At 03:34 PM 20/11/2007 -0500, Dr. Paul Williams wrote:
>I have been watching a number of items on ebay for my late-40s early-50s
>British rebuild and have been struggling to try to determine which of
>the many accessories were actually used by most riders. I know that
>mudguards were used and were removed for racing but how many of you from
>that era used cyclometers? Did you fit bells? What about lights,
>reflectors? etc. What sort of bottles and cages did you fit? Saddle
>bags? Etc.
I got a cyclometer for my Hercules, but didn't keep it on too long because I couldn't stand the ticking. Would never have put something like that on my Claud.
The little aluminum ping-ping bells mounted on the stem were popular with club riders and were often used in unison to attract the attention of comely females as well as just ringing them just for the hell of it. They were also required by the time trials rules and probably the law.
Front and back lights and a rear reflector mounted on a white background were required by law from 30 minutes after sunset until 30 minutes before sunrise. You would have lights on your bike if you expected to be out when they were required. The usual front light was a 4.5 volt battery one mounted on the front fork bracket but I remember one character in the club who liked to use an old carbide lamp, which was really bright. Rear lights were usually ones with a couple of 1.5 volt C or D cells that would clamp to the seatstay. Many of us wouldn't do that because it chipped the paint and attached them to our saddlebags. This type of mounting was illegal and sometimes got us in trouble with the constabulary.
Most clubmen used saddle bags, Brooks or Wrights if I recall, some made of heavy canvas with plastic trim and some of immitation leather. You would carry food, tools, etc. and maybe extra clothing, with a yellow rain cape rolled up on top. The loops on the saddle were not enough to really support the bags, so they were also held up by a support clamped above the brake bridge.
This was for your normal club runs, because you stopped for elevenses, lunch and tea. If you weren't bringing lunch, you might just have your cape strapped behind your saddle. Rolled up inside the cape would be your tools rolled up in your cheesecutter. (For those not familiar with the term, a cheesecutter is a corduroy cap, worn when it rained. The greasy tools made it waterproof over time.)
Before I rode with a club, I had a pair of aluminum water bottles on the handlebars of my Hercules, but I found most people didn't take water bottles on club runs. However, the BLRC bunch and other would-be roadracers didn't carry most of the baggage mentioned above. They had a water bottle on the frame, tubs strapped under the saddle and a bonk bag (mussette) over the shoulder.
John Betmanis
Woodstock, Ontario
Canada