The following is an extract from:
http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/
'In 1902 the \u201cFeatherwieght, Ladies Sunbeam\u201d (design H.R.H.) was the first Sunbeam machine fitted with Roman rims as standard. =09 They were invented by Dr. R.I. Roman of the Roman Cycle Co., Lombard Street, London in 1897, and were joint-less alloy rims made from an aluminium alloy he called romanium.'I owned a Genttl emen's Royal Sunbeam with Roman rims, still serviceable after 90-odd years. Neil Foddering Weymouth, Dorset, England
> Date: Sun, 20 Jan 2008 08:06:45 -0800
> To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
> From: heine94@earthlink.net
> Subject: [CR]re: When did aluminum become reliable? Was: Early Alloy Part
s
>
> After posting the link to the 1934 Reyhand, I thought about all the
> very early aluminum machines. In the report on the Great Arizona Bike
> Race of 1894 (Bicycle Quarterly Vol. 3, No. 4), there was mention of
> aluminum bikes, but it seems they did not make it to the start due to
> problems. It seems that while aluminum has been around as a material
> for more than a century, its early applications (before good alloys
> were available) was plagued with problems.
>
> So that brings up the question of when aluminum bikes and parts
> became reliable. By the mid-1930s, they certainly were almost totally
> reliable. Aluminum frames still had a higher failure rate than steel,
> but probably not much higher than many modern materials. Aluminum
> cranks seem to have had a good reputation by then (see the CR
> archives on why racers did not use them), and that 1934 Reyhand
> mentioned in the previous post survived totally intact for decades
> under a less-than-mechanical lady owner. Similar bikes were ridden in
> technical trials, Paris-Brest-Paris, etc.
>
> Were the 1930s really the breakthrough decade? I haven't seen much
> aluminum used on 1920s bikes... Does anybody have some insights?
>
> Jan Heine
> Editor
> Bicycle Quarterly
> 140 Lakeside Ave #C
> Seattle WA 98122
> http://www.bikequarterly.com