Lbxpdx

Beautiful in its simplicity.

not associated, but I found it while looking for parts.

https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/b...287026239.html









https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/b...287026239.html

gugie 

Oof, that is my personal grail bike, but 10 grand is way more than I have to spend.

Dylansbob 

Probably one of Yanni's..

scarlson 

Was thinkin that it might be his or else belongs to a crony.

Honestly you couldn't get a framebuilder to make you one for that price. Mainly because nobody makes them for any price, that I know of. The suicide front derailleur and "éclairage sans fils" (lighting thru a carbon wiper in the steerer) are pretty hard to build.

It's funny like that. You can buy the original if you're rich, or you can make your own if you're poor, but I don't see anything like a reproduction of this offered on the open market. Maybe you can get a framebuilder to do it if you are friends, but I don't know how one goes about making friends with a framebuilder.

Interesting, it looks like the same 2x4 crossover gearing my tandem has. Top gear in the little ring is slightly lower than bottom gear in the big ring. Shame it doesn't have the (rare TA or rarer Herse-built) eccentric Le Cyclo lever. For that price it ought to.

bikingshearer 

Of course you know how to make friends with a frame builder. Buy several custom frames from them and don't be a PITA in the process.

bikingshearer 

I'd sure love to have a half hour in person with it just to enjoy looking it over in microscopic detail.

However, I would not buy it at 1/10th the price. No, I am not saying it isn't worth what the seller is asking, and I most certainly am not saying it isn't worth $1K - I'll leave it the the market to determine it's worth - and I hope it finds a worthy home. It's just that my bikes are riders, and I don't particularly want museum pieces.

Plus this one is too small for me. And French-threaded.

gugie 

Beer helps.

gugie 

Every once in a blue moon a really interesting bike comes through the Atelier. A Portland local was missing the bike end of a decaleur for his Blondin and was looking for something that looked right. I was very happy to do it, just to have the bike in my shop for a few weeks to oogle over.


more pics of this bike

iab

If I were to drop $10K on most anything, I would want to view it in person before plunking down the money.

Whoever buys this bike, there is a great grilled cheese restaurant and a Philly cheesesteak joint over in Coeur d'Alene. Just sayin'.

Lbxpdx

what’s the name of the restaurant? Also, check out Cisco’s in CDA if said buyer is in the area.

SoccerBallXan

The bike is well worth the price. Check what has been sold for Rene Herse, Alex Singer, Ernest Czuka and the likes.

With all the fixings, in this size... yaaaaay!

Kilroy1988 

The fellow you quoted went out of his way to say that he took no issue with the price in general, only that he was personally unwilling to pay for it due to a specific reason. What are you responding to?

'Tis a thing of beauty, indeed... But I also wouldn't pay for it even if I had the money. I'd rather have three or four of the most coveted British frames of the '50s equipped with all of the finest period components for the same cost.

-Gregory

iab

Grilled cheese = https://www.meltzextreme.com/

Cheesesteak - https://www.facebook.com/bestsandwichshack

repechage

$10,000 makes me think of the Gloria Gridplan saga.

CL is a curious place to advertise this Herse.

nlerner

For that price, I would expect authentic French air in the tires.

iab

Actually, if I would seriously start selling, CL would be one of my first sales avenues. Free. Local pickup. Seller's dream. Less likely to get top dollar, but you don't know if you don't try.

scarlson 

Right. Could be a buyer's dream, too. No tax on either end, if done "a certain way". And on a $10k bike, sales and income tax ain't exactly chicken feed.

Cue debate over tax reporting...

steelbikeguy

with the recognition that being on the west coast makes for a long trip, the Classic Rendezvous gatherings have provided the opportunities to see some similarly jaw dropping bikes.
... 'fer instance, a Jo Routens and Herse (and more) next to each other....







I can't imagine the time and effort required to restore one of these bikes!

Steve in Peoria

scarlson 

The BB is actually even worse. It's a proprietary Herse thing, which takes cartridge bearings of some sort. The threads are French, but in the absolute literal sense. I believe the right cup is left-hand threaded, for what it's worth! But who knows the diameter!! A guy asked me to machine him a replacement cup, pre-covid, but we never got the bike in the same place as the lathe so I could do the appropriate test-fitting. Maybe one day that will be possible again.

bulgie 

Front and rear racks appear to be Velo-Orange. For $10k I'd expect a little nicer racks -- also both pedals should come with dust caps at that price!!

Jan Heine, who owns the Rene Herse name, has had at least one modern Herse repro made by an American framebuilder, I'm forgetting now, was it Ouellette? It has the carbon brush in the head tube.

A number of other guys are making that feature too, like Hahn Rossman. Not cheap (I assume) but totally do-able. Japanese constructeur Hirose has sadly passed away, but up until recent years he made bikes with that feature. John Clay is an amateur garage builder who has made himself one or more frames with the HT internal connection, done a little differently (I think Clay did it the Hirose way). I've seen a few other one-offs as well. I'm pretty sure Rossman will even sell you the parts to give your framebuilder, if you're not buying a Rossman, so you don't have to re-invent it. He offered me a set anyway.

I don't know what things cost, being out of the bike biz for ~25 years (and a retro-grouch for longer than that), but $10k sounds like a lot. Once I finish building my frame shop (this summer?) I can build that frame and the racks (raw steel) for about $2500. Do the plating + painting + parts really cost $7500? As a gauge of how out of touch I am with prices: the bikes I ride the most have thread-on freewheels, mostly 5 or 7-speed, a lot of them '70s vintage with French threads. I generally pay about $10 for a freewheel at the local used-bikes place.

I don't know if buying a new Rene Herse from Rene Herse Cycles is an option, but if he sells them, maybe wait a little while until their re-creation of the Nivex rear derailleur (which debuted in 1938) is available. I believe they are testing prototypes currently. They attach to the chainstay much like the Cyclo on this '51 RH we're discussing, but in-out motion is via parallelogram instead of sliding on a rod. Desmodromic actuation! I have never actually shifted a Nivex, but I like the idea of using a parallelogram, and I just love the word desmodromic.

Mark B in Seattle

scarlson 

Sure, I know it's being done, I've seen these various builds on the various internets. I read Bicycle Quarterly and follow the forums as well. But for Joe Schmoe to show up as an unknown, and buy something with these features? It's impossible! The waiting list for anyone capable/willing is probably at least a year long. Joe Schmoe may as well save his breath trying to prove to a constructeur that he's worthy, and learn to build this stuff himself! It's likely faster and cheaper. That's what I did!

That's my point I've been trying to make. For someone who's not well-connected, to get instant admission into a rarefied cult, with no prior legwork or schmoozing, this deal can't be beat!

Although if those are, indeed, VO racks, it's a pretty big lie-by-omission......

..,,.Does anyone else think the fork is bent?.,

SoccerBallXan

I’m responding that I think it’s well worth the price.

Nice bicycle!

merziac

Going to chime in to say it doesn't matter if it's worth it IMO. That said and VO racks aside, I challenge anyone to find another one this old, nice, original, restored and available at all and won't be surprised if it sells soon regardless.

No I don't have the money, yes I would be considering it if I did and at least making an insulting offer, half tempted to do that anyway, pretty sure I could figure something out.

Hang on while I check the size again.....

gugie 

I just finished one using Jamie Swan's excellent instructions, but with Corey Thompson's brush design. No lathe, so I had a buddy of mine turn down the insulator and reworked some blind bottle bosses.

Interestingly enough, it would appear that Jan Heine is working up a kit (most likely made by Hahn Rossman). As long as the head tube has a vent hole "high enough" it's a lot easier than one would think. The only tool I needed to modify was my headset reamer. Just needed an extension to chase the tube out deep enough to press both the slip ring assembly and headset in.

repechage

Was there not a tandem project going?

On the Left Coast, so my chance at a Classic Rendezvous event is in the rearview mirror.