Am I remembering rightly that where the Sylvans now use rivets to hold the pedal cages they used to have screws?

The more I think about this the more inexplicable it seems. The Wrights built and sold maybe 300 bikes in the late 1890s and in 1903 they became two of the most celebrated men on the planet. Yet people looked at a bicycle out of the Wright's shop and thought, "Oh that old piece of junk. Who'd ever be interested in that?" Doesn't make sense.

The 2 pairs I have here are riveted. You can service the bearings. The joint at the inside bearing is very close and well fit. Dirt doesn't get in and the front has a threaded on cover. Very well made pedals.

Thanks for the tips, gster! And once I find something I'll certainly get back and share it here. Cheers!

-Gregory

The question I'm really dying to ask: Do you own the special wrench for the dust caps?

Things are stacking up a little on this end, too.

Finally came across an image of what I believe is a pair original early 50s handlebar grips used on Raleigh, in this case Rudge bikes. This is from an eBay ad for a very nice maroon short frame pre 55 gents Rudge. Boy, these are rare.


https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c608f95ce6.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...6f2e634513.jpg
ebay rudge

I like the MKS Sylvan for my Raleigh Grand Prix (1973). For 3-speeds, MKS is still making a traditional block pedal without reflectors - the 3000S.

https://www.sella-berolinum.de/media...0s_720x600.jpg

I ordered two pairs from a seller last year because they offered a sale on the pedals that made up for the cost of shipping. It ended up being a good deal - the MKS 3000S pedals are much like the old 1950s-60s era pedals. The quality is good and they can be rebuilt (traditional end nuts, not rivets).

A Pletscher or Wald rack would work aesthetically and both are inexpensive.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...f59c8aaa01.jpg
Niagara sells them for $3.11, plus Niagara shipping. If you don't have one of those, you can use a Campagnolo tool #710 .

MKS makes some nice pedals. In addition to the touring pedals they make a shorter version whch they call "track". Appear to be exactly like the touring, but shorter. Too narrow, but I have a pair on my 56 Sports fake club bicycle.

Their road pedals are pretty ok copies of the old Campagnolo NR and SL pedals. They offer them with black cages like the SL and a pearly sort of satin finish which mimic the NR pedals. But, of course, they are no real match to the originals.

Above is a photo of an MKS road pedal NR copy with a #710 which was bought in, I believe, 1986. Getting the pic in the proper place isn't as easy for me as it used to be. Have to work on that.

If I go for another set of Sylvans I'll get the wrench. Just looked at Mikashima Industrial Co., Ltd.'s website. It's a pretty amazing selection of pedals, just in the Sylvan line--15 including the Ezy (quick on/off) versions, not counting different colors. I have a set of the Ezy pedals on a foldcycle, they have screws holding the cages, that's what I was thinking of in that earlier post. I take it by "getting the pic in the proper place" you mean down low with pedals on the bike? Amen to that.

Indispensable. Still a lot of folks riding at the beach barefoot or with flipflops.

Amazing old bike. The grips look like hard rubber, not the plastic used now. I had a pair somewhat like these on a bike during the 60s, but a soft black rubber, not very durable. Now I remember, my hands would come away covered with black stuff.

Eastman Roadster Update:
Awhile back I found a very nice Eastman leather saddle, the problem was finding a 3 rail saddle clamp...
Brooks has one at 19 pounds ($60.00 by the time it reached me) .
I managed to adapt a "flat" clamp that seems to work.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...7d31ef039c.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...39228d12dc.jpg
I just need to find some appropriate black grips and we'll call this one finished.
It's only been about 10 years...
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...924039730e.jpg
I put this one together after seeing a Pashley Path Racer on display but couldn't afford the price.
Also has the MKS 3000 pedals.

After months haphazard searching I've finally found a bike quote I remembered by the writer/traveler Eric Newby. From Round Ireland in Low Gear, 1987: "Ever since the 1890s, when for a time it was fashionable, though never as a competitive sport, cycling had been and still is hopelessly déclassé. Even today the only socially acceptable bike for a member of the British upper crust is one that looks as if it has been retrieved from a municipal rubbish dump, and probably has."

I wonder what they were made of. Very few seem to have survived. Most of the time I see 50s 3 speeds with the American black Hunt Wilde grips. Back in the 60s, those were by far the most common aftermarket grips you would find at bike shops so I guess the originals broke down rather quickly and got replaced. Now that I have a better image and know what they look like, I'll keep my eyes open for anything that looks as close as possible for my Rudge project. Long term search it looks like.

I resemble that remark!

Step through Raleigh in Dover, DE
 

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...ab6aba6f2a.jpg
https://delaware.craigslist.org/bik/...569021063.html

Good looking bike, but the original saddle is missing. It appears to have self-adjusting brakes; were they available in 1967?

No self adjusting in 67, started in 73 i believe

​

Cool! Nice job on the saddle, that frame looks great - is it a B33 frame? This would be a bike I'd happily ride...same slack angles as the DL-1, and that spacing between the 2 top bars is just right in the aesthetics department. Definitely a keeper!
Gster this is a 22" frame right? What is the top top tube length? I have a lead on a very similar Indian made bike.

Thanks.
It's an Indian saddle, a copy of the B33 .
There's a junk shop on Queen Street here in Toronto and the
owner keeps an eye out for old bike stuff for me. Saddles, pumps etc.
The bike looks great but the ride is a little awkward.
The front end tends to "wander" a bit.
More show than go.

How about this?
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...de5f963a53.jpg

Shurly East LA. They are art work but can be to difficult to ride & low comfort. I can appreciate all that workmanship though.

I think brake ajusters came out in 1975-76. That crank is pre 1974

As it's five years and time to repack the Nexus hub on one of my bikes I watched some videos and the recommended thin white grease by Shimano seemed familiar. I just thought of it. Long ago when I rebuilt a Chevy engine I used a thin white grease on all the moving surfaces so there'd be lubrication while oil pressure built up for the first time when the engine started. The grease would wash away and dissolve in the warm engine oil. The Shimano lube sure looks like it. Lubriplate has something called 105. I wonder if it's basically the same stuff?

@gster - however that bike rides, the aesthetics are very pleasing and you did a good job of it! I imagine the wandering front end is a symptom of the lacking stem reach and the slack fork angle. I experience similar issues on my 1951 New Hudson with old-fashioned geometry.

Looks like not enough rake for a head angle like that

I was thinking that too. The frame looks the same as a DL-1 but the fork has much less rake.

Here's an early 50s Rudge scorcher project posted over at CC. Very nice job.
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...feb15f3e0b.jpg

I found an old web page from a Wisconsin company that once imported these bikes. It's full of somewhat funny caveats about them ("Finish is mediocre.... The factory is not climate-controlled, so there will be rust under both plating and paint."). Eastman now seem to belong to an industrial conglomerate and they advertise modern bikes--or maybe it's a different company. What were the difficult parts making this happen?