[MENTION=301310]gster[/MENTION], I have that bell on one of my bikes. It's excellent, and I like its particular ring. It rings passively whenever I hit the smallest bumps, so it pretty much rings constantly as I ride, like a bear bell. It can get annoying, but I can also look at it as a feature. Does yours also ring from vibration?

And the top tube. But that said, having a hole at both ends of a tube facilitates drainage when you go to rinse the flux off.

Does anyone know if the Pletscher/ESGE 2-leg kickstand is compatible with rod brakes? My current 1930s kickstand isn't all that stable

Well, on this one we are both correct. I have seen both constructions. The top tube of the frame in my stand now is open through to the head tube and seat tube. I need to remember to not be so general in statements on topics as diverse as frame construction.

It's not my bike but it might be. It's worth it just for the bell.

Yes, as I said, it is annoying sometimes, but I like the style and the sound. Do you still have the bike? If so, bounce it on the ground and let me if the bell rings lightly.

I have one on my 1973 DL-1. I think it is original to the bike. It is a good inch longer than the ESGE stands on my Sports models.
These are very stable stands, my personal favorite.

That's one of the two-leg stands? Do you have any pictures? I have a regular single-leg ESGE stand that came with a 1975 DL-1 that I bought as a project, but I'd rather have the two-leg version for stability.

No, mine is a single leg stand. I found it to be far more stable than both the cast alloy Raleigh and Shure/sta stands and it doesn't clunk over bumps like the steel stands.

The stand I have on it currently is this: https://www.google.com/patents/US198...UQAZQQ6AEIMzAD

There are some notoriously wobbly, clunky designs in the early kick stands. The early Millers aren't bad. The primitive Wald axle stands are just OK when they're in good shape. They can be wobbly and clunky too, but are at least easy to fix and work on. The Jiffy stands are so-so. The early, bottom bracket mounted Walds have really long, stable legs, but take up a ton of space under the bottom bracket.

The 1960s-70s German/Swiss ESGE DL-1 stands are really nice. I replaced a Wald axle stand on a 1970s DL-1 with an ESGE and it made a huge improvement. It looks fine because it's a '70s era bike. I've heard of people modifying Greenfield stands to fit, but the ESGE is a nicer stand.

The caveat here is that the ESGE stand will look out of place on a 1930s DL-1 because it's a much later, alloy part. They do function better than the earlier stuff.

I was thinking of getting one in black, so that it'd be less conspicuous

I think painting a 70s ESGE stand is a good solution. Part of the luxury of these type bikes is having a kick stand and period correct or not, a stand should be reasonably stable. It's easy to find these for the 26" bikes, but a long one for a DL-1 might be more of a problem. The ESGE on my DL-1 measures (in a straight line from the center of the stand axle to the bottom) 11 1/2".

My '37 Sports came with a stand that mounted to the left chain stay and rear axle and from what someone knowledgeable told me was likely original to the bike or from the same era. It must have weighed about 3 lbs by itself, so plenty sturdy! You can sorta see it in this pic:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-R.../37Sports6.jpg

That looks like the Wald style stand. They go back a long way. They are heavy and have good arms, but the arm mounting and movement mechanisms tend to get loose with use. The arm can then clatter and bounce about when riding. However, that can be addressed by tightening the spring.

Flying Pigeon has rear drop stands that would look period correct Flying Pigeon PA-02 Classic ? Flying Pigeon LA

Thanks for the interest.
had a good look at the frame no logos but found the frame number front side of seat tube
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=525685

Thought I'd redress her and post a pic. (WH Cartwright bike)
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=525689

I poured a good amount of WD40 (edit: 10W40. Duh!) down the seat tube of my 1970 R20 the other day, spun the cranks, and let it seep out onto a rag overnight. The BB is a bit quieter and the occasional creaks are gone. Saves me from buying BB and cotter tools to do a proper grease job.

R.I.P. any remaining grease. In your near future I see increasing difficulty pedaling followed by a horrific screeching noise.

Yep...keep WD40 away from bikes!

agreed, put some motor oil in there before you ride it much.

I meant to type 10W40, but instead I typed "WD40". What a brain fart. How embarrassing! :p

If that's a 44T chainring, I have one just like that with the chrome completely intact that I will never use and would be happy to find someone who had a use for it.
edit: oops sorry, that is a 6 point star, mine is 5

Looks like you have a prime candidate for a patina restoration. Me myself, I would do a full tune up, tires, cable replacement, brake pad replacement, and then wipe the bike down with a couple of coats of boiled linseed oil to preserve it as is. Here is my favorite link to old British Roadster bicycles, you will see many have been preserved in the rough. https://www.flickr.com/groups/hub_gear_roadsters/pool/