Southern Tier Bike Project Bike Art
Over the course of receiving and restoring bicycles, we occasionally come across a bike, or some bike parts that have some "character"; yet for some reason or another, they are not able to be made road-worthy. As time permits, we plan to try to turn some of these items into some kind of work of "Bike Art". This section is included to share what we have done with the expectation that you may want to do something similar, or you may wish to commission us to do something similar for you.
In general, when turning bicycles and/or parts into objects of art, we do not attempt to return them to "like-new" condition. Part of the character of a bicycle is that it has been lovingly used. For bicycles, we restore them as near as possible to working condition, thoroughly cleaning while preserving scratches and dents. The results are suitable for display. Bike parts are thoroughly cleaned, polished and sometimes painted and mounted for floor, wall or some other form of display, depending on the size and type of object.
As we considered turning some of the excess materials into some kind of "art", we also became aware of several commercial expressions of bike art that either inspire or compliment what we are doing. The "Bike Art Shopping" section contains a number of items that we found interesting and you might too.
This 1950ish Humber is a fascinating bicycle. It is fascinating in so many ways that we are afraid that after we take it apart to clean it up, we won't be able to get it back together again. We will attempt to keep a running photo record of our progress here both to keep you informed and to help us remember how things were before we take them apart. Most of the images are linked to higher resolution images. Just click on an photo and you'll be taken to the more detailed one.
Other than that the tires don't hold air and there is a missing link in the shifting mechanism, the bike appears to be fully functional, including the operation of the unique drum brakes and the generator driven headlamp. We hope it will be at least as functional when we complete the restoration.
Humber: Original Condition
Some of some of the most interesting characteristics of this bike are:
Fully enclosed chain. Not just a chain guard. You can't see the chain anywhere! Look closely at the photos from both sides above.
Lockable fork. Notice the holes in the fork crown where the locking pin fits. There is even a forerunner to a modern warning label cautioning riders to not ride the bike with the key installed. Unfortunately, we don't have a key for this lock. If anyone happens to have one laying around, please let us know.
Lockable rear wheel. While not as robust as the fork lock, it still slows down the amateur bicycle thief.
Front and rear drum brakes. If this bike looks extremely heavy, it is! Perhaps that's the reason for the robust brakes
Steel rod brake linkages. In the left photo above, you can see the vertical rods linked to the brake levers on the handlebars. In the right photo, you can see the pivot point above the fork where the vertical rod for the rear brake attaches to another rod going down under the down tube.
Humber Disassembly
We have started to disassemble and clean this beauty.
When we take things apart we go very slowly for two reasons. First, we don't want to brake anything in the process. And second, we want to make sure we know how to get it back together. Neither of these are guaranteed, but so far-so good.
After carefully prying off what looked like a cover on the chain ring section of the chain guard,
we discovered the following gem.
This is a classic Humber "Five Guys; One Head" chain ring. Such a shame to hide it inside that chain guard!
Humber Clean-Up
We're attempting to bring back as much shine as possible without destroying any of the original decals on the frame. A little rubbing compound followed by a coat of wax has the rear fender looking better. Below is a pic of half of the fender done. Hopefully you can tell which half it is!
We've cleaned up the chain guard as much as we could without destroying the paint and decals. The paint itself buffed out to a pretty good shine, but as you can see below, there are a lot of nicks and dents on this one. The bike was obviously well used. Also shown below are a couple sections of the rear brake linkage that have been cleaned up.
If you look closely at the upper portion of the chain guard, directly above the Humber decal, you might spot the decal for the Royal Warrant of Appointment, which have been issued for centuries to those who supply goods or services to a royal court or certain royal personages. The warrant enables the supplier to advertise the fact that they supply to the royal family, so lending prestige to the supplier. The warrant reads: "By Appointment to H M the King", dating this bicycle to pre-1952, when Elizabeth II became Queen.
We have completed the restoration except for a missing tail light. Hopefully we will be able to find one from that period at some time in the future. Re-assembly turned out to be quite an adventure. Since it took so long to disassemble and clean, it wasn't entirely clear how to get it back together. Thanks to the copius pictures taken during the disassembly process, we managed to get it back together and it seems to be in very good working order. Once the grit gets off the roads, we'll take it out for a spin. Here's a look at the final product:
This early 70's vintage St. Etienne was given to the project over a year ago by a friend who originally wanted it repaired. Initial inspection revealed that the rear axle is bent and the bearings are shot. With little chance to find replacement parts, we suggested she get a new bike. While the bike isn't road-worthy, it certainly has some amount of character. Even though it was covered in dust and the chrome was heavily tarnished, there was very little rust evident, so we started to do a clean-up.
The restoration of this bike is now nearly complete. We believe that all parts except perhaps the seat and tires are original French components from around 1970. We were amazed to discover that the generator and and headlight still work perfectly after all these years. The only missing part is the tail light lens. If anyone knows where we can find a lens for a Soubitez Catalux 10 tail light, please let us know. Here's what it looks like:
Following are some photos taken before and after the restoration. Click on an image to open a larger one. Just hit the "back" button on your browser to come back here.
We have a perfect spot for hanging this bike over the front door of the sole proprietor's house. The hardware for this project has been ordered and we hope to get this one mounted soon.
At long last, we've prepared the cables and obtained a ladder and some help. The results of the (perhaps) final resting place for the St. Etienne are shown below. What do you think?
