Friday, April 03, 2015

Interesting folding bike!

One of our customers brought in a really unusual folding bike the other day.  Made in Holland, apparently sold under the Columbia name here in the USA, in the late 60s.  Really interesting bike, with some unusual construction features.  Really sharp looking, and in remarkably good shape.  And pretty fun to ride too!  Take a look at the detail photos to see a real time capsule bike.

Interesting location for the Sturmey-Archer trigger shifter. 
One of the prettiest chain guards we've seen.

The tail light is very neatly blended into the fender.

Classy looking bell. The chrome on the bike is in remarkable shape all around.

Neat headlight.

Really interesting handlebar and fork configuration.

Remember these old school odometers? The little striker wheel gets hit by a nubbin on a spoke as the wheel goes around.

Another view of the fork.

Magneet was apparently the manufacturer. The square tube frame is unusual.

The back side of the chain guard, and the lower part of the frame, showing unusual construction.

Columbia... since 1877 one of the great old names in American cycling.  But for this bike, they turned to Holland.

Very interesting folding pedal.

The classic Sturmey-Archer 3 speed hub dates the bike to 1966.

1 comment:

Bluesophia said...

Folding means popping the fork/wheel assembly off the frame? It looked like a quick release button in the head tube area, but I could not tell where else the frame might articulate. I like the chain guard (we need more chain guards on modern bikes), though the fully enclosed design must make chain maintenance harder. The hard chines on the fenders are a sharp looking detail as well.