Vintage German Bike Frames?
09-06-16, 08:34 PM
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Vintage German Bike Frames?
Hey everyone! I am new to this community and am looking to build myself a fixie! Being of German heritage, I am very interested in using a vintage steel German frame as my base. I live in Toronto, and am very curious as to what brands are recommended/where I could obtain such a frame!
09-06-16, 08:45 PM
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I literally started this exact thread a few years back. Try searching for it. There were some answers.
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09-06-16, 09:20 PM
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09-07-16, 05:25 AM
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09-07-16, 05:56 AM
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Being of German heritage
09-07-16, 06:06 AM
#6
feros ferio
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If you are willing to accept "Germanic" instead of strictly "German," consider an Austrian bike. (Having owned three circa 1960 bicycles from Capo.at, I am a bit biased.) The big exporter to North America was Steyr-Daimler-Puch, so look for a Steyr, a Puch, an Austro-Daimler, or even a made-in-Austria bike from a mass retailer, such as Sears.
Willkommen! I have some German DNA myself (Ritter, Hackenburg, etc.).
Willkommen! I have some German DNA myself (Ritter, Hackenburg, etc.).
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"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
Last edited by John E; 09-07-16 at 06:11 AM.
09-07-16, 06:20 AM
#8
feros ferio
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We have a winner! 
If you can find one, a 1930s Adler with a 3-speed sliding gear transmission in the bottom bracket would be quite a score, as well.
If you can find one, a 1930s Adler with a 3-speed sliding gear transmission in the bottom bracket would be quite a score, as well.
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"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
09-07-16, 06:45 AM
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Kraut bike manufacturers - per Classic Rendezvous:
Classic lightweight vintage bicycles of Germany
Finding a German bicycle frame in Canada is likely to be VERY difficult. You might want to do what everyone else does and locate a suitable CCM or Quebec-built Peugeot and convert that instead.
Classic lightweight vintage bicycles of Germany
Finding a German bicycle frame in Canada is likely to be VERY difficult. You might want to do what everyone else does and locate a suitable CCM or Quebec-built Peugeot and convert that instead.
09-07-16, 08:05 AM
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Express Werke, Neumarkt, would be my choice. They had an excellent fender emblem!
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09-07-16, 04:40 PM
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This '62 Bauer; really a classic look down to its Frankfurt Cycling sticker and yes, some of the Austrian bikes were of a similar mode. For example, see the back seat stays up near the saddle, they welded a compartment on there. One may see that on some bikes from over there of that era.
09-07-16, 05:03 PM
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thormeyyer -
Schauffs were imported into Ontario during the bike boom and were fairly often seen. Check Kijiji often. As well, there is a Rixie frameset for cheap on Boulder Bicycle here. Very nice workmanship, Vitus Steel and West German in origin.
Schauffs were imported into Ontario during the bike boom and were fairly often seen. Check Kijiji often. As well, there is a Rixie frameset for cheap on Boulder Bicycle here. Very nice workmanship, Vitus Steel and West German in origin.
09-07-16, 05:58 PM
#14
feros ferio
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I am waiting for a Kalkhoff owner to jump in.
Kalkhoff main
One of my former bosses at work had one when he lived in Sweden.
Perhaps a Rickert owner will jump in, as well.
Kalkhoff main
One of my former bosses at work had one when he lived in Sweden.
Perhaps a Rickert owner will jump in, as well.
__________________
"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
09-07-16, 06:08 PM
#15
Senior Member
I asked a week or so ago if anyone had heard of a Faehnrich non-folding bike, and got no replies.
Anyway, this one looks like nothing special at all, but good golly Googling about it comes up absolutely empty! I wish there were better photos.
https://appleton.craigslist.org/bik/5752541743.html
I like the head badge!
Anyway, this one looks like nothing special at all, but good golly Googling about it comes up absolutely empty! I wish there were better photos.
https://appleton.craigslist.org/bik/5752541743.html
I like the head badge!
09-07-16, 08:42 PM
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I asked a week or so ago if anyone had heard of a Faehnrich non-folding bike, and got no replies.
Anyway, this one looks like nothing special at all, but good golly Googling about it comes up absolutely empty! I wish there were better photos.
https://appleton.craigslist.org/bik/5752541743.html
I like the head badge!
Anyway, this one looks like nothing special at all, but good golly Googling about it comes up absolutely empty! I wish there were better photos.
https://appleton.craigslist.org/bik/5752541743.html
I like the head badge!
09-08-16, 08:02 AM
#17
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09-08-16, 12:08 PM
#19
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I have a Durkopp frame from the 50's. Paint is rough and the seat tube is pretty effed up but who knows... might be repairable if you have the time/money/desire.
Want it?
Check out the old thread from back when I found it
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...d-cruiser.html
Want it?
Check out the old thread from back when I found it
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...d-cruiser.html
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09-08-16, 03:00 PM
#20
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Hey everyone! I am new to this community and am looking to build myself a fixie! Being of German heritage, I am very interested in using a vintage steel German frame as my base. I live in Toronto, and am very curious as to what brands are recommended/where I could obtain such a frame!
https://goo.gl/photos/FLn7SzfMESXebQp79
09-08-16, 09:14 PM
#21
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Yeah I am half German half French and was kind of thinking the same thing. Well on the French side think I will try to find a nice Motobecane Le Champion, but German side is a little more dificult to find something that appeals to me. Think I will just go Austrian made or number of choices for Swiss made bikes. I think some of these builders may have been of German heritage or part.
09-09-16, 12:47 AM
#22
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Durkopp was a famous German brand. Back in the 70's we had a 1936 Durkopp track bike on display at our shop like the 2 bikes pictured below. It had been used in the 1936 Berlin Olympics - we had pretty good provenance on that.
The the bike was amazingly light for having a lot of steel components - around 17 Lbs. The frame was made of Mannesmann light straight gage tubing. The blue metallic paint was still good and had beautifully done silver pinstriped lines. The wheels had very large flange blue Airlight hubs and wooden sewup rims.
The wheelbase was about 46" and the head and seat tube angles were 71° with about a 3" fork rake.
I rode half of a century on it, fixed gears and all. It was a smooth riding bike.
Diamant was another German brand. They're still making bikes!
verktyg
Chas.
The the bike was amazingly light for having a lot of steel components - around 17 Lbs. The frame was made of Mannesmann light straight gage tubing. The blue metallic paint was still good and had beautifully done silver pinstriped lines. The wheels had very large flange blue Airlight hubs and wooden sewup rims.
The wheelbase was about 46" and the head and seat tube angles were 71° with about a 3" fork rake.
I rode half of a century on it, fixed gears and all. It was a smooth riding bike.
Diamant was another German brand. They're still making bikes!
verktyg
Chas.
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Chas. ;-)
Don't believe everything you think! History is written by those who weren't there....
Chas. ;-)
09-09-16, 01:23 AM
#23
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Hey everyone! I am new to this community and am looking to build myself a fixie! Being of German heritage, I am very interested in using a vintage steel German frame as my base. I live in Toronto, and am very curious as to what brands are recommended/where I could obtain such a frame!
09-09-16, 01:36 AM
#24
Strong Walker
Depends on which vitage you're thinking. Dürkopp was top of the line for racers before and after the war. For utility bikes, before the war a Brennabor was the thing to get (my grandpa told me).
Diamant was a benchmark, too.
After the war, many companies made fine racers - Stollenwerk, Express, Patria, Adler, Bauer, Panther, Rabeneick, Enik, Schauff, Kotter etc. A lot of interesting small frame builders built nice bikes from the 50ies on - Rickert, Flema, Altinger, Redl, Pyttel and numoerous others. Diamant continued to build racers in the DDR limited by the usual communist-stlye lack of everything, so Diamants between 1945 and 1989 are interesting, but typically very crappy. Textima, also in eastern germany, supplied the top athletes with some groundbreaking material mostly for track use, and are highly sought after.
For availability in north america i'm no expert. There were at least some Dürkopps and also Rickerts being brought over the pond, Puch/Austro Daimler has been mentioned before. (I'd have a close look at any Puch buying, conditions in the factory were so messed-up at times that someone wrote a book about it. They still are absolutely iconic for any austrian).
The german equivalent of the "bike boom" half racers are usually german only in name (manufactured in cheap-labour eastern europe) and suffer from the same flaws as their siblings from other countries. I'd stay away from those.
Diamant was a benchmark, too.
After the war, many companies made fine racers - Stollenwerk, Express, Patria, Adler, Bauer, Panther, Rabeneick, Enik, Schauff, Kotter etc. A lot of interesting small frame builders built nice bikes from the 50ies on - Rickert, Flema, Altinger, Redl, Pyttel and numoerous others. Diamant continued to build racers in the DDR limited by the usual communist-stlye lack of everything, so Diamants between 1945 and 1989 are interesting, but typically very crappy. Textima, also in eastern germany, supplied the top athletes with some groundbreaking material mostly for track use, and are highly sought after.
For availability in north america i'm no expert. There were at least some Dürkopps and also Rickerts being brought over the pond, Puch/Austro Daimler has been mentioned before. (I'd have a close look at any Puch buying, conditions in the factory were so messed-up at times that someone wrote a book about it. They still are absolutely iconic for any austrian).
The german equivalent of the "bike boom" half racers are usually german only in name (manufactured in cheap-labour eastern europe) and suffer from the same flaws as their siblings from other countries. I'd stay away from those.
09-09-16, 06:05 AM
#25
Senior Member
I had a Rickert track bike and road bike. Rickert was famous for introducing the high/low flange rear hub at the 1972 Olympics. His bikes were ridden by Rudi Altig, Patrick Sercu, Danny Clark and many others. The track bikes are really gems.
I have my eyes open for a vintage Rabeneick. The old ones have multi color chromovelta finishes. Red, black, gold chrome combos.
I have my eyes open for a vintage Rabeneick. The old ones have multi color chromovelta finishes. Red, black, gold chrome combos.
