Originally Posted by Small cog

Does anyone have a Humber Clipper in the original red or some good photos of one? I have recently picked up a frameset with some serious patina and plan to respray it red and would like to get it something like original if not it will be the same colour as the above Carlton. I have looked at all of the photos on-line which are mostly from brochures but none are good enough to get an idea of what I should go for.

Originally Posted by gster

I've got this one from the 50's with decent paint.

Originally Posted by Small cog

That's the one, thank you.

Originally Posted by clubman

Small cog That was called Carmine Red and appears to have a gold under coat. Really pretty paint in the sun.

Originally Posted by Cyclespanner

Being twin pivot they are halfway between side and center-pulls.
Certainly chunky things. As I get familiar with the bike I'll post my impressions.

Edit:
What is nice about this bike is the 'Carmine Red' usually fades badly. Not here, which indicates it's been dry stored and out of the Sun's UV. Barely a ding anywhere.
The 'Anniversary' head badge dates it to between 1965/1968. The hub will tell.
Another survivor.
I understand they were issued in Green, Red, Blue and Gold.

EDIT.
6.5hr trip to collect this bike!
It's been years since I drove for that long into unfamiliar territory.
It's plain to me that this country can't afford the road network it already has; even the major routs have massive pot holes now, it's appalling and never used to be this way.

Finding ones way around provincial ancient market towns which have zero signage to help is no joke.
Find someone on foot to ask directions revealed that I was in a district with a lot of Eastern European immigrants with no language skills and are a lot further from home than me and just as lost!

Back to my purchase.... the big highlight is photographs on ebay are very complimentary.
In the flesh the bike is a bit crusty but what corrosion there is, is very superficial.
Looking at the worn out pedals and the cheap tyres, the bike has obviously had been well used, yet there's barely a scratch to be found.

The paint and chrome just needs a little tlc.
A full re-commission strip-down and lube job is required as it hasn't been used for a long time.

Here's the breaker....it's a 23inch frame and probably too big for me!
Never occurred to me to ask. Doh!

EDIT: Both hubs stamped June 1965

Originally Posted by Cyclespanner

Not sure if the Raleigh metalics were laid over their traditional black 'Bonderised' undercoat, but it looks that way on my Carmine 'Riviera'.

Originally Posted by markk900

My 49 Humber, though not metallic, was definitely a colour coat (blue) over a pretty glossy black under layer. No wonder the paint would hardly stay on! It’s almost like they painted them all black to start and added colour to order 😄

Originally Posted by dirtman

I've got a tiny men's frame Robin Hood in bright red or Crimson here somewhere too. I think it measures taller than it appears or rides for some reason but the top tube and down tube are only a finger's width apart or so where they meet. Most bikes in that color do seem to be pretty badly faded. The only color that seems to hold well is black, plus its easier to touch up.
I put it aside about four years ago because it needs a new back rim. The 40hp Endrick rim is rusted to the point its likely no longer safe. I had found one but used it on another bike along the way. 32/40 chrome rims are in short supply here lately for some reason, it seems no one saved any, and those I do find are rusted or worn beyond use.
It hasn't been high on my list since its way too small for me to ride, and I've got several good loaners already that I've gone through.
I think the Robin Hood is from around 1964-65 or so but I can't say for sure because the rear wheel that it came with was a Perry Coaster brake even though the bike still had a 3 speed shifter on the bars and a cable guide wheel on the frame.

Originally Posted by barnfind

That looks like a really nice find. It just figures that someone who needs a smaller bike finds a 23" and someone like me who needs one only seems to find the smallest models.
In my area it seems that most of the bright color models are small frames, I've had three very small, 19" and 20" Robin Hood, Hercules, and Dunelt branded models in that same red, plus one silver Raleigh in a tiny 19" size, (all men's models despite the brochure not listing such frame sizes here?).
That red is hit of miss here, I either find them looking like they were stored new in a box for 60 years or they're faded to some odd shade of orange. (I have a Raleigh Super Course in a 25" frame which I bought new in 1977 in bright red metallic. At first the top surfaces faded to a lighter shade of red, then eventually the whole bike turned orange, losing any hint of metallic it once had. Now the top surfaces have turned white, exposing the base coat color. Its gotten so bad that a repaint will be inevitable now, the nest step is likely bare metal.
What's worse yet is that the bike was never stored outdoors, it lived in my garage since 1988, and in my spare bedroom back in the day. The only sun it saw was while riding.
(The Huret multito that I put on when I first bought it now reads 9,910 miles for the second time around so its seen a fair bit of sunshine over the years while in use)

For some reason though most red and silver models I've found were always small frames, green and brown models are always 21", and black bikes have all been 23" models when it comes to the typical 3 speed Sports models.

Originally Posted by vintagebicycle

I was originally going to build this CL find as a three speed.
The plan was to build up a set of 700c rims and use a set of fenders painted to match to complete the look.
At first I thought about doing it over in original red, but figured black would look the part better. I even found a set of red fenders in the original red off a Sprite 27 but aluminum fenders made more sense. The problem I ran into was that I stumbled on a lesser model done just that way which I bought, but found the 25.5" frame was too big for me as I get older.
I put the brakes on the idea until I find a 23" model instead.
Most of these I see these days are faded much the same way. Those built after these tend to fair a bit better but not by much. This one is from 1977, the last year with stamped dropouts, which made it a good choice for the three speed swap.

Originally Posted by SirMike1983

Recently took in a 1940s era Schwinn Continental 3 speed. It had this wonderful old bike shop sticker from NYC on the seat tube.

"William B. Cooper Bicycles and Baby Carriages 11 Avenue A NYC" And below that is the old-style phone number without area code.

Originally Posted by markk900

clubman : did the “Canadian” come with single speed and optional 3 speed; or is yours a conversion? I note the brazed on fitting for a pulley.

It’s a stunning bike to be sure! The only “Canadian” I had seen in person was much duller, but I see now it was probably a matter of bringing back the shine (without killing the top coat as per SirMike1983 )

Originally Posted by Ged117

I found a Raleigh Canadian on a farm outside Ottawa, with an AW dated 1959, and with the brazed on pulley mount. Its paint is in a poor state, beyond restoration with plenty of surface rust. but the hub should be a good source of parts.