paulb_in_bkln

Magic is right.

paulb_in_bkln

For a writer probably not the worst way to go.

clubman 

RC's are almost always Canadian market at least in the 50's and early 60's. RA's for the US and RB's for the UK imo.

You've got a great bike there. Red Raleigh Sports were definitely a thing up here, I've had 4 of them, still have 2.

gster

Thank you again for
good words and advice.
I'm starting to realize that these EA1 equipped bikes were/are something
special.
Whoever bought this bike back in 1955, was very serious
about riding/racing and chose this bike for a reason.
Probably more expensive than the other bikes on display
or, maybe a special custom order from the factory....
Ridden for many years and then put away until
the 70"s.
More to follow.

nlerner

Yeah, that's something I've encountered frequently. You can both 1) push down the tab on the underside of the fender for that nose piece and 2) slide some material under it and trim with an exacto knife. I've used plastic, metal, and wood for that purpose.

thumpism 

Probably nothing. We are running out of space for anything else and I already have multiple non-bike projects awaiting my attention. Any bike-related projects are on the rearmost burner and will likely remain there or even be pushed further back. My wife's fleet is already for sale and the only female bikes to remain are the nifty Condor 3-speed I rescued that will serve as a guest bike and the boxed-up ladies' 23" Sports I'm keeping for my own dotage.

Sports


Condor


If I knew a couple of sisters who needed bikes I would gladly get the two Hercs and fix them up for a new life of service but priced as they likely are (at least $50 each would be my guess based on previous inquiries--not outrageous but an extravagant expenditure on spec) I'd just have to stash them in the rafters until I decided what to do. I'm afraid the two little Hercs will be left to the elements. I wish the junk shop did not regard them as junk and leave them all outside.

gster

1955 Humber Club
This bike cleaned up remarkably well in a day and a half

Not sure why the focus is off....
I'll probably keep it in the club style (thanks to Clubman's praise).

NOS GB stem.
The drop bars will limit my riding the bike but I think
it deserves to maintain it's heritage.
I'll have to find some later style Raleigh calipers for it.
I have some NOS cables in the garage.
Saddle and chain installed

thumpism 

For all you Humber fans.

https://richmond.craigslist.org/bik/...983036996.html

Vintage Humbler Women's Bike - $100 (Woodland Heights)
bicycle frame material: other/unknown
bicycle type: cruiser
condition: fair
electric assist: none
frame size: 21"
make / manufacturer: Humbler
suspension: none (rigid)
wheel size: 24 in

Selling a 1950s British bicycle by the Humbler company. Brakes work but not sure if shifter functions correctly.

$50 or best offer.

Ballenxj

Spell Check got the seller? I cannot think of any other reason to add the L, turning Humber, to Humbler?

gster

1955 Humber Update
A good few hours yesterday

A visit to George at Parts Unknown yielded two Raleigh calipers. Rusty but a good vinegar/brass brush treatment cleaned them up.

Vintage trigger from the parts bin is not quite period appropriate but will do for now.

Brake cables and clips are NOS from Hoop Rider in Owen Sound.


Shifter cable is used and should be replaced.
Front hub needs some adjustment .
Current costs
Bike $110.00
Saddle $50.00
Stem $40.00
Brake cables and pads $20.00
Calipers $10.00
Clips $5.00
Supplies $10.00
Trigger and chain from stock
19T cog from stock as well.

gster

Done for now

jackbombay

I love that fork!

Nice work on the clean up!

Bomarc

Your Humber cleaned up really nicely - looks great! Humbers seem uncommon, any idea if it was sold here new?

gster

Yes, as Clubman pointed out, the serial number ending with RC indicates a bike shipped
to Canada.

Bomarc

So no backstory/insight from the seller?

gster

No,
he's a bit of a hoarder and finds bikes/vintage stereos at garage sales.
I bought a vintage turntable as well.
I've made up my own story about the bike.

The bike was purchased by a young man in the mid 1950's who was very serious
about cycling. The bike was more expensive that the other 3 speeds on the floor
but he decided it was worth it.
The bike was ridden and raced for several years but as his life
got more complicated he rode it less and less and it was relegated
to the basement.
Over time some of the original parts went missing.
The trigger, the saddle and one of the brake calipers.
By now it was the mid 1970's and the bike was either sold
or given a makeover for his son.
A new vinyl saddle was installed, new tires as well as a Norco speedometer.
The bike was ok but it was old and wasn't a 10 speed.
Back it went to the basement....
Forty years later, the man died and his family had to clear out his house.
By now the bike had been sitting for so long that
it really looked like a piece of junk and it was sold at
a garage/estate sale for $10.00.
The buyer, Gary, knew it was worth something but didn't have
the skills to restore it.
He placed an ad on Kijiji and that's how I found it.

We are not so much owners of all this stuff but custodians.
All in all a very nice project.
I stopped in to see George at Parts Unknown yesterday to show
off the bike and also got a pump clamp to finish it off.
Despite being a large frame, the size is deceptive as
the angles are quite slack.

Bomarc

And now its in the care of an enthusiast that realizes its value and can enjoy it as much as the original owner. Well done.

gster

Thank you. I'll probably enjoy looking at it more than riding it as it doesn't
really suit my geometry.....
I may put it on display at a bike shop up the street.

ryansu

I love a good bike story even a made up one, I once went to a garage sale and a nice but over priced ladies Schwinn world sport and made up a story about Wanda the World sport and her adventures as a college bike, I posited that it was over priced because she told her husband it could go in the sale but she didn't really want to part with a happy piece of her past

Iron Horse

Got a new toy!


Hmmm. What could it be?


Oooo! Purdy!


Some assembly required, batteries not included....


All done! Raleigh Tourist 2018


Sturmey Archer powered.


These were a challenge to set up, having never done disk brakes before.


Nice leather seat.


And name brand bell.

I realize this is neither vintage or collectable, but it looked cool, so I bought one. It is a three speed, and "english," so thought I would share and post here. My apologies if out of place.
Shakedown ride was tonight after 2 weeks of off and on assembly. Items noted. It needs to be geared down some. Not as bad as traditional AW geared hubs, but just a bit. I can cruise in high gear on the flats, but it's a workout. Any hill at all, and you are downshifting. The frame is too tall for me. Zero clearance standing over the frame. Bike shop was the one who suggested getting this size frame. Oh well, I'll just have to be careful. Bike looks to have originally designed with a one piece crank and changed to a sealed bottom bracket as an afterthought. It weighs about as much as my 69 sears three speed, so not too bad. Regearing will take care of most of that. Having never messed with disk brakes before, this was a bit of a challenge. I ended up after much fiddling and growling using a small dim flashlight held betwixt my toes shining up through the disk so that I could make small adjustments (make too big of adjustments, and the thing moves all over the place...grrr.) and get the allen screws tight with there still being light shining through on either side of the disk.

Hey, it worked...

The cables all need to be shortened by around 6 to 8 inches or so, but that is easy enough to do. One neat thing, the pedals are overhaulable! They were waaaay tight, so I took off the threaded aluminum caps to find a jam nut, washer and cone with 6 sides on the top for a socket. Sweet! All better now with a little adjustment.

Anyhoo, thought I would share my new toy with everyone.
Hope everyone had a good weekend!

Ged117 

I like that shade of green. It looks very similar to my bike painted the Raleigh Green of 1950.

gster

Humber Sports

I think my bike


is essentially this bike with Humber specific fittings

Ballenxj

I think it's kind of COOL! I didn't realize Raleigh was still making 3 speeds, and a modernized one at that. Let us know how you like it.

curbtender

I see they have the shifter mounted under the brake lever. I wonder how well that worked.

Ged117 

I wish we could order one of those new. I'm trying to figure out a course of action regarding my Clubman Peugeot project. I currently have a 40h 1953 Sturmey FW four speed, alloy shell hub awaiting a rebuild. The original plan was to build it into a new set of 700c wheels, like a Velocity Dyad (available in 40h) for my Peugeot A08 after I reset the dropouts. The bike would be used for city commuting, day rides into the countryside along paths and roads, and all bad weather riding (I have studded winter tires in 700c). However, a guy I know at a local shop has some original Rigida 700c alloy wheelsets in 36h. They would be more 'correct' for my Peugeot, but perhaps not appropriate for tough, long term use. I do have a 36h 1979 AW hub awaiting a rebuild that I could use with the Rigida rim, but I think a Clubman style bike deserves a 'cool' hub from the era if possible, and a four-speed. The AW I could use for parts for either my AG or FW later on.

I love the way they mounted the front headlights on the Club bikes. If I decide on a generator hub for the Peugeot front wheel build, maybe I'll try and do that with a modern lighting system.