1952 Rudge Ulster Tourist

I spotted this bike for sale on the web locally. The machine appeared complete and original from the photos. I watched it for a few days before deciding to check if it was still for sale, before arranging a viewing of the bike. A quick phone call to the seller and the bike was still unsold. A leisurely drive in the autumn sunshine to view the bike and the deal was done. The bike was loaded into the back of the car and returned home with me. I have hankered after one of these Rudge 'Ulster' models for quite a while because of the association with this particular province of Ireland. Unfortunately the machine is too small for me, but I had a new owner in mind anyway. 

This machine is a 1952 Rudge Ulster Tourist Gent's roadster bicycle with a 21” frame, complete with tired original paint and transfers. 

It is fitted with an alloy Sturmey Archer FW 4 speed hub and 26 x 1 3/8” (650A) wheels.

The machine dates from when Raleigh owned Rudge and the headbadge still fitted on the head tube and the Raleigh 23-28 High Tensile steel tubing transfer confirms this.

According to the only 1950s Rudge catalogue on line in the V-CC library (1959), this particular machine was model 129. It had an entirely brazed frame with a brazed on pulley boss on the Gent's model only. 

The 1959 model had celluloid mudguards, but the 1952 has Raleigh pattern metal ones. 

The 1959 price for Rudge Ulster Tourist was £20. 4/-. 4d. with a further £2. 16/-. 4d payable for a Sturmey Archer dynohub . The frame was also Spra-Bonderized rust proofed. The paint finish was very similar with similar specification contrasting head panel colours and frame box lining This process was well regarded by cyclists of the time and in later years as one of the best available rust inhibiting processes. A lot of the artisan framebuilders such as Holdsworth and Bob Jackson used the process on their frames. The 1959 Rudge catalogue lists this model as having a Brooks leather saddle, however, the catalogue illustration shows the machine with a sprung type mattress saddle which the 1952 model has. The same image was obviously used in the catalogue for a number of years, despite the machine specification changing.

The chainring on the 1952 model incorporates the 'Red Hand of Ulster'. The machine is still very original down to the perished 'John Bull' tyre. The frame angles are more relaxed and the fork rake is much bigger than modern machines, but then many byways and minor roads were still to see tar in the early 1950s, It is a quality machine as evidenced by the more expensive alloy Sturmey Archer hub gear. The bicycle will need a complete strip down and new grease in all the bearings. Both of the original Dunlop pattern Endrick steel rims have acquired flats and from an assessment of the damage the rims will need replacement. Other than that, a good service and clean, this old Rudge should be ready for the road. Even the overhaul and service of the Sturmey Archer FW hub should present none of the problems associated with the FM or FC hubs. I hope the new owner is delighted with it. I'm looking forward to seeing it out on the road next year.

1925 Raleigh Roadster

It is one of the dilemmas that any collector or restorer of old bicycles faces at some stage, to restore or not? I received a 1925 Raleigh bike for some repairs last year. The bicycle had great sentimental value to the owner. It had belonged to his uncle from new and had been his uncle's main form of transport for most of his working life. The bicycle had been ridden at least 44 miles return journey, daily to work, carrying his tools and his 'piece'. The wheels had been renewed in the 1950s judging from the date code on the Sturmey Archer hubs. This would equate to a major overhaul of the bike and probable conversion to a three speed gear, from single speed, after roughly 25 years of use.  The rear wheel was a quality Raleigh product, 40 hole stainless steel Westwood rim, laced with stainless steel spokes into a Sturmey Archer AW hub. The front wheel was a very rusty chrome Westwood rim, laced with equally rusty spokes into a Sturmey Archer GH6 dynohub. 

My concern was to try and keep as much of the bike original as possible, but it was obvious that the hubs were in need of some attention. The bike was covered in a black oily filth which had protected the chrome plating on the hubs. Once the rear AW hub was opened, it was one of the dirtiest I have ever had to strip.

The component parts all had to be thoroughly cleaned to be able to assess the extent of the wear. What was obvious, following cleaning, that the cones were badly worn, along with the driver and ball ring. The springs all needed replacing as well. The axle threads were also very worn, but as the bike was only to be used occasionally, I decided to keep the axle as the sun pinion teeth were good. New parts were fitted and the hub internals re-assembled and lubricated. Once the completed internals were refitted into the hub shell, it was obvious the new parts had not removed all the play from the bearings. The left hand K517 ball cup was obviously very worn and tired from the heavy mileage it had endured. To top it all, the threads stripped on the axle when putting the wheel back into the frame. I wanted to keep the back wheel, so the AW was stripped down again. The left hand ball cup was removed after some reluctance.

A suitable spanner was used with an 'enforcer bar' to increase the leverage, so as to overcome the reluctance of the ball cup to screw out. A new old stock K517 ball cup was fitted after the hub shell threads had been thoroughly cleaned then greased. The hub gear internals were then stripped down again and a new axle fitted and the unit rebuilt. This was then inserted into the hub and quickly and easily adjusted. The indicator rod was then refitted, before the wheel was put back in the frame. The gear cable was then refitted to the indicator rod and adjusted so all the gears worked. I next started on the front wheel. The rim and spokes were both badly corroded. In addition the rim had a number of flats. I stripped the dynohub down to check the hub shell ball cups but these were worn out too. 

It was a case of find a replacement hubshell, fit new cones and refit the dynohub internals into the replacement hub shell. Once this was done, I built the hub into a new 32 hole 28 inch Westwood rim.

It was also necessary to fit a new front tyre. The new wheel was then refitted to the frame. I also fitted a new front mudguard at the request of the owner.

The bike was taken for a run to see that the gears worked properly. The headset and bottom bracket were both worn, with some play in the bearings, but this didn't have any adverse effect of the handling of the bike. Although very heavy by modern standards, the bike was actually very nice to ride unlike a modern heavy steel mountain bike. The bicycle felt lively and responsive to the pedalling input once the initial momentum had been gained. I can see how people toured on these roadster bikes 80 to 90 years ago. Although, not considered by some veteran bicycle aesthetics as being worth bothering with, who disparagingly refer to these machines as 'nondescript', due to the fact they were mass produced in a factory. These machines may have a low monetary value and lack the perceived cachet, or one upmanship of a rare brand or hand crafted bespoke frame, which some of these self appointed guardians, of taste and historical worth, espouse.  However, these humble machines do relate, very much, to social history. As the ordinary working man's transport before mass car ownership, they represented a considerable investment by the owner and were usually bought through the cycle manufacturer's hire purchase scheme, via their cycle agent. Their survival after decades of storage is an indication of the value in which they were held by their original owners. Where the history of a particular machine and it's owner is known, this can often open a historical window into the working and recreational life of the former owner.  As this machine predates the opening of the Raleigh factory in Dublin in the late 1930s, after which Raleigh increasingly had the lion's share of the Irish bicycle market,  the owner obviously made a conscious decision to purchase his Raleigh in a more varied and competitive bicycle market. It is now getting more unusual to find pre WW2 machines, as many older machines were scrapped as part of the wartime metal salvage campaign.  It was good to return an old veteran back into a rideable machine again.

Frame numbering

One of the most frequent postings on web forums by people who are starting to collect bikes is 'can anyone identify my bike or frame?'  The easiest route to possible identification is find the frame number.   It sounds simple enough, but it is made a lot easier if you know where to look.   Volume bicycle manufacturers like Raleigh tended to use the seat lug, as in this 1925 Raleigh roadster.

The size and font of the numbering could also change over time as illustrated in the Raleigh Moulton frame number, although the location of the frame number was the same.  

 

One caveat about Raleigh frame number information on the web. Sheldon Brown is quite accurate on Raleigh frame numbering, except where he supposes about Irish Raleigh production. His information is simply incorrect. As it was posted 'on the internet', it is assumed by many, as an incontrovertible truth, when it is not. Sheldon's pages were a work in progress. Unfortunately, this all came to a halt, on his untimely passing. I will blog accurate information on Dublin Raleigh frame numbers using known examples at a future date.  Raleigh have also used the back of the seat tube, either below the seat lug, or above the bottom bracket, the underside of the bottom bracket shell and rear dropout as location of frame number.  Some of these locations were used for 'badge engineered' Raleigh production.  As mentioned above, the style of font used in the sequential frame number changed over time and the example below was found on a 1920s British roadster.  

Other British bicycle manufacturers used either the seat lug or a rear dropout. BSA sports frames tended to have the frame number on the left rear dropout. 

Hercules in the 1950s also used the left rear dropout and used a different font to BSA. 

 

Sunbeam during it's time of ownership by AMC used the right hand rear dropout on some models. 

Bespoke custom frame builders in Britain used various locations to install a frame number. Unusually, some builders put their frame numbers on the bottom bracket shell at the down tube lug. 

Others stamped the underside of the fork crown. It was not unknown to have the frame number on both the frame and fork. 

Often the frame number was stamped on the fork steerer tube as well. 

However, easily the most common location for a frame number was the underside of the bottom bracket shell. 

The number was usually stamped in line with the axle, or at right angles to the crank axle and parallel to one on the bottom bracket cups.  Imported Peugeot bikes from the late 1970s/early 1980s had a frame number stamped into the bottom bracket shell which was parallel to one of the bottom bracket cups. Peugeot also had a paper identifier covered in clear vinyl wich identifies the model, frame size and sequential frame number. 

The location varied between the underside of the bottom bracket, bottom of the seat tube above the bottom bracket shell, or on the left hand chainstay.

The model numbers appear to be slightly different according to the country of sale. Gitane put their frame number on the left rear dropout of their tandems. The sequential frame number is on the bottom part of the dropout and the year identifier above. 

 

A further complication and a bit of a red herring can be a re-finisher's number. 

Frames were often stamped by a re-finisher before being enamelled to make sure the right frame and fork were returned. These are usually 3 digit numbers and can confuse as they are on both frame and fork.

Once you have located the frame number, the process of trying to indentify  the machine that you have found can begin. Finding the frame number can be difficult if it is only lightly stamped, or been damaged on a rear droput, or covered up with paint. Some small bespoke frame builders didn't bother with a frame number. Late 1980s volume manufacturer (Londonderry built) Viking 531 frames also don't appear to have been given frame numbers. I have also found 1990s examples of Dawes 531 frames with the same problem. Finally, another recent phenomenon which can add to the confusion is post code stamping of a bike frame to try to deter theft and ensure the frame is returnable to it's owner. These are usually 7 digits, usually two letters, three numbers and two letters. They tend to be stamped where they can be easily found, so keep looking to see if there are any others!