# TOC Bicycle ID



## Danos (Jan 5, 2016)

I bought this bike a few months ago but I was unable to get my hands on it until now. 

The bike is completely covered in rust so I have no idea what the original color was or any other signs that could tell me who could have built this bicycle but I was able to find a serial number on the headtube. Looks like it says 015750.

The only thing I know is that it has a Christy saddle so my guess is this bike was built around 1898. It has wooden rims that are in decent condition but I dont know if it would be rideable. The spokes feel like strings on a guitar. 

I would appreciate any help in identifying this bike.


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## pelletman (Jan 5, 2016)

Clean her up!  Some similarities but not the same.

http://www.thewheelmen.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=5059&SearchTerms=restore+or+preserve


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## bricycle (Jan 5, 2016)

yea, year is 1897-8.... problem is there were so many brands, makers then. tough to tell sometimes.


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## rustjunkie (Jan 5, 2016)

hot dawg this is cool:


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## rustjunkie (Jan 5, 2016)

Digging the way this bike looks: a snapshot of time passing.
Something I noticed that might be of help, although maybe a little late: Looking at the wear to the teeth on the hub, and the way the chain pulls away from the chain ring, the "drive train" is worn out. 
The bike was ridden for a long time after the chain had worn out: becoming longer from use, effectively changing the pitch and grinding away at the teeth on the cog.  
Not really a problem for a bike that sits, but to make it rideable will likely be difficult and expensive. This becomes more of a problem as the age/scarcity of the parts increases.
It's a good idea to inspect these parts when buying a bike that you want to ride. If the visible parts are worn that brings into question the condition of what you can't see. 
If buying a loose used chain compare the overall length to the # of links to see how much it's lengthened from use...it doesn't take much elongation to make a chain "wore out".
As the saying goes: if you don't know now you know.
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/chain-life.html
Thanks to Danos for clearance to note this


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## Underground Bicycle Shop (Jan 5, 2016)

Head badge holes? and if so are they vertical? How far apart in MM.
Could very well be a North Star!


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## slcurts (Jan 6, 2016)

Danos said:


> I bought this bike a few months ago but I was unable to get my hands on it until now.
> 
> The bike is completely covered in rust so I have no idea what the original color was or any other signs that could tell me who could have built this bicycle but I was able to find a serial number on the headtube. Looks like it says 015750.
> 
> ...




There are some paint details showing up in some of these photos, that you may not be able to see with the naked eye. I've seen that happen before, especially if you use a flash. You might try taking some more closeups and checking the photos for clues.


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## catfish (Jan 6, 2016)

Very Cool!



rustjunkie said:


> hot dawg this is cool:


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## Danos (Jan 6, 2016)

Thanks everyone for the help and compliments. 



pelletman said:


> Clean her up!  Some similarities but not the same.
> 
> http://www.thewheelmen.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=5059&SearchTerms=restore+or+preserve




Wow that one cleaned up real nice! Gives me some hope for this one. Hopefully most of the paint is still there but its a bit of a long shot.



Underground Bicycle Shop said:


> Head badge holes? and if so are they vertical? How far apart in MM.
> Could very well be a North Star!
> View attachment 263547




It doesnt seem to have any headbadge holes :/ makes it that much harder to identify. 



slcurts said:


> There are some paint details showing up in some of these photos, that you may not be able to see with the naked eye. I've seen that happen before, especially if you use a flash. You might try taking some more closeups and checking the photos for clues.




Thanks for the tip. I ended up grabbing a flash light and went through the bicycle in detail. I found several parts that showed an olive green color. It looks like this might end up cleaning up nicely.


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