace in London in December 1896. It received derisive reviews at the time. It features an elliptical drive wheel or ‘chain wheel’, which rotates around an eccentric cog made of frozen chain attached to the hub. This method is reminiscent of the geared Facile mechanism. The elliptic chain wheel is thought to speed the stroke through the bottom dead centre.
192
It has a very long pedal stroke and is comfortable to ride and surprisingly efficient, weighing just 30 pounds (14 kilograms). The manufacturers made extravagant claims for its use, and recommended it for all types of riding, but it ended up being a short-lived phenomenon.
Drive Mechanisms
193
Levocyclette 1907 Terrot & Cie, Dijon, France This model was first bicycle to have ten separate gears that were changed by way of a meshed gear twist grip mechanism. The chain wraps around a spiral flange in the rear hub, which alters the gear as the pedal lever is depressed. The lever action makes for a most enjoyable ride, since the secondary chain lifts the weight of the opposing leg. This expensive bike was produced between 1905 and 1924. It is based on the Svea Bicycle of 1891, whose manufacturer, despite receiving acclaim from the Prince of Wales, among others, and significant funding from the renowned philanthropist Alfred Nobel, eventually went bust. Terrot perfected the automatic gear change mechanism. In early models, the rider changed gears by squeezing a rubber bulb on the handlebars! It found favour with older riders, as racing cyclists preferred rotary action pedals when pedalling at a higher cadence.
200
I acquired this at a French Swap Meet. I was rewarded for rising at some ungodly hour and beating off other avid collectors to the prize. The seller had just this one item and required an immediate cash payment in Euros. We maxed out all our credit cards and emptied every ATM within a 20-kilometre radius to scrape the payment together. All this was negotiated in my rusty schoolboy French, as if the transaction wasn’t stressful enough already!
Drive Mechanisms
201
220
U. D. Palmer’s Borough Cycle shop, Wisbech, Norfolk, UK (1888–1914)
Utility
221
Military Safety ‘as supplied to HM Government’ 1889 Singer & Co., Coventry, UK Designed for use by the regular army and volunteer forces as well as the general public. Chain adjustment is made by sliding the bottom bracket forward on a splined shaft. Rear dropouts are vertical, with no option to adjust the rear wheel.
228
I came by this at the Bendigo Swap Meet – where I exchanged a Motosacoche engine for this bike, which was incomplete with damaged frame.
Army
229
Acknowledgements We are indebted to Lorne Shields in Canada and Rod Safe in the UK for scouring their amazing pictorial archives for suitable photos to complement specific machines. These illustrations have added immeasurably to this book.
Kelman Baum, Malcolm Martin, Peter Irish and John Harland. There have been many others worldwide too numerous to name, who have generously shared valuable information over the years building our knowledge and understanding of the era.
To Peter Horsley our principal photographer, without whom no order would have been imposed on this mammoth project and it absolutely would never have been completed. His patience and perseverance deserve a medal.
In retrospect, I believe the seeds of this project were planted some years ago by Bindy Trembath. Her enthusiasm for the bikes forced us to take the photography seriously and subsequently the organisation that led to this book.
To the squadrons of friends, relatives and volunteers who have supported us over the years in so many capacities: storing, loading, unloading, catering, joining us on long-distance riding adventures, assisting in photographing all the bikes, and turning out in all weathers to take part in rides and parades dressed beautifully for the occasion.
We have dipped into many and varied websites and can only admire the time and effort that has gone into their creation. Of late we have referred to the online encyclopedia Wikipedia that relies on the contributions of experts internationally to build and refine its increasingly detailed information. The recent digitisation of books, magazines and journals has granted us nonacademic types incredible access to information with a few swipes of the trackpad.
Thanks go to David Rapley for introducing us to the idea of publishing a book and to the team at Images Publishing who wove their magic and transformed the raw material into the magnificent tome you are holding. Many of these bikes would still be in my ‘bone yard’ were it not for the advice and skills of my friends, particularly John Keay, Ro Franceschini,
256
Finally I owe a debt of gratitude to those bygone designers and engineers and the ghosts of riders past who ‘caught the cycling craze’ and in purchasing these bicycles left the legacy from which I, as a collector, have benefitted.