snipped from below: "Comparing a Singer to a modern American frame with investment-cast lugs and ready-made braze-ons is like comparing a 17th century painting with a photograph - it's an entirely different technique. To say that a painting is less art because you see the brush strokes makes little sense to me." --- --- --- ---
jan - i fully agree with you. i, too, often use the brush stroke/photo
analogy.
otoh, my observation was that the quality and execution of the torch and
metalwork seemed quite entry level; i am not suggesting that there are
structural problems, but on the surface, there were telltale signs of
over-
heating, and brass inclusions, and heat bands, and distortion on all the
frames
i was shown. personally, i felt that the mojo and history of the atelier
and
brand over-rode any of my professional biases, but i did see what i did
see.
in its own way, i thought it all added to the charm.
i guess what i am saying is that despite the many generations seperating
the styles and material choices between modern builders and those
creating
a mid 20th century timepiece like the singers, i was truly surprised at
the level
of - to use the word again - execution.
while i feel sheepish about typing and sending out such a strong opinion
i must reiterate that, had i the money, i would have placed an order.
these
bicycles with their lineage won't be made much longer. (jan - i hope you
remember my contacting you in the fall about some of the observations
i made onlist today.)
e-RICHIE®
Richard Sachs Cycles
No.9, North Main Street
Chester, CT 06412 USA
Tel. 860.526.2059
site: http://www.richardsachs.com
pics: http://photos.yahoo.com/
On Wed, 24 Mar 2004 17:39:44 -0800 Jan Heine <heine93@earthlink.net> writes: With Singers, quality depends, as Dirk said. Even the custom-built, top-of-the-line randonneur bikes vary a bit. Some are finer than others. My 1962 is one of the nicest bikes I have seen anywhere, from any era (see VBQ web site under "Image Archive" or VBQ vol. 1, No. 1 for a full feature). When you consider that the lugs have been built up and filed to shape by hand and that the braze-ons all originated as pieces of tubing and rod, you appreciate it even more. Even today, it is amazing how few parts go into a Singer frame and rack - almost everything is shaped and filed and machined by hand.
That 1962 bike was ordered by a guy who already had 4 Singers - that was his retirement gift. He didn't ride much thereafter, so I am lucky to get it well-preserved. Also, the 1960s were a time when there were very few orders, so more time was spent on each.
The bikes I saw being made in past years for friends and VBQ readers also were top-notch, while at the same time, a frame for a Japanese customer with a lot of very specific requests was, well, I could see Ernest Csuka was getting frustrated with it. As always, I depends who orders them... I have a 1985 bike that was not so great until I sent it back for a repaint, and they spent quite some time filing it, so now it's gorgeous. The original owner was a guy with money, but somehow didn't hit it off with the Csuka brothers... "He was not a rider," Ernest Csuka told me disdainfully.
Comparing a Singer to a modern American frame with investment-cast lugs and ready-made braze-ons is like comparing a 17th century painting with a photograph - it's an entirely different technique. To say that a painting is less art because you see the brush strokes makes little sense to me.
As far as the lugs go - the ones I saw were ready-made lugs, to which longer points had been welded. Then they are built up with brass for the smooth radius (a technique like fillet-brazing). Then they are used to make the frame.
I agree with Richard that a racing Singer doesn't have that much appeal. The appeal lies in the entirety of the randonneur or camping bike, its racks, braze-ons, little pieces and how everything fits together seamlessly. That is something I have not yet seen equaled elsewhere in recent years.
--
Jan Heine, Seattle
Editor/Publisher
Vintage Bicycle Quarterly
http://www.mindspring.com/