# A.G. Schladitz Albina, Dresden...1890's?...Just Got It



## HARPO (Sep 24, 2022)

Bought this one last night. Why? Because it looked like it was from the 1890's and I've never had a bike this old. Please enlighten me to any info on the bike, because there is precious little on the internet.  🤨
And apparently it will be, for now, the only one on The Cabe. I did a search on here and nothing came up.

I know it was made in Germany and there is a lake in Dresden that bares the same name as on the bike. (_Dresden is south of Berlin_). They made bikes from the 1800's into the 1900's. There is one here http://www.kpgraphic.com/kpgraphic/schladitz1913.html showing one from 1913.

So...anyone know what I have purchased? It was also ridiculously cheap, another factor for the purchase, and only 12 miles from my house.

This will be photo heavy, so be prepared. I wanted to give as much photo info as I could. 😉


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## HARPO (Sep 24, 2022)

...and another barrage of photos...😀 

And there is still some pin-striping on the bike!


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## Andrew Gorman (Sep 24, 2022)

Not a lot of hits at altesrad:


			altesrad.net - Suche
		

It might be more early 20th Century with the coaster hub.


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## Gerrit (Sep 24, 2022)

Hello 
You can find on the Rotax hub the year that it’s made , but is it still the original . Maybe you can find also a year in the front hub .
I think the bicycle is made between 1915 and 1925 but I am not a specialist about German bicycles.


			https://historische-fahrraeder.de/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/2020_01_Heft_69_internetversion.pdf
		

This is a link to a German magazine with articles about Sladitz Albina and Rotax .
You can copy the text and use google to translate it .

Greetings Gerrit Kan 
The Netherlands


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## Gerrit (Sep 24, 2022)

Picture with year stamp in hub


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## HARPO (Sep 24, 2022)

@Gerrit  Thank you! I'll check it out later. 😀


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## HARPO (Sep 26, 2022)

@Gerrit  Hi Gerrit! Well, I cleaned off the rear hub. No date.  🤨 Since the company was started in 1920, that will be the oldest that the bike can possibly be. 😕

I have a 1946 Schwinn Continental Sturmey-Archer 3-Speed that also isn't dated, and found out that they started dating them in 1947. So possibly the early Rotax weren't dated either?

On a positive note, the pedals came right off, as did the seat post (_and clamps after I took this picture_). All that rust and no issues. I can't believe it! I have them soaking in EvapoRust right now. To easy, so I'm waiting for something to go wrong, lol. 😀


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## HARPO (Sep 26, 2022)

I've decided to do what Jay Leno calls a "Preservation Restoration". 🙂

Only addition will be tires and tubes at some point. Everything else on the bike will be cleaned, greased, detailed, etc. This now stands as the oldest bike I've ever owned (_and probably will but who knows_) and I'd like to keep it as original as possible. Made in Germany is another factor. Just to bad it wasn't a men's bike. 🙁


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## HARPO (Sep 26, 2022)

I just found this on the Rotax Company website:

*Roots of the Rotax brand and initial success*

In the beginning is a pioneer. Friedrich Gottschalk is the owner of a successful bicycle components factory in Dresden. As a member of a cycling association, he’s at home in the saddle himself, too. He is an all-round producer, making everything a gentleman could require in relation to bicycles. Brakes, tires and saddles, but also caps, bicycle clips and gaiters. Then he notices the first bicycle hubs, US-produced models that are spreading through Germany. And he quickly realizes that they could be done better! He files a patent application in 1906, and the “Rotax” freewheel hub trademark is registered and quickly becomes a million-seller. Anyone who rates themselves as a cyclist wants a bicycle with a Rotax freewheel hub. Even competitive cycling, for example the popular cycle races in front of the Berlin Sportpalast, is soon organized under the Rotax banner. Renowned racers are proud to carry the name of Rotax on their jerseys. Whether it’s in an amateur environment or amongst the cycling elite, Friedrich Gottschalk’s bicycle hub is popular and soon leaves the competition behind.


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## HARPO (Sep 27, 2022)

*More Rotax Company info:*

"The New Departure Bell Company from the USA make it particularly difficult for Rotax to start production of its hub. By the time the long-standing patent dispute is resolved in 1909, Gottschalk has turned the Rotax hub into a mass phenomenon, thanks to clever marketing of its in-house innovations".

So...maybe the bike is older than 1920, as I had hoped. 🙂


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## HARPO (Sep 29, 2022)

Working on her. Pedals came out pretty good so far, but check out how the crank arm is attached. First time I've seen one like this.  🤨


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## HARPO (Oct 1, 2022)

Wow. A combination of German steel and Evapo-Rust. Hard to believe these are the same pieces! 😛


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## HARPO (Oct 2, 2022)

To bad the crank will be hidden beneath the chain guard. Didn't even take to much to clean it.  😀

Oh, and so far every nut and bolt on the bike has come off with the greatest of ease! Unreal.


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## Andrew Gorman (Oct 2, 2022)

That is looking nice! How do the crankarms attach? Are they some kind of self pulling cranks, like a 1970s Shimano 600 Arabesque or the screw them on to the taper and good luck getting them off German Glockenlager?  The latter was very common until the 1950s.


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## New Mexico Brant (Oct 2, 2022)

Wow!  It is coming out fantastic.


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## HARPO (Oct 3, 2022)

Andrew Gorman said:


> That is looking nice! How do the crankarms attach? Are they some kind of self pulling cranks, like a 1970s Shimano 600 Arabesque or the screw them on to the taper and good luck getting them off German Glockenlager?  The latter was very common until the 1950s.




Hi Andrew. From the two small holes, I'd assume that some sort of tool with "pins" would go into it, and then unscrew it. I'm still trying to find info on the bike, proving to be like finding hens teeth.

But I did reach out to the Rotax company in Austria after sending them some photos of the bike and rear hub, and they were very kind in responding to me. This was their reply: 

"Hello Fred, your hub was produced in the time between 1918 and the mid 20s. As before this time it only said Rotax on the hub and after 1925 it said Rotax Patent 3010 on the hub. Hope this helps you! 

 Best wishes Johanna".


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## HARPO (Oct 4, 2022)

Getting close to completion, except for tires. It wan't all that bad removing the semi-petrified ones, and at some point I'll purchase replacements. But I will keep the rest of the bike as a Preservation, including the tattered string guards.

What I found amazing was the green wide stripe, down the center on the black rims. First time I've ever seen this. Usually it's pin striping along the outer edges of the rim.  🙂


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## HARPO (Oct 4, 2022)

BTW, the tires I hacksawed off say WARDS RIVERSIDE MATE. Any idea what time period they were from? I know they can't be original.


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## HARPO (Oct 5, 2022)

What metal plating was used on the handlebars? You can see where it's chipping off.

Under the brake bracket, it was nice and shiny, but the rest is very dull and so far not to conducive to shining up.


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## New Mexico Brant (Oct 5, 2022)

HARPO said:


> What metal plating was used on the handlebars? You can see where it's chipping off.
> 
> Under the brake bracket, it was nice and shiny, but the rest is very dull and so far not to conducive to shining up.
> 
> View attachment 1707513



They are nickel plated. 
The bicycle is looking fantastic.  Very nice job!


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## HARPO (Oct 6, 2022)

@New Mexico Brant  Thank you! 🙂 Labor of love.

I'm trying to be so careful as to not polish off the pin striping. There isn't a lot there, but I'd still like to get a shine out of the paint without losing it.


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## HARPO (Oct 7, 2022)

OK...I'm done. With the exception of tires, this is as far as it goes. Sadly, the skirt rope needed to be removed. Every time I basically touched it the rope began to fall apart. To bad (but I did keeep it!). 😆

Ironically, I did finally find on the pedals a logo of some sort. It's in the last photo...a letter "W" (or M) inside of a Sun shield of some sort. And just enough cleaning/detailing/rust/patina to make it look good. 😉

Anyway, enjoy the barrage of photos. Knowing that the bike was made somewhere between 1918-1925 and in Germany, I'm thrilled to be its new keeper.  🙂


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## HARPO (Oct 7, 2022)

Last bunch...


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## HARPO (Oct 9, 2022)

Can anyone identify the maker of the pedal in the last photo? 🤨


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## FreedomMachinist (Oct 23, 2022)

HARPO said:


> Can anyone identify the maker of the pedal in the last photo? 🤨



Yes, those are Wippermans, form Hagen, Germany - the company is still in existance today - although they dont make pedals anymore, but still chains , for bicycles and industrial appliactions.






Wippermann pedals were widely used in Europe- this design came up around 1900 and was used into the very early 30s.
Schladitz was condisered as a high-end brand  ("Markenfahrrad") but produced relatively small numbers - they made many components themselves, but had no pedals of their own, so I'm certain these pedals were originally equipped with your bike.

Any by the way, Harpo : this bike is fantastic - and all parts seem to be original:
The lamp-bracket, the front brake assembly , fenders + fender brackets are all special Schladitz-design - nothing has been changed. Great 
You also did a great job in preserving the lady - no overpolishing, just cleaning and maybe some wax (?)...

I also have a Schladitz and I like them in particular for their unique method of adjusting the main bearing /bottom bracket :
Many German bicycles had a "Glockenlager" ; direct translation="Bell Bearing" where "bell" is refering to the prolonged cup on the pedal arm which reaches a small portion over the bottom bracket.
This "Glockenlager" came up around 1900 and was a big hype - the bell-cover was supposed to hold dirt away from the ball bearing and gain "engen Tritt" (="Narrow Tread"), by bringing the balls of the bearings further to the center, inline with the chain-line.

The downside of this design is the method of attaching the crank arms to the main spindle by means of a press fitting: 
A tapered pocket on the crankarm is  pressed onto the tapered shank of the main spindle. This assembly is very hard to dismount, espeically after may years of corrosion.

In my eyes this is a big disadvantage and the simple, old "Safety Style Cotter Pin" was much better - 
but a forged taper and smooth cups were a lot cheaper to manufacture compared to milled keyways, thread cutting in bottom brackets and cups, or all these other fancy designs.


So long story short:
Many German bikes had these Glockenlager and to adjust the bearing slack is was necessarry to remove the left pedal arm to access the cone and locknut for adjusting the spindle-play. Without a special tool you can only jam off the pedalarm with a big hammer and many times this was (is)  fatal.

So Schladitz went a different way with their Glockenlager:
You can adjust the play from the outisde and secure it with a littkle screw that reaches through the pedal arm. 
This ingenious method was not only used by Schladitz and Mars (Nurenberg), but I was very amazed to see it on my Pierce Full Suspension as well 


Your Schladitz is from the early Twenties:






source: fahradsammler.de



Here are a few photos of mine:



































In case you need advice for servicing the bottom bracket (Removing the cranks) , just let me know - there is a very good and safe method.

You need 28" x 1  1/2 tires with beaded edges (Wulstreifen) -





Colored in  red and black is no problem -  you can still buy them (I stocked 5 red pairs at home, in case they run out like the white ones did last year   ... If you need help, just let me know.

I'll see if I can find a catalog-scan of your machine... 
By the way: your Schladitz-Albina was out of the less pricy line-up - you can compare it to the Hartford-machines which Columbia offered to satisfy customers who wanted "Columbia-quality" for a lesser price.



Good night
Jochen


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## FreedomMachinist (Oct 23, 2022)

Here is your Rotax hub:






Wipperman Pedals (and others) out of a 1912 catalog:
https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipOdBZUofmYAhDf_NsnrsvLhhF3FX5e1ieeQfuCo

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipOdBZUofmYAhDf_NsnrsvLhhF3FX5e1ieeQfuCo
https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipOdBZUofmYAhDf_NsnrsvLhhF3FX5e1ieeQfuCo


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## HARPO (Oct 24, 2022)

@FreedomMachinist  Jochen, Good Morning!!

_I can't thank you enough for all of the time and information that you've given to this!_ I had given up on finding any info on the bike itself, but at least had a basic date thanks to the nice person at Rotax for responding to my inquiry. I figured that was going to be the end. But now I have a wealth of info and a renewed sense of pride that I own this bicycle. 🙂 

Your bikes are in incredible condition, and you're so lucky that they are men's models. What years are they? Are they both all original as well? 
The saddle in the first two photos appears to have been taken good care of over its entire life. 

I did a little less of my usual cleaning/detailing, and was a bit more judicial on this one. I didn't want to take a chance on removing any of the pin striping. The bike was in very good condition as I found it, and it was a fluke I saw it as the bike was only listed with a heading of "Girls Bike". 🤪 I doubt if I'll ever find another, so I'm thrilled to have it.

I've had a few older Raleigh Tourist's, having the same size tire, so I'm familiar with them. I'll try to find a whitewall.

Again, thank you so much for _all_ you've given me. No one on here apparently had ever heard of this Marque, and I now know I have something special.

Fred


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## Fritz Katzenjammer (Oct 24, 2022)

The quality which is obvious in some the the components shown is just astounding. Its nice to see something of that era has survived, a time before cost cutting and planned obsolescence. I have had some older European machines in the past and the thoughtfulness and care that went into their manufacture always amazes.

Then I go to work at the bike shop and the new stuff makes me sad.


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## FreedomMachinist (Nov 3, 2022)

Hello Fred.
Sorry for may late reply - I was kind of busy and havent checked the forum fro a while. I'm glad my input did help you a bit - so thank you for saying thank you 
My Schladitz is a 1914 model, one of the last bikes before WW1 broke lose and production came to a halt. 
I have only one Schalditz, the photos were taken with some time in between, with different saddles, the original one was not present when I bought the bike.

Best Regards
Jochen


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## FreedomMachinist (Nov 3, 2022)

Fritz Katzenjammer said:


> The quality which is obvious in some the the components shown is just astounding. Its nice to see something of that era has survived, a time before cost cutting and planned obsolescence. I have had some older European machines in the past and the thoughtfulness and care that went into their manufacture always amazes.
> 
> Then I go to work at the bike shop and the new stuff makes me sad.




Yes Fritz, you are right, as an example, the old-style adjustable bearings (screw in cone against balls in cups) is just so much nicer than the modern pressed in bearings with "life-time-lubrification" , in a plastic housing - some bottom brackets even come with plastic counter screws ! Oh my god - what happend, they are in it only for the money


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## HARPO (Jan 6, 2023)

Anyone else have one of these bikes?


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