Het Volk

Curious,

What are the thoughts on the quality of the Flying Dutchman bikes from the mid-to-late 1970's. I know they were sold by a Denver bike shop as their shop brand. However, French built, almost no rust (if any), and original components. Only question, does anyone now what steel was used? Hi-Ten? Reynolds? Columbus? The stamped drop-out indicates a little lower quality, but assumed that if built in Europe, the steel itself would be quality. If the components are as untouched as they appear to be, then this seems like a quality DT shifter bike for my collection.

randyjawa 

Though not a Flying Dutchman expert, my first thought was "entry level", at best. Quality does present itself - low quality in my mind.

If there is no tubing sticker, indicating tubing type, chances are pretty good that the steel is very ordinary and seamed. Another word for the tubes would be pipes. I could be wrong.

However, as I have learned over the years, a vintage bicycle does not have to be a top dog to find a place in my kennel of vintage steeds. In fact, I opted to restore an entry level Torpado this winter rather than its far more sophisticated and exotic sibling, a top of the line Torpado Professional from the same era. If you like the Dutchman, go get it.

Het Volk

Curious - how did it turn out? I am trying to determine what the purpose of this project would be, and it would be a period specific project. I might.....might replace the crank set and BB to be a little more sturdy.

To me, I would be buying this to be more a period piece than a daily bike.

randyjawa 

I am not sure what you meant by Curious - how did it turn out? If talking about my two Torpado projects, the Professional is in the test ridden and now collecting what I need to restore the bike stage. This is what it looks like "as found" and now...




The other Torpado is in the paint with a brush stage. I have painted a few bikes with a brush and found the task to be relatively easy, clean and certainly rewarding. This Peugeot PX10 with a brush...


And this entry level Torpado is showing off its first coat of smoke grey paint. The windows in the chrome head tube lugs and the head tube itself will be painted red. The fenders, due to poor chrome condition, will also sport a couple of coats of grey. Here is the entry level steed "as found", followed by "as is right now"...


I brushed on the first coat of grey two days ago...


Would I use my entry level Torpado, which is similar to the OP's Flying Dutchman, as a daily rider? Not a chance but I have much better primary (daily) rider options. In Canada, this is my rider...


and, in Jamaica, this old Bianchi and I share a few thousand kilometers each winter...


Anyway, would I use the Dutchman as a daily rider? No, it would be cleaned up and hung up to be treated as "eye candy", and taken out now and again for the odd, sunny day ride. But only in the country, away from busy traffic and fools with cell phones (don't ask unless you want another long story), the Torpado would be just fine. However...

Thanks to the steel rims, which dramatically and negatively impact bike ride quality and stopping ability (brake function gets worse in wet weather with steel rims) I would not make it a daily rider. To that add that I believe down tube shifters to be dangerous, once again suggesting to me that the older steeds do not come up to par with today's traffic and safety demands (that is purely my opinion only and the same goes for rat trap pedals). And, it matters not what bike I choose to ride, I DO NOT ride with rat traps. SPD - period, even though they look so out of place...




Some bikes, even those not really the best to use in today's traffic world, once built up, demand to be ridden. This late fifties Rabeneick 120d, that I recently finished, is not a daily rider, in my mind. But it is will be ridden frequently next Summer. It also sports modern SPD pedals, bar end shifters and alloy rims...

juvela

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the seahorse(?) motif on the seat tube transfer is a tell indicating the actual maker of the cycle

the company employed this transfer on cycles bearing their own brand as well

unable to recall it but our gaulic experts such as francophile and @Markeologist shall know it straightaway

cycle appears a base model comparable to a Peugeot A08 of this early 1970's time

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this forum post gives some background on the marque -

https://www.bikeforums.net/3138606-post7.html

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big chainring 

Flying Dutchman, yellow, seahorse, it would be a great piece for a SpongeBob collector. 😄

JaccoW

@randyjawa The lugs on those Torpado's are very nice. Any close-ups?

juvela

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they are constructed with the Agrati "BRIANZA" pattern lug set item nr. 000.8030/U

Brianza is a place name in the home town of Agrati-Garelli

the upper head lug is item nr. 000.8034

the lower head lug is item nr. 000.8033

seat lug is item nr. 022.8039

fork crown is item nr. 000.8038

seat lug on Randy's yellow Torpado is from another Agrati lug set, the "CORSA", and is item nr. 202.8529

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ramzilla

I bet if you took a magnet and checked it out, every part on that bike is steel. Heavy solid steel. Amazing. Should probably be hanging on the wall of a museum somewhere. Be good. Have fun.

randyjawa 

The Torpado lug work is one of the reasons I like my Torpado bicycles so much. Over the years, close to ten have come my way. Built up four or five.

All chrome bike but I chose to do the off white on the head tube only on this Torpado Luxe...




The yellow (now grey) Torpado is in the paint stage right now...


The pooey stinko looking chrome is actually chrome in great shape. The ugly is liquid latex, a product I use for intricate masking tasks...


The lugs on my early sixties Professional are very pretty and nicely fitted. Adding to the lovely chrome lug work is a great old headbadge, something else I really like on a vintage bicycle...



The entry level yellow Torpado lug work is no where near as well done as the lugs on the Pro. Makes sense, I guess...


First coat of grey applied and Bobby B is gone...