Broken Carlton.

So I revert to my second bicycle, of similar vintage, c. 1975: A Peugeot, which is not half bad either ...

ATB from George

George, do you mean the QR spindle has sheared, or the hollow axle? Should be easy enough to get another axle surely!

Regarding getting rid of the QR, given the state of the roads and frequency of punctures why would you want to make wheel removal harder?

Dear Svetty,

The QR is fine, but the hollow spindle is sheared through.

If I could get a direct replacement I would have no problem setting it up, but it is all old imperial stuff, so I need to find a proper high class, but long established bike shop.

There is one in Hereford called Mastercycles in Bridge Street, so they would be worth a visit next weekend. I bought my Dawes, which I sold ten years ago, from there.

Mycycles in Malvern is gone now, and Peddlers in Worcester was quite rude about "that relique," considering the Carlton, which is comical really! Obviously they did not want me to go back there. The other good bike shop in Worcester sells all modern [and rather expensive] things and would be a good place for tyres, but not ancient parts.

Still this breakdown is a motivation to get the bike re-enamelled and get it all right up to the top line again in May!

ATB from George.

PS: I am not over fond of QR wheel removal. Theives in Worcester seem more than happy to QR any wheels so attached! With the spindly Carlton wheels I have have only had three punctures in the last fifteen months. The roads are in a terrible state though.

George

Japan, Germany and Holland usually use British standard threads. I know Shimano do. Take the spindle and cones to your local modern bike shop. If you’re lucky a Shimano dura ace spindle may be a direct replacement.

Dear fatcat,

Thanks for the suggestion.

Will do this at the weekend. Sad to see the old thing without a wheel in the back.

ATB from George

Any decent bike shop with a service department will have drawers full of them. You shouldn't have any problems finding one.

I always though Shimano Dura Ace was purchased from a Jewellers shop!

Debs

George

For bikes of your age, you can do no better than to take a look at this web site.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/

Regards

Mick

quote:

Originally posted by Mick Parry:
George

For bikes of your age, you can do no better than to take a look at this web site.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/

Regards

Mick

Ahh, yes. Sheldon Brown. A classic website!

Phew! What a relief! I thought you were going to tell me Cole was injured again!

Thanks for all your suggestions. I'll get the thing fixed this weekend! Hopefully!

ATB from George

I managed to get hold of a similar vintage Apollo bike, which has some nice fittings. Good Weinmann brakes [Same as on the Carlton], and so on. The spindles are solid - not Quick Release - and a precise match in length and thread to those fitted on the Carlton with good nuts and washers. I managed to beg the Apollo as it was going to the tip, and I agreed to take it there if I could strip out the parts I want first! I have also convincingly dated the Carlton. The original [alloy] brake castings were made in May 1985, so my friend [who gave me the bike 18 months ago] was right about its age. He bought it brand new in 1986, and all the experts who told me it was mid 70s are conclusively shown as not right! So it is more or less the end of a very great line!

I fitted the front brake on the Carlton because the existing one has been twisted at some stage before I had the bike and have rebuilt the rear hub, which is now splendid. Silent and smooth. I also reset the derailleur for safety's sake.

Tomorrow I will rebuild the front hub, so as to remove temptation when the bike locked up in a public place, to those weak-willed enough to use the Quick Release on the current hub, and 'arf-inch the wheel!

Very please to have the old bike going again. There is an interesting development [apart from the re-enamel planned hopefully for May], which may result in a photo here in a week or so, but not going to spill the beans yet!

On the other hand, the old Volvo now has a problem on the engine management. The lambda light is on when the engine is running - went wrong on Wednesday. It is also guzzling petrol, so it may be curtains! I took it to the garage earlier, and rode the 14 miles home on my other bike, the Peugeot.

Glad to have the Carlton up and running again after that!

ATB from George

The Apollo did not yield a front spindle to match what is a truly meaty Quick Release front hub on the Carlton.

But I was out between 1 to 2am Saturday morning [ie in the middle of last night] giving the old bike a workout! This afternoon I have now re-set the rear hub, which is running a treat on its new solid back-wheel spindle.

I have a £100 bet that I can beat an English 19 year old on a round the houses race in the next fortnight! That as the result of a good Polish party earlier! So I concede 29 years in age, but my determination and the sublime quality of a great English bike should see the result my way!!

Even if it is impossible the seriously corner while pedalling the Carlton - the pedals tend to hit the floor beyond even a shallow lean as the pedal arms are extra-long! It is a time trial bike after all - straight lines and all that!

ATB from George

Good luck with the race George.

I hope you show the 19 year old (boy or girl) a clean pair of wheels.

Regards

George.

I did last time! I cannot see why he is prepared to bet on a different result this time!

Anyway, I gave him a date of two weeks yesterday for it which he will default on in all probability [IMV], because all his bikes are apparently out of service so he is not going to be in great condition himself!

He is English. The Polish money is on Johnson!

ATB from George

The Carlton will now loose its fashionably modern flat bar, which is out of place as a plastic dashboard would be on a Wolesley car, and in place will be a period Great North Road bar from the thrirties, but previously unfitted!

The advantage will be that with the bike is just a little too long for my arm reach, the short position of the GNR bar will improve things even over the modern flat bar, and the drop is somewhat less low than the modern drop-bar style. The grip is excatly front to back, so my normal caliper type brake levers [off the old Dawes and survived on both bikes since] will continue in service rather than reverting to the Weinmann levers that are original to the bike on its original drop-bars.

But the expenses associated with repairing the Volvo are likely to ensure that no re-enamel will be commissioned before June now!

Pictures will follow here later in the week!

ATB from George

But the expenses associated with repairing the Volvo are likely to ensure that no re-enamel will be commissioned before June now!

But the good news is that there is so little to go wrong on the Bendix engine management system. Either the computer works or it does not [ie. the engine runs smoothly, or will not start], and the only things, otherwise, that fail eventually are the [exhaust gas] Lambda sensor, and the engine temperature sensor.

Both will be replaced by the end of the week, so the old girl lives again!

The crazy thing is that Volvo 240s grow old so gracefully! Or perhaps for the health of the Volvo company, digracefully. Fingers crossed for a bill of less than £100.

ATB from George

The Carlton has taken on a new [unused old stock] 1930s Great North Road racing style handlebar.

It is GREAT!

So pleased. Photos to follow. I had to cannibalize another old English bike [wreck] to get the post to mount the ancient but mint handlebar because is it is thinner at the mounting point than a modern ally one, but no problems fixing it up. It looks amazing. It almost looks like there is no bar at all, because the grip is parallel to the top bar and slightly lower, and much further back than a drop bar or even a flat bar. The gear levers on the front tube are only about eight inches away to reach, so much safer in this respect than using any other sort of bar. It is tremendous for acceleration, and looking forward all you see of the bike is the top of the front wheel. Very comfortable position too, and very easy in the stop start of the town’s traffic!

I shall take her for a decent run on Friday afternoon, and will soon know how effective it is across country [on roads of course], and there are some very interesting hills on the way!

ATB from George

Just been for the third proper little run on it! Fantastic!

Friday will show what a longer run will be like! Already one old boy has called it, "a lovely old school bike!" That was nice.

With the grip so far back it is possible to get tremendous pressure into the pedals with corresponding electric acceleration! So hill climbing should be good. The actual bar is at just above the cross-bar and I have set it with a slight gradient down towards the back, so lower than the position for using the brakes on the conventional drop-bar. I am surprised how comfortable this low grip is. The hands exactly grip without any bending of the wrists at all. On the flat-bar my hands soon loose their feeling, so that I ended up riding one handed some of the time with it. This feels much more at one with the arms, wrists and hands. I can counter the down pressure on the pedals with it as it is so far back!

And you can tuck in nicely - the bar is rather narrow like a normal drop bar - so going downhill should be very fast!

Terrifically pleased so far!

ATB from George

PS: I foresee one tiny hitch in that there is nowhere to hang a bag with beer or wodka in, so I will have to remember my rucksack!

Through the rain and wind in my face, I rode over to Bishops Frome in my fastest time [going that way] and over 14 miles shaved ten minutes off my previous best! The new handlebar is superb for power and hill climbing and equally fine for the downhill part. In the course of the 14 miles I ascend and descend 600 feet!

The Volvo is fixed and is running like a train! £167 cost, unfortunately, so the enameling on the bike will wait as that is more than a month's fun money in one go!

ATB from George

Rather than dilute the Show Us Your Bike thread any more with pictures of a scruffy old English wreck I will post them on a thread about a scruffy old English wreck!

On the 29th May I am carrying the frame and forks down to Argos Cycles in Bristol [on the train] for it to be properly enamelled in plain Mid Bruswick Green.

You don't need a huge leap of imagination to see in your minds eye how nice the result will be on this:



And it will no longer look a wreck after that! Just a nice old English bike!

I am already excited in anticipation. Even the front transfer will look well against a green back-ground. To block in the steering tube in the correct Magnolia would be expensive and would not improve it at all in the event, I think! I don't want more than the one [copy of] the original steering tube transfer applied.

It will be away for about four weeks, unfortunately!!

ATB from George

The Carlton in multi-coloured current arrangement!













The last picture shows my other bike - a Peugeot racer, also in Reynolds 501 tubing. I prefer the Carlton, but will keep the Pug original out of respect for its nigh mint condition. The Carlton is in the process of being made lovely again. Only two weeks till the re-enamel, and a month wait after that to get it back. I plan a few other fittings such a correct brake levers and traditional double sided pedals ...

ATB from George

Lovely George. To my eyes there is nothing quite like a traditional lugged steel frame.

Well I this is how it goes!

I cannot quite believe myself, but I have just ordered a pair of fine alloy brake levers to complement the 70 or 80 year old handle bar and a pair of alloy rat-trap [double sided] pedals to replace the toe-clip single sided pedals, which 90% of the time end up on the slippery wrong side at the traffic lights - once quaintly called Hoare Bollisher Beacons after the then UK Home Secretary who introduced them!

The pedals are a proper strip-down and re-grease type, so I guess that they should last for my time at least! The brake levers are rather long-handled calliper types suitable for the peculiarly long flat part of the North Road handle bar. They would look very out of place on a modern comfort bar, but allow for the forward position on the old bar required to make it flexible for hills and the flat. Further forward "on the curve" is faster, but really only for the fastest work on the open road with good visibility and no risk of have to stop fast. I have worked out how the old bar works already! I am reporting the developments to the bike's first and only other owner [bought it new in 1986], and he confessed that the Carlton was old fashioned in weight, gearing [fast to only slightly less fast and not low enough for really nasty hills - I can just do a one in four on it], gear shifting, and handling, but once he got a truly expensive carbon fibre machine [with all the mod-cons, and decent gear shift] could never match the speed in a straight line of the Carlton! Both of us are oldish old bastards now [same age, and our fathers went to school together in the 30s!], and we plan a little race on one of Herefordshire/Gloucestershire's more notorious flat to actually rather hilly stretches, used for regular time trials! I am am better on hills than he is, so the lack of flat should suit me! Then we can decamp to a pub and have a pint and cigarette [or several] after. Well he won't have more than a pint [or even one cigarette] because he is pure of heart!

I have never found such fun in Hifi as I am in getting the old bike fixed up!

Music on the other hand is all after my friends!

ATB from George

I could not think of where to find the correct spelling.

Brilliant! Thanks!

ATB from George