# Any help on what it’s worth.



## ZE52414 (Feb 15, 2019)

I’m buying this from a local friend. Probably for resale, it’s just a little bit out of my wheelhouse. It has some pretty cool parts. It will be much appreciated if someone can help me out with value. I’m sure it will make for a good parts bike for someone. Thanks guys.


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## Kramai88 (Feb 15, 2019)

Looks like about 20 bucks worth if you could use a part or two off of it. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## ZE52414 (Feb 15, 2019)

Kramai88 said:


> Looks like about 20 bucks worth if you could use a part or two off of it.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



Lmao


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## wrongway (Feb 15, 2019)

It looks like it's pretty old. Maybe 40's?


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## bikerbluz (Feb 15, 2019)

If that’s a Sturmey rear hub, probably dated. Cool bike.


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## Oilit (Feb 15, 2019)

I like the red steering head. Can we see the badge? According to what I've heard, Hercules dropped the round badge after 1949 to start using the shield style, but I'm guessing this is older because of the name decal on the top bar.


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## ZE52414 (Feb 15, 2019)

Oilit said:


> I like the red steering head. Can we see the badge? According to what I've heard, Hercules dropped the round badge after 1949 to start using the shield style, but I'm guessing this is older because of the name decal on the top bar.



Absolutely just give me
A few. 

Thank you guys!


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## dnc1 (Feb 15, 2019)

Man, how many Hercs have you guys got hidden away over there?
There must be millions of them! 
And all of them practically impossible to date! Lol.


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## spoker (Feb 15, 2019)

give it to the goodwill


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## Oilit (Feb 16, 2019)

dnc1 said:


> Man, how many Hercs have you guys got hidden away over there?
> There must be millions of them!
> And all of them practically impossible to date! Lol.



Seems like they're coming out of the woodwork lately!


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## HARPO (Feb 16, 2019)

The chain guard looks like the one on my 1946 Schwinn Continental...


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## ZE52414 (Feb 16, 2019)

I’ll havw more pics of it Tuesday. That’s when I’m picking it up. Stay tuned and thank you guys for all the info!


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## Oilit (Feb 16, 2019)

ZE52414 said:


> I’ll havw more pics of it Tuesday. That’s when I’m picking it up. Stay tuned and thank you guys for all the info!



There's no serial number information for Hercules, but going by the decals, yours could easily be before WWII. The stem and chain guard have been swapped out somewhere along the way, but the rest looks right, at least as far as I can tell. Assuming your wheels are original, the rear hub is probably your best bet for finding the year, as @bikerbluz said. If you drop it off at Goodwill, let me know which one!


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## ZE52414 (Feb 16, 2019)

Oilit said:


> There's no serial number information for Hercules, but going by the decals, yours could easily be before WWII. The stem and chain guard have been swapped out somewhere along the way, but the rest looks right, at least as far as I can tell. Assuming your wheels are original, the rear hub is probably your best bet for finding the year, as @bikerbluz said. If you drop it off at Goodwill, let me know which one!


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## Jeff54 (Feb 17, 2019)

Prob a 1948

http://collection.rydjor.com/bikecollection/1948her.htm


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## fat tire trader (Feb 17, 2019)

For comparison, here is my 1942 Hercules
http://www.fattiretrading.com/42herc.html
I have another Hercules, double bar, motobike style and several catalogs.


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## usarnie1 (Feb 17, 2019)

If you have a young lady in your life, I would do a lite restoration to the bike and give it to her.  All it needs is a good cleaning, polishing, new tires & tubes, new brake pads, the correct chain guard and a new reproduction head badge!  All the cables appear to be OK.  Keep the pedals, brake caliper/hand brakes and seat as they are all original and have the most value on the bike!  Asside from the rotten tires and lite rust, it appears that someone took great care of the bike! That bike would look spectacular if you follow my advice!


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## dweenk (Feb 17, 2019)

That Dunlop saddle shows fibers in the deteriorated areas. Is it made of rubber?


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## ZE52414 (Feb 17, 2019)

dweenk said:


> That Dunlop saddle shows fibers in the deteriorated areas. Is it made of rubber?



Guessing it’s old leather. But not sure


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## ZE52414 (Feb 17, 2019)

usarnie1 said:


> If you have a young lady in your life, I would do a lite restoration to the bike and give it to her.  All it needs is a good cleaning, polishing, new tires & tubes, new brake pads, the correct chain guard and a new reproduction head badge!  All the cables appear to be OK.  Keep the pedals, brake caliper/hand brakes and seat as they are all original and have the most value on the bike!  Asside from the rotten tires and lite rust, it appears that someone took great care of the bike! That bike would look spectacular if you follow my advice!



Eh I don’t think she would be caught dead on this bike.


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## Oilit (Feb 18, 2019)

fat tire trader said:


> For comparison, here is my 1942 Hercules
> http://www.fattiretrading.com/42herc.html
> I have another Hercules, double bar, motobike style and several catalogs.



Wow! I bet there's a story behind that one! I question the date, though. By 1942 the British would have been fully involved in WWII, and they probably didn't have resources to spare on bikes like that. It may have been bought in 1942, but I'm guessing it was built 1939 or maybe earlier.


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## fat tire trader (Feb 18, 2019)

Oilit said:


> Wow! I bet there's a story behind that one! I question the date, though. By 1942 the British would have been fully involved in WWII, and they probably didn't have resources to spare on bikes like that. It may have been bought in 1942, but I'm guessing it was built 1939 or maybe earlier.



Read the text on the page with its pictures.


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## rhm (Feb 18, 2019)

dweenk said:


> That Dunlop saddle shows fibers in the deteriorated areas. Is it made of rubber?



 Yes.  Dunlop was primarily a tire company, so making a synthetic leather saddle was a no-brainer for them.  They have not aged well, though.


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## Oilit (Feb 18, 2019)

fat tire trader said:


> Read the text on the page with its pictures.



Ah, I see I missed the part about the hub dating to 1940. Considering that Dunkirk ended June 1940, I'm surprised Sturmey-Archer was still producing hubs. I bet that didn't last much longer.


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## dnc1 (Feb 18, 2019)

The saddle is a Dunlop 'Drilastic', pretty similar in construction to a modern Brooks 'Cambium'.
Makes me wonder how my 'Cambium' will fare over time.


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## ZE52414 (Feb 19, 2019)

The only thing I’m seeing that resembles a date code on the hub is W-9. Which also reads patent pending for. Would that make it a late 39 or maybe 49?  Here’s some more pics to help out. Thanks guys for all the help.


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## Oilit (Feb 19, 2019)

ZE52414 said:


> The only thing I’m seeing that resembles a date code on the hub is W-9. Which also reads patent pending for. Would that make it a late 39 or maybe 49?  Here’s some more pics to help out. Thanks guys for all the help. View attachment 951874
> View attachment 951875
> 
> View attachment 951877
> ...



I'd say that makes it 1939. 80 years old! It may be the camera angle, but the toggle switch looks like it has a long arm, so even that may be original. I believe they shortened the arm on the later designs.


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## 3-speeder (Feb 19, 2019)

So I'm seeing AW9 on the hub. That'd be an AW model hub. Sometimes I've seen the logo on both sides of the hub with only one side having the date stamped under it. Any thing on the other side? From what I've read the AW started in 1936. Info here with hub timeline
http://www.all-about-hubs.com/start.php?action=naben_galerie


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## ZE52414 (Feb 19, 2019)

3-speeder said:


> So I'm seeing AW9 on the hub. That'd be an AW model hub. Sometimes I've seen the logo on both sides of the hub with only one side having the date stamped under it. Any thing on the other side? From what I've read the AW started in 1936. Info here with hub timeline
> http://www.all-about-hubs.com/start.php?action=naben_galerie



Thank you!


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## ZE52414 (Feb 19, 2019)

Oilit said:


> I'd say that makes it 1939. 80 years old! It may be the camera angle, but the toggle switch looks like it has a long arm, so even that may be original. I believe they shortened the arm on the later designs.



I’ll get some more pics of it tomorrow. I rolled it into the garage for the time being.


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## Frank and Pam Skid Kings (Feb 19, 2019)

The longer this post gets, the cooler and more interesting this bike gets. Kinda grows on ya. Somebody is going to want to pick this up.


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## 3-speeder (Feb 19, 2019)

frankandpam said:


> The longer this post gets, the cooler and more interesting this bike gets. Kinda grows on ya. Somebody is going to want to pick this up.



This bike is right up my alley but because it's a ladies model I wouldn't pay more than fifty bucks if it was close by me. Cool old shifter lever and a few other parts that stand out. Love that old SA hub too.


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## ZE52414 (Feb 19, 2019)

3-speeder said:


> This bike is right up my alley but because it's a ladies model I wouldn't pay more than fifty bucks if it was close by me. Cool old shifter lever and a few other parts that stand out. Love that old SA hub too.



Most of the parts fit on men’s models too


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## usarnie1 (Feb 19, 2019)

Hi 3-speeder,

Yesterday, I purchased another 1953 Hercules QEII Coronation Celebration bicycle that was on e-bay.  I was the only bidder! The bike was located in Roade Island and it was a pick up only!  Good thing I have a cousin who lives 63 miles from the seller!  The bike is now in Massachusetts in my cousins garage.  My cousin is going to dismantle the bike and ship only the stock parts to me in California.  When the stock parts arrive, I will put on all the missing stock parts onto the bike.  By looking at the photo, you can see the following non-stock parts: the steer-horn handle bars, white hand grips, pedals (rt one is broken), both rims which are not original (the rear rim has a German Komet Super Coaster brake laced to it). Because I do not want any of the non-stock parts, my cousin will pack up all the stock parts and put them into a small box and off to California they will go!  Once they have arrived, I will put on the following stock parts onto the bike: brake calipers and hand controls, both Dunlop wheels (the rear one will have a '53 Hercumatic Hub, a Hercumatic shifter, Brooks brown B66 leather saddle, original handlebars, replaca brown hand grips, original Hercules pedals, etc.


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## 3-speeder (Feb 20, 2019)

usarnie1 said:


> Hi 3-speeder,
> 
> Yesterday, I purchased another 1953 Hercules QEII Coronation Celebration bicycle that was on e-bay.  I was the only bidder! The bike was located in Roade Island and it was a pick up only!  Good thing I have a cousin who lives 63 miles from the seller!  The bike is now in Massachusetts in my cousins garage.  My cousin is going to dismantle the bike and ship only the stock parts to me in California.  When the stock parts arrive, I will put on all the missing stock parts onto the bike.  By looking at the photo, you can see the following non-stock parts: the steer-horn handle bars, white hand grips, pedals (rt one is broken), both rims which are not original (the rear rim has a German Komet Super Coaster brake laced to it). Because I do not want any of the non-stock parts, my cousin will pack up all the stock parts and put them into a small box and off to California they will go!  Once they have arrived, I will put on the following stock parts onto the bike: brake calipers and hand controls, both Dunlop wheels (the rear one will have a '53 Hercumatic Hub, a Hercumatic shifter, Brooks brown B66 leather saddle, original handlebars, replaca brown hand grips, original Hercules pedals, etc.
> 
> View attachment 951992



Good score there sir. Nice to have cousins in the right places.   I'm sure you'll make good use of it. Got a few projects ahead of mine yet.


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## Oilit (Feb 21, 2019)

dnc1 said:


> The saddle is a Dunlop 'Drilastic', pretty similar in construction to a modern Brooks 'Cambium'.
> Makes me wonder how my 'Cambium' will fare over time.



If it lasts 80 years, I'd say you got your money's worth.


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## rhm (Feb 22, 2019)

usarnie1 said:


> Hi 3-speeder,
> 
> Yesterday, I purchased another 1953 Hercules QEII Coronation Celebration bicycle that was on e-bay.  I was the only bidder! The bike was located in Roade Island and it was a pick up only!  Good thing I have a cousin who lives 63 miles from the seller!  The bike is now in Massachusetts in my cousins garage.  My cousin is going to dismantle the bike and ship only the stock parts to me in California.  When the stock parts arrive, I will put on all the missing stock parts onto the bike.  By looking at the photo, you can see the following non-stock parts: the steer-horn handle bars, white hand grips, pedals (rt one is broken), both rims which are not original (the rear rim has a German Komet Super Coaster brake laced to it). Because I do not want any of the non-stock parts, my cousin will pack up all the stock parts and put them into a small box and off to California they will go!  Once they have arrived, I will put on the following stock parts onto the bike: brake calipers and hand controls, both Dunlop wheels (the rear one will have a '53 Hercumatic Hub, a Hercumatic shifter, Brooks brown B66 leather saddle, original handlebars, replaca brown hand grips, original Hercules pedals, etc.
> 
> View attachment 951992



Hmm!  What's your cousin going to do with the wheels?  If they're surplus, I might have a use for them....


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## usarnie1 (Feb 22, 2019)

Hi RHM,

My cousin does not have any use for the wheels. What are you offering?


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## 1951 C.W.S (Feb 27, 2019)

If I hade to give it a guess it would be 1947


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## Goldenrod (Feb 28, 2019)

Historical tidbit:  I was in the third grade 1953 and my class learned that young Elizabeth was told that she was Queen while in a tourist type tree house in Kenya.  My wrinkled old face smiles at the thought that the excited people at Hercules chose a different bike color to honor the trembling young lady.   That was the first time that I heard the term but I wanted to build one.  The old one is still there and I when up in it a few years ago to look at the giraffes.


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## usarnie1 (Apr 6, 2019)

usarnie1 said:


> Hi 3-speeder,
> 
> Yesterday, I purchased another 1953 Hercules QEII Coronation Celebration bicycle that was on e-bay.  I was the only bidder! The bike was located in Roade Island and it was a pick up only!  Good thing I have a cousin who lives 63 miles from the seller!  The bike is now in Massachusetts in my cousins garage.  My cousin is going to dismantle the bike and ship only the stock parts to me in California.  When the stock parts arrive, I will put on all the missing stock parts onto the bike.  By looking at the photo, you can see the following non-stock parts: the steer-horn handle bars, white hand grips, pedals (rt one is broken), both rims which are not original (the rear rim has a German Komet Super Coaster brake laced to it). Because I do not want any of the non-stock parts, my cousin will pack up all the stock parts and put them into a small box and off to California they will go!  Once they have arrived, I will put on the following stock parts onto the bike: brake calipers and hand controls, both Dunlop wheels (the rear one will have a '53 Hercumatic Hub, a Hercumatic shifter, Brooks brown B66 leather saddle, original handlebars, replaca brown hand grips, original Hercules pedals, etc.
> 
> View attachment 951992





usarnie1 said:


> Hi 3-speeder,
> 
> Yesterday, I purchased another 1953 Hercules QEII Coronation Celebration bicycle that was on e-bay.  I was the only bidder! The bike was located in Roade Island and it was a pick up only!  Good thing I have a cousin who lives 63 miles from the seller!  The bike is now in Massachusetts in my cousins garage.  My cousin is going to dismantle the bike and ship only the stock parts to me in California.  When the stock parts arrive, I will put on all the missing stock parts onto the bike.  By looking at the photo, you can see the following non-stock parts: the steer-horn handle bars, white hand grips, pedals (rt one is broken), both rims which are not original (the rear rim has a German Komet Super Coaster brake laced to it). Because I do not want any of the non-stock parts, my cousin will pack up all the stock parts and put them into a small box and off to California they will go!  Once they have arrived, I will put on the following stock parts onto the bike: brake calipers and hand controls, both Dunlop wheels (the rear one will have a '53 Hercumatic Hub, a Hercumatic shifter, Brooks brown B66 leather saddle, original handlebars, replaca brown hand grips, original Hercules pedals, etc.
> 
> View attachment 951992





rhm said:


> Hmm!  What's your cousin going to do with the wheels?  If they're surplus, I might have a use for them....



My cousin finally dissassembled the bike today.  It has been in his garage for 6 weeks!  Anyway, he told me that both rims are Dunlop EA3's made in England.  I told my cousin that I want to keep those rims, as most of the non Raleigh bikes I have use them!


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