# Mertens Track bike



## Jake1 (Dec 30, 2021)

I have had this bike and am putting it together for the upcoming season so I can give it a whirl on New Hampshire's velodrome track. It has been posted elsewhere so you may have seen the photos. I don't know much about it (actual year-40s-50s?; or builder-Mertens may not have made it). Parts seem to be 50s or earlier. Bayliss Wiley hubs and bottom bracket, Titan post, Weinmann rims with wood insert, Ideale saddle, Lyotard pedals (photo shows new pedals, originals had one bent axle ), unknown cogs and bar/stem.


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## dnc1 (Dec 30, 2021)

Built up that should make a great little bike for having fun on the track.
Do check that they'll let you use everything if it's a wooden track, sometimes they can be a little wary of old stuff on a modern velodrome.


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## juvela (Dec 30, 2021)

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an earlier discussion on this fellow abideth here -





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						Unknown year Rijwielens Mertens frame - Bike Forums
					

Classic & Vintage - Unknown year Rijwielens Mertens frame - Rijwielens Mertens frame for track. Not sure of decade made (50s?). I have a complete set of parts that I believe are pretty much correct for the frame period. Frame was repainted when received. This was purchased a couple years ago...



					www.bikeforums.net
				






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## non-fixie (Dec 30, 2021)

I'll be looking forward to build, and particularly to the action pictures. 😀


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## Jake1 (Dec 30, 2021)

dnc1 said:


> Built up that should make a great little bike for having fun on the track.
> Do check that they'll let you use everything if it's a wooden track, sometimes they can be a little wary of old stuff on a modern velodrome.



That track has an asphalt surface. I didn't think that it would matter (I'd be riding on modern tires), but thanks for the heads up. I will contact them to ensure there is not an issue.


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## dnc1 (Dec 30, 2021)

Jake1 said:


> That track is an asphalt surface. I didn't think that it would matter (I'd be riding on modern tires), but thanks for the heads up. I will contact them to ensure there is not an issue.



You shouldn't have any problems if that's the case.
Looking forward to seeing photos.


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## Jesper (Dec 30, 2021)

Happy to see that frame! I wonder if @juvela has any idea as to the lug types. I'm an ignorant fool on that subject.

 I looked at my Baggi lugs just to compare (I need to take newer photos), Similarities, but still quite different.


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## Jesper (Dec 30, 2021)

I imagine that would receive quite the attention when rolling out onto a track. I'd love to see a photo of that bike next to a modern track bike, especially if you got the riders wearing their kits to match the different eras. 

When did the skip tooth cogs go out of style?


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## Jake1 (Dec 31, 2021)

Thanks @Jesper for the photos! The lugs do seem similar; perhaps same brand, but different models. Do you know what year your bike is?

I don't know anything about the skip tooth cogs. Perhaps someone else might have an idea as to the time frame they were used. Seems that I've seen them more often on very early bikes circa pre-WW2.


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## dnc1 (Jan 1, 2022)

Jake1 said:


> Thanks @Jesper for the photos! The lugs do seem similar; perhaps same brand, but different models. Do you know what year your bike is?
> 
> I don't know anything about the skip tooth cogs. Perhaps someone else might have an idea as to the time frame they were used. Seems that I've seen them more often on very early bikes circa pre-WW2.



I think they were definitely still being used on track bikes in the '50's and '60s.
I've been trying to find out when Campagnolo stopped producing them?


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## juvela (Jan 1, 2022)

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another question regarding track drive trains have wondered about is when they went from 1/8" to 3/32"


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## Jesper (Jan 1, 2022)

Jake1 said:


> Thanks @Jesper for the photos! The lugs do seem similar; perhaps same brand, but different models. Do you know what year your bike is?
> 
> I don't know anything about the skip tooth cogs. Perhaps someone else might have an idea as to the time frame they were used. Seems that I've seen them more often on very early bikes circa pre-WW2.



The Baggi (French brand) lugs are on a bike made circa 1935/36 (purchased new in 1936).
I have no knowedge regarding those cogs.


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## Jesper (Jan 3, 2022)

Here is a BSA ring that matches the general design (w/o the BSA insignia). Notes: "Ubiqutious chainring found on many track bikes and 6 day racers." Yours has a little bit more robust construction. It is possible that BSA produced rings for other brands and didn't use their branding on those rings. Years of production per velobase: 1920s-1950s. What is the BCD of your ring? Velobase entry provides no BCD for the BSA ring so it won't help much unless someone else has a similar ring and knows that dimension. Just trying to help a little.

Photo credit: VeloBase User bikeville


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## Jesper (Jan 20, 2022)

A couple more chainwheels that match your design aside from not being skip tooth cogs. It would seem that the design was relatively common given its use by diverse companies. It might also denote it as being a robust design rather than just decorative. Something you would certainly want for a track chainwheel. I guess the top one is a "La Comete" model, and the bottom one an "R.F.G." model.
I found these examples when I was perusing the Velo Retro Course website for my bike. There are some very knowledgeable folks there so you may want to post your bike on that site also. I suggest posting in French, but you can post in English. I use DeepL translator which has provided good results; certainly a step above google translate.








Photo credits: veloretrocourse.proboards.com


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## dnc1 (Jan 21, 2022)

Campagnolo stopped producing inch pitch (skip tooth) chainrings between 1969 and 1971 apparently. 
This is the last time they appeared in the catalogue. Catalogue#16, 1969.....




...by the time the 'Gruppo Super Record' was first shown in the 1971 catalogue the Pista version was only illustrated in 1/2 inch pitch form.


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## juvela (Jan 21, 2022)

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thanks very  much for  this -  😃

find it interesting that the mfr chose to illustrate a 1969 catalogue entry with a design which had been out of production for some years by this time

note absence of "web" joining lower spider arms and crank arm


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## Jesper (Jan 22, 2022)

I find that Campy tended to include items in their catalogs that weren't necessarily in production, but were more than likely surplus stock. Thus, keeping older items in the public eye and helping eliminate on hand stock. Most bike manufacturers were going to use the newest components available, especially on higher end models (exception to when they had their own excess stock of components). Most catalogs and advertisement brochures have "subject to change" and/or "subject to availability" disclaimers allowing for product cessation and alteration.


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## Jake1 (Jan 29, 2022)

I have corresponded with an administrator at Velo Retro Course, and was informed that the marque is of Belgian origin with the frame possibly dating to pre-WW2. I have yet to post on that site, but a search provided no hits for the name. Only search hits I have obtained on any site are for Mertens saddles which may have no relation to the bike. Still it would nice to get a namesake saddle, but I have not seen any racing designs yet.


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## non-fixie (Feb 6, 2022)

Got some information from a couple of members of a Flemish forum which specializes in bicycle racing history. They link the brand to Fons Mertens of Lier, Belgium. He and his brothers Jules, Paul and Albert were bicycle racers in the 1920's and 1930's. 

Apparently Fons opened a bicycle shop in Lier, and also sponsored a team called "Mertens Sport" from 1946 to 1952 with local riders. I have been looking for pictures of the shop and of the team, but so far I haven't found any.

The Mertens family also ran a bar in Lier called "Sportwereld", in which the Lierse Bicycle Club was founded in 1932. LBC would become one of the most important racing clubs in Belgium, counting Rik Van Looy, Ward Sels and Herman Vanspringel among their members. The Mertens brothers were a driving force behind the club in the early years.

The 1959 club champions, with Rik Van Looy in the middle:





Van Looy would go on to become World Champion in 1960 and 1961.


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## Jake1 (Feb 6, 2022)

@non-fixie that seems to be some of the most direct relationship I have heard thus far. If only there was some photographic evidence. I still find it odd that another photo of a bike or even just a head badge hasn't surfaced. I would still assume that the frame was manufactured by an independent builder for Mertens and more than likely some other shops in the region. I was provided a photo example of another bike with a similar head lug pattern, yet still not identical.
Thank you for your effort. I am hoping I will get a reply from the Koers Museum in the next couple of months since they have already replied with a confirmation that it will be investigated. There is an Italian website that I am also using to research this frame and others, but I am having trouble accessing their site even though I am a paying member. It is not a forum, but has archival data on many marques.


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## non-fixie (Feb 7, 2022)

Give the involvement of this particular Mertens family with the sport, I would assume a track bike with their name on it to be of decent quality, made by a reputable frame builder. 

I have just sent an e-mail to a shop in Lier which _might_  have a connection to the Mertens family. I'll let you know when anything useful surfaces.


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## Jake1 (Feb 7, 2022)

@non-fixie  Thanks for your efforts. Looking closely at the frame shows a high degree of workmanship. Lugs appear to be properly brazed without gaps or over use of solder. I may do a repaint of it sometime in the future since although decent it could be better (certainly the lug detailing!).


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## non-fixie (Feb 16, 2022)

I got a very friendly reply back from the shop in Lier, which confirms that the Vedette shop in Lier, Belgium is a continuation of the shop which was owned by the Mertens family. The current owner is not aware of there having actually been a Mertens bike brand, but says there were Vedette-branded bikes in the past. This aligns nicely with there having been a Vedette team, with Fons Mertens as the team manager and his son Jos as one of the riders.

The search continues.


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## Jake1 (Mar 3, 2022)

Thanks @non-fixie for the continued efforts. I am still awaiting a response from the Kors Museum, but hopefully it will be coming in short order once they reopen for the season. It would be nice to get some crossover confirmation and possibly a little more detail from them. I continue to directly search for any imagery that shows another example of the brand.


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