Author Topic: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen  (Read 638265 times)

Andrij

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Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1050 on: 11 September, 2011, 08:00:09 pm »
I've got three from my trip down from Leyland and one from next to my gym (bike mentioned ages ago).

1) I complemented this gent on his Raleigh as he was getting a good look at my Hewitt.  He had come up from London to collect the bike - picked up off of ebay for his son to use at uni.  I suggested it was too nice to be relegated to a uni hack bike and should just get him a £50 BSO.


2) Saw this locked up at Crewe station


3) This next one is not unusual, but not the sort of things you often see on a train.  Last year the owner decided he wanted to do LeJoG so went out and bought a Mercian (as one does).


4) I see this one fairly often at the gym near my office.  That top tube always catches my attention.

;D  Andrij.  I pronounce you Complete and Utter GIT   :thumbsup:

clarion

  • Tyke
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1051 on: 11 September, 2011, 08:56:22 pm »
I saw a Cooper Aintree (ladies frame) at Balham yesterday.  I think they're pretty new out, so it's a rare spot.

Last week, I saw a couple of interesting bikes among the BSOs outside Kennington tube.  A Genesis Flyer (similar to my Ridgeback Solo), and a Harry Quinn.  Well, it said it was a Harry Quinn, on the downtube and seat tube, but the graphics looked odd.  It was that awful slightly curvy generic font that a lot of builders/badgers were using in the 80s.  But, while the seat tube one read vertically, which was OK, there were the same type of stickers on the downtube, putting the letters sideways, which caught my eye.  Also, there was a 531 sticker on the forks.  But it was a frame sticker.  No idea what was going on there.
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Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1052 on: 12 September, 2011, 10:35:20 pm »


One of the research admins at work just got this. Never seen one in the flesh before. Looks expensive.

Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1053 on: 14 September, 2011, 09:54:32 pm »
Didn't get a photo, but I spotted a homebuilt Tour Easy recumbent clone in Ely. The frame looked well made, but the seat was a fabric covered, plywood & foam rubber monstrosity.
If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is...

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1054 on: 18 September, 2011, 08:35:44 pm »
A Pace MTB. Unusual square-section frame tubes, other than seat tube and head tube, but including the stays. Very shiny, polished aluminium I guess, though it was so shiny it could almost have been stainless steel!
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1055 on: 23 September, 2011, 06:02:08 pm »
A bright red Challenge Wizard SWB recumbent locked up in Broad Street, Reading. The owner turned up while I was looking at it. He's tall, bespectacled & chatty.

"A woman on a bicycle has all the world before her where to choose; she can go where she will, no man hindering." The Type-Writer Girl, 1897

Andrij

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Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1056 on: 23 September, 2011, 06:58:34 pm »
The other day I saw a Dahon chained up outside East Ham Station.  It caught my eye because at first glance I thought it was a Moulton.
;D  Andrij.  I pronounce you Complete and Utter GIT   :thumbsup:

clarion

  • Tyke
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1057 on: 23 September, 2011, 08:07:05 pm »
I saw a Condor Heritage in Sutton today.  With a rather incongruous nurses' lock.  And a rack that, for some reason, sat very high above the rear wheel.
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Hilldodger

Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1058 on: 24 September, 2011, 06:01:11 pm »
We've just had one of these early Dahon folders donated

Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1059 on: 25 September, 2011, 07:53:19 pm »
A bakfiets, a Nihola trike, and one of those fat small tyre-ed electric bikes today. 
Your Royal Charles are belong to us.

corshamjim

Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1060 on: 25 September, 2011, 08:40:33 pm »
I'm not sure how unusual they are, but I saw a Charge Steamer for the first time last weekend.  Unfortunately it was on the back of a car on the M4 so I couldn't see how much the rider was enjoying it.

Mr Larrington

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Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1061 on: 26 September, 2011, 01:25:15 pm »
We've just had one of these early Dahon folders donated

Lt. Col. Larrington has one of those, but badged as a Bickerton.  IIRC Bickertons started selling rebadged Dahons because they original chocolate Bickies were a tad fragile for the larger rider (Lt. Col. Larrington (retd.) broke four).
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Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1062 on: 26 September, 2011, 05:39:39 pm »
A Pace MTB. Unusual square-section frame tubes, other than seat tube and head tube, but including the stays. Very shiny, polished aluminium I guess, though it was so shiny it could almost have been stainless steel!

I've got one of those in the loft. Although mine is in its original gun metal finish.

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1063 on: 26 September, 2011, 09:30:30 pm »
If it's in the loft, I presume that means it's either not good enough that you want to ride it or it's so good you can't bear to part with it. Or quite likely both!
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

clarion

  • Tyke
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1064 on: 29 September, 2011, 10:55:10 am »
Outside Brixton station, there was a Miyata.  Not at all recent, by the look of it, and perhaps a bit shabby (deliberately?) but it looked nice to my eye.

Straight after that, I saw a chap on a chopper-style bike turning into Coldharbour Lane.  Massive wide rear tyre.
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Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1065 on: 29 September, 2011, 02:02:07 pm »
That reminds me, I saw a Schwinn cruiser-style bike a couple of weekends ago. Green, curvy, fat top tube, broad, flat saddle with check cloth, and a built in cup holder!
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

clarion

  • Tyke
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1066 on: 29 September, 2011, 02:05:15 pm »
Ooh, yeah, on a train of thought, I spotted a Kona Ute locked up outside London Bridge station.
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clarion

  • Tyke
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1067 on: 29 September, 2011, 09:34:36 pm »
And a lovely classic Orange going at a fair old clip near Kennington.
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AndyK

Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1068 on: 30 September, 2011, 10:29:45 pm »
Nice little folder:


Huge cruiser/chopper thing:


and a GoCycle:



Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1069 on: 02 October, 2011, 09:10:42 pm »
Yesterday, a frame made in 1963 by one Wilf Green for Dave Davey's shop somewhere in London. You wouldn't know it was so old as it's been resprayed at Argos (where its current owner works part-time, or used to) and has modern components - including some unusual homebrewed handlebars, drops with something akin to bar ends added sprouting backwards just before the bend - but it has lovely bat-wing lugs, which he described as "Gothic". Indeed they are.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1070 on: 02 October, 2011, 09:16:14 pm »
That owner injured his right thumb very badly, being a goalie in a football match, heavily bruised. Very blue and purple. He wasn't able to grip the tops of the brake levers so conjured that set up. And as for the frame, yes, the quality of the lugs, and the way the seat stays went round over the top tube = top work.

Frere

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1071 on: 02 October, 2011, 09:21:51 pm »
Yes, he told me about the injury and showed me his thumb. He also said he'd had the drop outs changed from horizontal to vertical because of the possibility of pulling the back wheel forwards when applying humoungous pressure on the pedals. I commented that there was no danger of that with my legs, he said not with his either but he just liked to worry about these things! "Gothic" was his description of the bat-shaped lugs, not the bars, btw. I'm not quite sure how you'd describe those other than ingenious!
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1072 on: 02 October, 2011, 09:40:33 pm »
Saw Teamonster and stoker yesterday on the greenspeed tandem recumbent trike.  Always good to see them!!
Your Royal Charles are belong to us.

Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1073 on: 02 October, 2011, 09:41:08 pm »
Oh, and I forgot, a chap in an FNRttC red star top at the Albert Memorial, didn't recognise them though.
Your Royal Charles are belong to us.

clarion

  • Tyke
Re: Interesting and Unusual Bikes You've Seen
« Reply #1074 on: 05 October, 2011, 11:00:55 am »
Nice green Mercian with barbers pole in Wandsworth.  I was so disappointed when he freewheeled ;D
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