Scottish version of L'Eroica - now The Bravo Scozia Ride

[highlandsflyer]

Whatever the image is/was, my works PC's blocked it so dont know whats going on but its yet another chance to see one of OCP's funny emoticons so thats good

Plenty more where that one came from!
http://www.oldbike.eu/museum/world-war- ... g-bicycle/

 

[Foxfan]

The cut off date will hurt a few I'm sure as will the dress code. Get yourselves to the charity shops and bike recyclers. I am considering reining in the cut off date by ten years for next year and subsequent years until, shall we say, 1897? Next years dress code? Any suggestions?

 

[highlandsflyer]

Wetsuits and Sowesters. Custard optional.

 

[old_coyote_pedaller]

Sorry Foxfan

I know, but this is interesting.


"There are, more especially on the Continent, critics who advocate the use of the folding cycle for military purposes. I cannot but believe that these must mostly be people who have never ridden a folding bicycle. It is heavy, lacks rigidity and strength, entails loss of time in folding and unfolding, and even when it has been folded and is strapped on to the back in such a manner, by the way, that it cannot possibly be unstrapped except by the assistance of a comrade, it is the most unwieldy burden I have ever carried.

The advantages claimed for it, even if real, would hardly compensate for these drawbacks; but the advantages are theoretical rather than practical. It is claimed that cyclists when they wish to cross fields, etc., will dismount, fold their bicycles and stow them on, their backs. I was once the proud possessor of a folding bicycle, which I used for experimental purposes, and I can assure you that fur half a dozen excellent reasons nothing would induce me to take one on service, or if I did it would never be folded except when the spring got out of order and it collapsed automatically, which is one of its unexpected habits.

THE CYCLE IN WARFARE: ITS POTENCY AS A STRATEGICAL AND TACTICAL FACTOR.
By Captain. A. H. TRAPMANN, Adjutant, 25th (Cyclists) Battalion (County of London) The London Regiment. 16th December, 1908"

Not exactly a glowing endorsement of bikes for use in war, by an officer in a cycling battalion.
The lightweight bike for airborne forces in WW2 looks more like a modern bike though.

Folding bike is similar to the bike my brother got for nowt in the '60's apart from the folding aspect.
Brings back nightmares of removing cotter pins to get cranks off to grease BB bearings, and the fact there's not a bit on the bike that is aluminium. it's all heavy steel.
We're spoiled with modern bikes.

 

[velomaniac]

Two of my bikes have cotter pins. Easy peasy to remove if you have a vice.
One of my bikes is a roadster like the old folder. I've raced it a the European Single Speed Champs in Belgium a few years past. i came last but that was down to me and the fact I'd chosen to go fixed rather than the bike itself which is tough as old boots.

 

[old_coyote_pedaller]

Aye, but we didnae have access to a vice in the '60's, my Dad didnae have one in his garage.
But what he did have was a f'off big hammer amongst his tools for fixing his car. Slacken the nut a couple of threads then tap with hammer with ever increasing violence till the cotter moved and came out or was too mashed up to pass through hole.
Further more extreme violence was perpetrated on pin till it came out. Usually found that the pin had a groove worn in it by BB axle that stopped it coming out easily. New pins put in by me were more likely to come out easily the next time, though.

 

[epicyclo]

...what he did have was a f'off big hammer amongst his tools for fixing his car. Slacken the nut a couple of threads then tap with hammer with ever increasing violence till the cotter moved and came out or was too mashed up to pass through hole.
Further more extreme violence was perpetrated on pin till it came out....

Before anyone else does this and wrecks their BB

A short length of straight tube between the crank and floor takes the impact and makes it easier to knock out a cotter.

 

[Jamiedyer]

When I was young I also used my dads hammer and his punch, thats nail punch, not the one he threatened me with when he seen a: what I was doing to my bike and b: what I was doing to his tools

Jamie

 

[velomaniac]

Also in past used a small hammer many and repeated taps got the cotter out. Big hammer has potential disaster written all over it.

Also if anyone wants a pair of cotter pins i've got a bag of new ones somewhere in my shed.

 

[old_coyote_pedaller]

Right, I think I will have to add that the bikes we as youngsters had were not the newest around at the time.
In fact the bike my brother was given by a neighbour was so old it had white paint on the mudgaurds so it could be ridden during the black out during WW2.
They tended to be bikes that others no longer used and we had to do the accumulated maintenance of years just to make them ridable. I also might have exaggerated a bit about the level of violence used, it was violence with a knowing smile.

Just remembered my brother's old bike had rod operated brakes front and back like these,

,
with the pads pulled onto inside of rim on a wishbone by the rod. As you can see the pads were kept in place by 2 brackets on fork legs. They would stop the bike on a sixpence, not.