Re: [CR] FALCON 46796/BVVW RIDE

(Example: Framebuilders:Cecil Behringer)

From: "John Pergolizzi" <jtperry@worldnet.att.net>
To: <CBKNYC@aol.com>, <jimmycue@att.net>
Cc: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
References: <9c.29221666.2afe904d@aol.com>
Subject: Re: [CR] FALCON 46796/BVVW RIDE
Date: Sat, 9 Nov 2002 20:21:27 -0500

C.K.,
      "SHELDON" most likely refers to the distributor it was originslly intended for : Sheldon Wein out of Brooklyn, N.Y. @1980-81. Although, she may have gone from S.W. to the guy you got her from. S.W. is retired up in Vermont now. He traded scrap metal via the internet in those early days. Sponsored, with Falcon Cycles, the team I ran and raced for out of"Roy's Sheepshead Cycles" also in Brooklyn. What you have sounds like a "sports tourer" A right in the middle bike.
      She is NOT, however, as you and other may have suggested "a scam" and Not"junk really". She is a frame that is built to a price point for beguining "just getting into it" riders. A first timer.What you try before the Masi. Never saw one that was genuinly "sloppy" and have seen many "better" Italian bikes that were sloppier. Pinarello was one that never impressed me with cleanliness. Just the opposit for Gios. Those things were always Perfect. At least workmanship and finish wise.Another discussion.
       Those "mass stamped lugs" aren't immitating anything . Those are Prugnat long points. The real deal baby. Nice cutouts esspecially if ya throw some contrasting paint in there. Silver w/ astral blue? Ummmm.
        Yes,ride her into the ground. By all means. And start by joining Me and the rest of The Brooklyn Velodrome Wheelmen in Prospect Park tommarow,Sun. Nov.10 at "the Grecian Shelter" at 10 am. The G.S is roughly between Coney island ave. and Flatbush Ave. opposit The Parade Grounds(Parkside Ave.) EVERYONE ELSE ,ALL CR,PLEASE COME ON DOWN!!!!!!
      I bet your fork has a semi-sloping crown. 9/16 seat stays? "RFG" bb shell? If the dropout is alittle crunched, it should open up w/o too much hastle. 126 to 130: can be done, not super recommended. Dropouts must be correctly realligned. Campy tools please.(Yes,all the others work(Park good,ugg) but you all know the way I feel after the headset installation discussion) Let me know if I can help. ciao, JohnT.Pergolizzi 1-212-308-5903 65 mi. in my old holey red,white, and blue Falcon jersey today.


----- Original Message -----
From: CBKNYC@aol.com
To: jimmycue@att.net
Cc: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Sent: Saturday, November 09, 2002 11:22 AM
Subject: [CR]The landing of FALCON 46796



> So I got it -- the NOS Falcon.
>
> It's a mix of fancy and sloppy.
>
> The dropouts are campy, but one of 'em looks a little squished, as though it
> might have to be pulled a bit before a wheel will drop naturally into it.
>
> There is no chrome, no shifter bosses, and the head-badge is just a decal.
> The seat stay does *not* wrap around in the style of earlier Falcon's and
> other English bikes. The decals in general look flimsy -- yes, there's a
> "guranteed 531 label" but it's cracked (obviously broken when it was 1st
> applied and the two pieces slid imperfectly together). There are a few tiny
> spots on which the paint is chipped.
>
> And those tiny tubes -- the one that runs across the seat stays (the part the
> rear brake hangs from) and the similar small tube that runs across the chain
> stays near the bb are.... tiny tubes: not tubes with their own lugs, and not
> little wing shape bits of solid metal as on truly snotty frames of the
> man-is-better-than machine era.
>
> But there's good news too: the lugs have long points and heart-shape
> cut-outs. I find the fork especially beautiful --- no chrome or fancy
> painting there either, but with lug points on the inside (wheel-facing)
> surface long and with little cut-out circles. There's braze-ons for a
> waterbottle, and the rear dropout is drilled for a rear derailer. And while I
> don't have the expertise of the members of this list, the frame and fork FEEL
> solid -- wacked (respectfully, of course) it makes quite a nice dull ring
> with the vibration no doubt unique to 531; the finest magnesium steel of 70
> years ago....
>
> The dropouts (holes for front and rear racks) suggest it is intended to be
> set up as a tourer. Knocked around for a year or two this bike will
> probably look 50 years old: I can't wait until half the paint falls off
> (soon, is my guess) so I can clear coat it to preserve it in functional
> ruin... The coolest bikes where I live all look like they were dragged under
> ferryboats, mostly paintless and with the handlebars at funny angles: Junk,
> until you look close and see the flipflop hubs and careful eccentric
> thoughtful combinations of fancy components.
>
> so what to do with this thing?
>
> Is it, as many have suggested here, a scam -- a poor man's imitation of a
> real classics bike -- junk really -- with mass-stamped lugs imitating an
> earlier era, something for a low-brow to roll around on pretending to be
> sitting on Claude Butler himself? Keep in mind, though, I didn't buy this
> thing to impress my aging contempories at show-and-tell, secretly embarrassed
> that THEY have have chromed tips and I do not. My plan is to ride this
> thing, possibly to Mexico City or Easton Pennsylvannia or at least over the
> remaining cobblestones in the deepest post-industrial vestiges of Bush
> Terminal, Brooklyn. It's lugged, 531 and solid: could you really tell,
> riding blindfolded, that this thing is not from the hand of Faliero himself?
>
> The rear fork is clearly 126m --- is it sacralige or dangerous to get it
> spread for 130m 8 speed? Is the bike I plan to canabalize -- a perfectly
> functional light lovely Specialized Epic 58cm with 8sp indexed downtube DA --
> a better bike I should leave well enough alone? And the FALCON may need
> long reach brakes -- were english frames even in the 80's still set for 27"
> wheels (I plan to use modern 700c)? How old is it, anyway? The only old
> looking thing on it is a yellowed label attached by rope on which someone
> carefully printed "SHELDON" next to FRAME SET 46796 (which is infact the
> number stamped on the BB) and the words Astral Blue and another number, this
> one faded, 17624.
>
> - Charles
> =====================
> Charles Kramer, NY, NY
> My other bike is an Alberto Masi Prestige
> & a ridiculous carbon-forked dressed for halloween Viscount
> not counting the modern bikes