Manny66 

So after doing L'Eroica in 2022 I discovered that I needed a bike with proper gearing to get over those 2 long steep climbs. I had a lot of parts available and also a very obscure frame that was hanging in the rafters . The Frame is a Meteor ,Made in England by Carlton . I bought the frame as a toss in to another bike purchase and it looked really cool so I brought it home not really thinking I'd use it .

After some deliberation , I started throwing parts on it and it started coming together very well. Except one problem, its a 58cm and I ride a 56cm. But this frame was too cool to not use so I continued. Suntour bar end shifter for the rear, and a downtube shifter for the front , why ..Because thats what I had . I modified a Schwinn Le Tour crank to accept a 34 small chainring , with a 32 in the rear I figured it was enough to get up and over . Everything else went on nicely . I rode it around the neighborhood and it shifted great and rode like a champ. I added a handlebar waterbottle holder and it was ready . Until my buddy Bert Gavilanes offered me a Campy Triple with a bottom bracket for my Moser, the Deal was too good to pass up so I went with it and rode it in Cambria. It was a 52,42,36. So my lowest gear was a 36X28 ( did I mention that I went up so slow I toppled over on the last climb? LOL ). I asked myself if the Meteor with the 34 X 32 would have kept me upright ?

Anyway , The Meteor stayed in Whittier and never made it out to Cambria . I discovered that the Meteor was sold by Carlton during the Bike Boom era ,and to not over saturate the market with Carltons and to keep Distributors happy, Carlton sold bikes under the Meteor and Franco Suisse Brands. The decals were Non existent so I Painted the panels red on the frame and attached some Decals on it that looked kinnda retro cool.

Im thinking that the Shifter set up is very practical and will probably duplicate it on my Moser for next year .

Im taking it to the Bike Swap meet tomorrow to show it off . Im thinking of riding it on one of the local Vintage rides , but it feels too damn tall .

John E

I believe it was Lance Armstrong who ran a downtube shift lever for the front derailleur a time or two in the Tour de France.

bikingshearer 

Andy Hampsten certainly did. I don't recall whether Lance did and am far too lazy to check.

I like this build, Manny. The graphics you created look just right to my eye. And with all the chrome, you can signal search & rescue planes when you are gasping for air on Cypress.

merziac

@Manny66

That is fantastic, I would do whatever it takes to make it work somehow, great job.

Shorter cranks and stem might help and looks like the saddle can come down a bit and I know proportions and aesthetics are important, especially on something like this but looks like you could get there with a little more futzing if you really want to.

zukahn1 

I see long strait rear drops a RD that should handle almost any vintage gearing. about 2-3 inches of seat post room down up and 1-2 on the stem . I think to get to your ideal size slightly smaller size of drop bars may get you there the ones on it look pretty big for a classic style build.

PhilFo 

Shoot. Another classic, uncommon frame marque that I'm going to be passively searching for...
Gorgeous bike!

Feldman

I saw those on club rides and in shops as a boy in the 1960's. They were a chromo velato finish usually but underneath were the same as a Carlton Catalina or Raleigh Super Course. Anybody know who came up with the "Meteor" name and imported them?

Kabuki12

Excellent job , Manny. I like the chrome-red combo …it works. The gearing will be very nice for those climbs.

Pcampeau

This is a great looking frame and that’s a nice build you put on it! Frame details are very similar to my 1960 Carlton Franco Suisse. I can spot a few minor differences but it’s very close.

One difference I see is the shape of the fork blades. On the right (Orange) is the fork for my Franco Suisse and on the left (Blue) is the fork for my 1964 Flyer. Your fork is more like the Flyer but with the Franco’s dropouts. Just an observation. That’s truly a rare frame you’ve got there and I’m happy to see it getting used.

non-fixie 

That is a lovely frame and a very nice build. Well done!

The frame doesn't look too big at all. A fistful of seatpost showing was the norm at the time. If it were mine, I'd raise the stem a bit. The extra comfort is noticeable, and very welcome during challenging rides like Eroica.

juvela

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for any readers curious as to where these fit in there is a most excellent explication as to how they came about here

it is necessary to scroll down a good ways until you reach "Meteor"

https://on-the-drops.blogspot.com/20...cycles-us.html

Meteor was a member of that bounty of badges swallowed by TI BITD

they pretty much let it slumber in the ouibliette for an extended time

the forum did have one discussion thread on a Meteor badged threespeed from the late fifties/early sixties time here

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...e-england.html

herewith a couple images of a Meteor Franco Suisse belonging to a cycle collector friend
it was even sold by the shop which sold me my first tenspeed (back when dinosaurs yet roamed the earth)



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alternate nameplate colouration -



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VRJAKE 

Hey, that was my Meteor at one time, and those are my pics! No offense as I made the pics public for the public interest and passed it along perhaps 10 years ago. It was/is a fine bike and the story was Hardings shop brought in bikes that were private labeled but made by major makers such as Carleton - this was/is a Franco-Swiss model. Meteor bike in England were of the 3-speed variety, not like these, so perhaps was convenient for Hardings to have these nice Carleton frames badged as an existing brand. Have only seen a couple of these, one in a beautiful blue Chromo-velato finish, but Carleton called it something else, a term that escapes me now. The frame was very high quality, yet curious with stamped rear ends and no derailleur hanger.

Manny66 

I also found those postings about the Meteor brand awhile back,,There is one more out there that went into detail about the Brand and its sales in the U.S. market but i cant locate it anymore.

Thanks for the pictures..