Fixing a Victorian

[Mickeyspinn]

Since I think the Monarch is fixed I put the first saddle I was using on the Monarch back on my Flying Merkel Racer. I put the pedals that I was going to use on the Monarch on the Flying Merkel. The original pedals and seat were missing. I put my new wood clinchers on the Merkel as the original rims have tubular cyclocross tires replacing the original single tube tires. I rebuilt the original wheels using new spokes and kept the rest original. A Merkel decal set would cost the same as I paid for the bicycle ($300.00), so that’s not happening. This Is a very rare bicycle brand and the racer model is rarer yet. I’m trying to save the original wood grips, glueing them back together and corking the indent. I got fired up to work on some of my other bicycles by working on the Monarch.View attachment 648566

All fired up...like it
The flying Merkel.....is that anything to do with the flying Merkel boardtracker?

 

[Imlach]

 

[Nabeaquam]

All fired up...like it
The flying Merkel.....is that anything to do with the flying Merkel boardtracker?

Same company after Miami Cycle bought Merkel. They made a few Flying Merkel bicycles and the Flying Merkel board tracker.

 

[Mickeyspinn]

View attachment 648587

Look at the bikes handlebars then look at her face and try not to snigger.

 

[Mickeyspinn]

Same company after Miami Cycle bought Merkel. They made a few Flying Merkel bicycles and the Flying Merkel board tracker.

You do have good taste nabeaquam
That Merkel also has an amazing seatcluster and those axle tugs!? More like pushers...very neat.
Head tube looks huge!?

 

[Nabeaquam]

Look at the bikes handlebars then look at her face and try not to snigger.

You got me on that one and visual puns are my favorite kind of humor, flew right by me.

 

[Nabeaquam]

The bicycle bars look almost like Angela’s bars. I wonder if their supposed to point almost straight down, like on the motorcycle?

 

[Mickeyspinn]

The bicycle bars look almost like Angela’s bars. I wonder if their supposed to point almost straight down, like on the motorcycle?

I'm sure the flying Merkel would put a smile on my face if I rode it....Mrs Merkel isn't known for her sunny disposition.....I don't think I'd be tempted........

 

[Nabeaquam]

You do have good taste nabeaquam
That Merkel also has an amazing seatcluster and those axle tugs!? More like pushers...very neat.
Head tube looks huge!?

For some reason many old bicycles had large frames with the seat slammed on the top tube. By looking at photos from around 1910 it seems like pure serious track bicycle racers used smaller frames.

Tall frame. His knees come close to the bars, same thing on the Monarch. I don’t like it.

Small frame

 

[Woz]

Hard to say why the fashion was large frames and slammed seat-posts back then.

Perhaps people thought they were getting ripped off with small frames? Bigger is better?