Woodward Custom Built Cycle
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Woodward Custom Built Cycle
So a friend of mine picked up a tandem bicycle today. Said it's been sitting in somebodies yard for a few years. The brand is Woodward Custom Built cycle which has me stumped and seems to also have the internet stumped as I can't find anything. He sent me a couple pics I will add. He said it has a made in France crank and Campagnolo components. Interested if anyone knows anything about this brand. It's very rare when I can't find much searching.
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Looks like a TA tandem crank, which is a quality item. I can't really see much of anything else well enough to identify it, except a shift lever on the captain's seat tube, perhaps for a stoker-operated drag brake?
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Seems like nobody knows about this company. Here are some more images. Any help with dating or how high a quality a ride this was would be great.
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The head badge is reminiscent of falcons earlier forms, but I don't think they made tandems.
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Are the rims aluminum or steel? Do they have a brand on them? What do the hubs look like?
The Rally rear mech is worth something, as are the TA cranks, and the front BB is eccentric, which suggests this is not a low-dollar tandem. Is there a drum brake on the back? Atom or Maxi are possible/common-ish brands. What does that shifter on the seat tube go to? Dynamo or rear drum? Do the brakes or levers have any branding on them?
The Rally rear mech is worth something, as are the TA cranks, and the front BB is eccentric, which suggests this is not a low-dollar tandem. Is there a drum brake on the back? Atom or Maxi are possible/common-ish brands. What does that shifter on the seat tube go to? Dynamo or rear drum? Do the brakes or levers have any branding on them?
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Owner & co-founder, Cycles René Hubris. Unfortunately attaching questionable braze-ons to perfectly good frames since about 2015. With style.
Owner & co-founder, Cycles René Hubris. Unfortunately attaching questionable braze-ons to perfectly good frames since about 2015. With style.
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More images:
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Anyone care to guess at a year range for how old this thing might be? Friend says it has 27" tires so I guess mid eighties or older? But that's the only guess I have so far.
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Probably 70s, not 80s. Being left outdoors has severely damaged the bike but this was a quality bike and the parts are quite possibly salvageable. There is a lot of rust on that frame
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Woodward History
My husband bought a used Woodward in the 1980s that was on display in a bike shop in St. Petersburg, FL. The story was that another shop owner named Woodward had had a shop there for years and would take orders for custom frames and sent the measurements etc. off to a frame builder who built bikes for Eddy Merckx, not the ones that bore Merckx’s name. The shop submitting an order had their own badge designed, so his was Woodward Custom Bikes. We still have one and it’s about a 1970. I can’t post photos yet but can take some and post when able.
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My husband bought a used Woodward in the 1980s that was on display in a bike shop in St. Petersburg, FL. The story was that another shop owner named Woodward had had a shop there for years and would take orders for custom frames and sent the measurements etc. off to a frame builder who built bikes for Eddy Merckx, not the ones that bore Merckx’s name. The shop submitting an order had their own badge designed, so his was Woodward Custom Bikes. We still have one and it’s about a 1970. I can’t post photos yet but can take some and post when able.
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I would encourage you to soak that Rally down with penetrant and be careful not to wrestle with it during disassembly. They are said to be fragile and we have seen plenty of broken ones to back that up but have also seen plenty of ones that are still in service, I have one that's fine after 43 years so...
That Cinelli saddle is a find, especially if the whole thing is in good shape like the pic, 3ttt bars are also good, are they misstamped?
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I would love to see photos of your husbands Woodward Bicycle. I may be restoring one soon and the details are important. My guess is they were built in either the Falcon factory or maybe Kessels as the one I have has two holes in the bottom bracket similar to a few Kessels that I have seen. But Falcon seems more likely if Mr Woodward was British. All just speculation at this point.
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Woodward Cycles
I purchased my Woodward new in the early 70's from Bob Woodward the owner of the Largo Cycle Center. He later moved the shop to another larger building in Largo Florida. I still own the bike and
rode it until 2010. It is a Reynolds 531 double butted frame with a Stronglight crank, Mavic wheels and Simplex gearing. Mr. Woodward told me he rode in the 1936
Olympics' however researching the web I cannot find his name. I do remember he smoked non-stop and my friends insisted the frame was full of butts. His tag line for the company was "First at the Finish".
rode it until 2010. It is a Reynolds 531 double butted frame with a Stronglight crank, Mavic wheels and Simplex gearing. Mr. Woodward told me he rode in the 1936
Olympics' however researching the web I cannot find his name. I do remember he smoked non-stop and my friends insisted the frame was full of butts. His tag line for the company was "First at the Finish".