Viking dating and models

[idontmessabout]

Thanks for the link Goldie - very nice! If I can get anywhere near that quality once he's done up I'll be a happy man!

In my haste to get going I'd completely the missed the fact that the word 'Conquest' is still clearly visible on the bloody crossbar

 

[Goldie]

It's a lovely looking frame - I'm really looking forward to seeing it come together.

It'd be great to see some pictures from anyone else that's landed a Viking too.

Here's a page from the 1970's catalogure on Classic Rendezvous (http://www.classicrendezvous.com/Britis ... Viking.htm), looking very of-the-moment with its straight forks...

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[Goldie]

A couple more Vikings have found their way to the bike cave. The blue Superstar 10 came with MTB style flat bars and indexed Shimano shifters, a gel saddle and a decade and a half's worth of grime, and I stuck a bid in more or less for the pleasure of taking these pictures of it clean and fitted with drops bars once again:

And I've always wanted to try a mixte framed bike, so I went for this Viking Queen as well...

 

[Kinetic-UK]

Nice, I have a Viking (no idea what model) with 27" wheels too:

It's still in mans warehouse whom I'm buying it from.

Did you restore this bike?

Any tips on how I could do mine?

 

[Goldie]

I just gave it a really good clean in all honesty - it looked rough and hadn't been used for years, but the paint and decals were in pretty good condition under the muck and the alloy parts came up to a mirror shine. I used T-cut and Turtle Wax on the paint and Silvo on the alloy and chromed parts. The handlebars and brake levers are new old stock, and the cloth handlebar tape is new. I think I replaced all the cables too, and greased all the bearings. I've always liked the graphics on Vikings, so I kept all of those. And although Huret mechs and SR chainset is as bog standard as it gets for this age of bike, they work fine.

Some of the lads on here favour less abrasive polishes than T-cut - I think there's a thread knocking about somewhere. But yours looks in fine fettle. Is it made from Reynolds 531? It looks like there's a little black green and gold sticker on the seat tube...

 

[David B]

Well the serial number for my 1978/79 Viking Vision, built in Northern Ireland, designed by Harry Quinn, is

V 1999 7 so i don't know the meaning of that, maybe model V 7 1999th built maybe?.
Anyway lets see some pics of this beast.
Is your serial number similar....

Assuming the original decals are intact, as far as I know any Viking bearing the "Designed by Harry Quinn" wording will be a Northern Irish one.

David

 

[Kinetic-UK]

Ah, thanks for the feedback .

I'll get some Turtle Wax and T-Cut when I get the bike from the seller and give it a couple of times over. The seller is going to service the bike for me at the workplace so I'm all sorted that end.

I'm pretty sure it's Reynolds 531, but I'll ask the seller next time I speak to him. It's going to be my project bike and I think I'll get some Michelin World Tour tyres to smarten it up a little too.