Michael Schmid wrote:
I can confirm that in the early 50ies the coaster brake three -speed derailleur was quite a common set up and worked well. My Dad had a Dürkopp 26' touring bike which he had bought in 1950. It came with a Fichtel and Sachs Torpedo coaster brake and a Honer brand three speed daraileur. It used a cable mechanism for shifting and the derailleur just had one pulley. There was also a special chain guard mounted on the chainstay to align the chain probably when pedaling backwards for braking. Als Fichtel and Sachs produced those deraillers, buth these worked on little chains and rods for engaging movemnet from shifter to mech. I still have the shift-system but not the bike, this was "modified" and later lost in fire... The modification was initial to my wrenching and bike passion but as far as the bike goes I regret it somhow.....
and Chuck Schmidt wrote:
Coaster brake w/3-speed derailleur setup is shown in the 1938 California Cycle Company catalog out of Long Island, New York. Catalog for sale on my web site...
Further, Larry Myers himself wrote:
The first time I saw any mention of coaster brake/derailleur drivetrains was in Frank Berto's wonderful book, "The Dancing Chain". Fichtel-Sachs mated their 'Torpedo' coaster hub to their single-pulley 3-speed derailleur system (w/indexed shift lever, no less!). Because the single-pulley changer wrapped very little chain, the coaster brake could be actuated without excessive backward rotation of the crank arms. The Durkopf bike I mentioned in my posting was the first actual embodiment of this system that I have ever actually seen, "in the flesh". If you don't own a copy of Berto's book, I highly recommend getting one. Amazon.com has it for about $40, and it has proven to be an invaluable source of reliable information about early and modern multi-geared drivetrains. As a bonus, it includes many great Daniel Rebour line drawings!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ OK, I wuz wrong in my (carefully worded) skepticism, and wrong for not having checked my copy of Berto before loosing my fingers on the world. I apologize. I just didn't want to think that some marketer prevailed, over the good sense of the engineers, and got them to bundle up this set of features as something sane folks would pay extra for. Features included enhanced free backpedaling, easier-to-fade brake, and maybe even a bit of extra weight. Gee, for that kind of money they could have added a horn-in-tank design. :-)
Thanks, gentlemen, for your patient explanations. Michael, sounds like you kept the most interesting part of the bike.
harvey sachs mcLean va (no kbown relation to Fichtel, Sachs, or Richie Sachs; but the son of one of three brothers who emigrated from the Chemnitz area)