Bikes of America (and Canada!)
- Thread starter Canuk
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Canuk
Senior Retro Guru
This one is always a crowd favorite. An inspiration for sure for the British Raleigh Chopper.
It’s an iconic bike. So iconic that we use a silhouette of a similar bike on the back of our T-shirts and nobody has to wonder what it is. When you look at this bike you probably feel waves of nostalgia for your youth even if you never had one of these bikes as a kid. The Sting-Ray has that effect on people.
It’s an iconic bike. So iconic that we use a silhouette of a similar bike on the back of our T-shirts and nobody has to wonder what it is. When you look at this bike you probably feel waves of nostalgia for your youth even if you never had one of these bikes as a kid. The Sting-Ray has that effect on people.
Canuk
Senior Retro Guru
This bike is another “first”. It’s the first production titanium bike. The Teledyne Titan.
Teledyne, a California company, made about 2000 of these bikes in the mid 1970’s. At a time when nearly every racing bike on the road was made out of steel, Teledyne was a company trying to shake things up. If the only choices available at the time were “Reynolds steel or Columbus steel” or “Blue racing bike or orange racing bike”, Teledyne offered an interesting and tantalizing third choice.
Fabricated from pure titanium, with no alloying agents.
By picking the grey titanium option you got a strangely smooth and comfortable bike that averaged about 2 pounds lighter than those steel options.
“Strangely smooth” because the pure titanium tubing made these bikes really flexible. For some riders (particularly tall or heavy ones) a Teledyne was unnerving. Rumors about frame cracks and collapse persist even today. The “I know a guy who had one” anecdote usually falls apart faster than a frame on a rutted road when the narrator is pressed for details, however.
Teledyne, a California company, made about 2000 of these bikes in the mid 1970’s. At a time when nearly every racing bike on the road was made out of steel, Teledyne was a company trying to shake things up. If the only choices available at the time were “Reynolds steel or Columbus steel” or “Blue racing bike or orange racing bike”, Teledyne offered an interesting and tantalizing third choice.
Fabricated from pure titanium, with no alloying agents.
By picking the grey titanium option you got a strangely smooth and comfortable bike that averaged about 2 pounds lighter than those steel options.
“Strangely smooth” because the pure titanium tubing made these bikes really flexible. For some riders (particularly tall or heavy ones) a Teledyne was unnerving. Rumors about frame cracks and collapse persist even today. The “I know a guy who had one” anecdote usually falls apart faster than a frame on a rutted road when the narrator is pressed for details, however.
Canuk
Senior Retro Guru
Canuk
Senior Retro Guru
A Paramount was one of the best options available to amateur bike racers in America in the early 1970’s, so there are quite a few of these still rolling around the country.
In 1971 it was pretty awesome to have shifting options that went from about 55 gear inches on the low end (44 x 25) to about 100 inches (52 x 13) on the high end.
In 1971 it was pretty awesome to have shifting options that went from about 55 gear inches on the low end (44 x 25) to about 100 inches (52 x 13) on the high end.
Canuk
Senior Retro Guru
Another Assenmacher. Matt Assenmacher, founded Assenmacher Lightweight Cycles in Mt. Pleasant Michigan in 1973. The Company was originally founded as a small custom bicycle shop utilizing the skills and technology learned while apprenticed in Leeds, England under the tutelage of Dan Foster at Bob Jackson Cycles Ltd.
Using and refining these skills the company built a national reputation for solid quality designs and craftsmanship.
Using and refining these skills the company built a national reputation for solid quality designs and craftsmanship.
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