1938/39 Parkes Lightweight

[viscount]

Re: 1937 Parkes Lightweight

32 holes??
Now you are being difficult; )
For obscure vintage components I'd advise a check with http://www.madgettscycles.co.uk/ Or simply phone.

Mick Madgett is a very knowledgeable & helpful guy, long time V-CC member, & well worth an inquiry I'd say.
Good for parts & top, economical frame painting. He did two Simoncinis of mine, both very nicely done.

 

[creindesign]

Re: 1937 Parkes Lightweight

This might be worth checking (cheap as well): http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/32h-Tubular-s ... SwyQtVzJHW

Not sure whether it is 630 or 622...

From the same seller a set of 27" 32H/40H: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PAIR-FIAMME-3 ... SwPcVVzJ3X

All the best, Rogier

 

[Jonny69]

Re: 1937 Parkes Lightweight

I missed this - thanks for that Rogier. That's the seller who has me blocked, unfortunately. Don't think I've ever bought anything from him though so it might just be that I don't tick all the boxes in his buyer requirements.

I've picked up some late 50s Fiamme sprint rims which were on early quick release Campagnolo hubs. They look exactly like the earlier ones apart from the Fiamme logo so they'll do for now. Stripped down and disassembled, hubs rebuilt. Pics to follow later...

 

[Jonny69]

Re: 1937 Parkes Lightweight

Finally a bit of movement towards a set of wheels. For the sprints I was holding out for something early, maybe a Sheeren to match the rear one I've already got, but I haven't seen a lot turn up. I've settled on these late 50s Fiamme rims which I bought as a wheelset laced onto these very nice early Campagnolo fixed/free hubs.





I'm not going to use these Campag hubs because I wanted high flange, these won't go on the dropouts because they're quick-release and also I'm not sure if I'm ready to take a drill to them because they'll only currently accept the older thinner gauge spokes. So I'm going to lace them onto the Normandy hubs, stainless double-butted spokes and I'm guessing 4-cross at the back and 3-cross at the front.

Oh, and choose some tubulars. Still haven't quite decided if tan wall or black would be more appropriate for the era and I've not found any evidence about the tyre widths used back then. I'm just guessing that the really narrow ones weren't around until later and that 25mm wide is probably a safe bet?

 

[COUPES]

Re:

Any ideas on the original spec Jonny? Probably would have been 26" x 1" 1/4 and maybe resilion brakes. Airlite L/F hubs. Dunlop special lightweights or constrictor rims even wooden rims but more track racing.

Simon

 

[Jonny69]

Re: 1937 Parkes Lightweight

No real idea. I guess now I know for sure it's 1938/39, I could try and find the Sun catalogues from back then and it ought to give me a pretty good idea. Front facing dropouts say it was intended for mudguards from the start so it probably would have been 26 x 1-3/8" during the week and either sprints or 27" for racing. I guess there's a small chance it might have had wooden sprints.

I've laced up the wheels. First time I've done a 4-cross spoke pattern so I was quite surprised to get it correct first time!







Front wheel weighs 760g, rear weighs 930g. Not too shabby!

 

[Blackbike]

Re:

Very nice job on the wheels, and a very nice project.

: Mike

 

[Jonny69]

Just passing through to put a few links on the thread. It's two 1938 Sun catalogues from the VCC which would be representative of the components that would have come with this bike originally.

http://veterancycleclublibrary.org.uk/n ... ary%29.pdf

http://veterancycleclublibrary.org.uk/n ... ary%29.pdf

No progress apart from buying some cloth bar tape and some cotter pins. I really ought to get on with this ready for the summer!

 

[Reynolds666]

Re:

Hi Jonny. I joined the forum the other day. I noticed your Parkes and realised I sold it to you on eBay. Coincidentally you posted on my thread about my red racer. I can tell you about the spec of the bike as I received it. I dismantled the Parkes and I have stored the parts for a future build which is a 1942 McNeill Brothers of Glasgow frame.

* brakes GB hiduminium
* deraileur Cyclo super Olympic
* GB cable oiler
* crankset Williams
* pedals Constrictor BOA
* saddle Brooks b17
* front hub home drilled Harden bacon slicer
* front rim 26 X 1 1/4 Dunlop
* rear hub Bayliss and Wiley
* rear rim Alumlite
* 3 speed Cyclo

Hope this info is of help to you. Many parts clearly aren't period but I would imagine the crank and pedals are. I'll look out the crank and find out the date code. The rest of the parts seem to date from the late 40s.

 

[Jonny69]

Thanks for posting. Small world. It seems to be fairly common to find bikes which had rebuilds in the decades after the frames were made. I have a late 30s BSA which had mainly early 50s Sturmey Archer upgrades when I got it.