At 6:17 PM +0000 10/28/07, Hilary Stone wrote:
>This is not really true - pre-war Reynolds aluminium bars are 7/8in
>and so are most pre-war steel bars. Post war almost all aluminium
>bars are 15/16in. With steel bars it is not so clear - some are
>7/8in and some 15/16in - GB are 15/16in with 25.4mm centres and
>there are certainly other steel bars similarily dimensioned too.
>
>Hilary Stone, Bristol, England
Reynolds made aluminium bars?
GB made steel bars?
That's news to me, but not much pre-war stuff exists on my side of The Pond.
It has been my impression, mainly based on reading old _Cyclings_ that up through the '50s, British cyclists were very leery of aluminium parts. I even recall reading a theory that flats were more likely with aluminium rims due to electrostatic sparking or some such folderol. ;-) Raleigh was proud to call itself "The All-steel Bicycle" after all, and Britains industrial greatness was built on the use of steel.
All the best,
Sheldon
>
>Sheldon Brown wrote:
>>Quoth Neil Foddering:
>>
>>>7/8" is the usual pre-war British bar diameter, often with a 15/16" ferrule
>>
>>Yes, though I wouldn't define this as a "pre-war" issue. Rather,
>>it's a materials issue:
>>
>>*British _steel_ bars are generally 7/8" (22.2 mm) with 15/16"
>>(23.8 mm) centres.
>>
>>*British _aluminium_ bars are generally 15/16" (23.8 mm) with 1"
>>(25.4 mm) centres.
>>
>>This applies regardless of the shape/bend of the bars.
>>
>>Sheldon "Hiduminium" Brown
>>+---------------------------------+
>>| Is ambivalence a bad thing? |
>>| Well, yes and no. |
>>| -- Garrison Keillor |
>>+---------------------------------+
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