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Wow, thanks for the treasure trove of archival imagery!

Jesse-- Do you have more of the advertisement or catalog that Snell Special emblem engraving it from? -Paul

I'm curious that the ad photo shows the rear wheel having all its spokes intact, while your own photos show it missing two spokes--and looking like they've been gone a long time. Did the seller have any explanation, or indicate how old the ad photos were? From the color tint, it could be a...

Is the broken piece of stem still stuck in the fork tube? If there is a hole through the fork crown, maybe you could pound it out from below with a drift. If there is no hole, you could drill one.

It's quite late and I just stumbled on this thread. I haven't read it thoroughly and may miss some points already made. But I feel compelled to chime in. First, the term "balloon tire" was an automotive concept from the 1920's. The idea was to use larger tires at lower pressure, for a number...

I agree with the latter, or even earlier in the 1890's. In my experience a full hex base indicates TOC (turn of 20th century). Newer pedals usually just have two flats.

It's old, but I don't think it's TOC. And maybe not American. The 1/2" pitch chain and cottered chrome cranks give it a later, possibly English look. Also the open dropouts on the front forks, and the shallow drop to the front lady's frame suggest something like maybe 1920s or 1930s. I like...

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU FOR SHARING!!!!!!!!!! "Time capsule" is a term often overused these days, but THIS BIKE TRULY IS ONE! Just glancing at your wonderful photos transported me back in time like nothing I've recently experienced. Thanks again, Paul

This reply is to Tommy2X, from the previous page: "I have been restoring a bike that I am told is a Lenape, Made in Doylestown, PA between 1896 and 1901. I came across the photo of yours and was looking at some of the parts. How does the seat stay work? I have tried to loosen the nut and am...

I forgot to mention, another way to get an affordable TOC bike is to buy an unidentified one. There were hundreds if not thousands of makes at the height of the Bicycle Boom, and a quick look at this forum shows how many surviving bikes are unidentified. Most collectors focus on known brands...

If you go back to Alexander55's post on page 2, you'll coincidentally see an another way toward a reasonably priced TOC bike. The center bike in the photo, the blue one, is my 1899 Columbia Model 57. My son is on it, and yes, he also rode 100 miles on this year's Mackinac Wheelmen century...

Not as cheap as a swap meet of course, but TOC parts are available on both theCabe and on eBay. Below are a few possibilities right now for handlebars. Two pair of matched pedals certainly won't be cheap, but if you're willing to start with mis-matched ones they're not too hard to find on the...

I realize you probably just went to some trouble and expense to replate the handlebars, but I think you can find much closer matches than those big curved cruiser bars. TOC bars were much smaller and simpler, and aren't hard to find at swap meets. Even some 3-speed bars would be closer.

I can't tell from the head badge photo if the frame has holes aligning with the badge holes, or if the badge holes are just counter sunk. If there are matching frame holes, there could be any number of reasons why the badge was unscrewed and just glued back on. 1895 seems very right for the...

Unfortunately I don't think the pedals in question quite fit the description of #4 in the above illustration. Note that the written description says those pedals first screw into the crank, and are then clamped. Wildeman's pedals have no threads at all. But to me their attachment is quite...

I believe this is the bike you're asking about, before restoration.

Sorry, I duplicated my reply.

I am happy to post photos of my '93 Featherstone Road King, but please note that only the frame and bottom bracket are original to the bike. Still, I'll vouch that the Featherstone double cotter setup is the same, with the crank and chainring separately attached to the BB spindle. Don't...

Do you have any other pages from this catalog? I have a Snell but I don't know what year it is. It would be awesome if it turned out to be an 1897! Thanks, Paul

I may have crank arms for that. I'm not sure, and would have to check. I bought a lot of NOS child's cranks many years ago and haven't looked at them in ages.

I have since learned that this original blue bike is a Snell of Toledo, OH.

Here is a whole thread about TOC bicycles with original paint. Many of the examples include good images of original pinstriping and transfers. https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/toc-colors.118492 Paul Rubenson

I agree this beautiful car looks more like a carnival ride car than a pedal car. From its grille shape it clearly a represents a Packard from the twenties. I'd guess its original wheels matched the spares and fit the fenders. I think the step plate to the rumble seat is a full-size piece from...

I'm inclined to think it was an English import, not German, due to the the chainguard's ample coverage and black finish. It looks similar to a Hercules chainguard. German chain guards were typically lighter and more minimalist, often ending halfway down the chain stay, and usually aluminum or...

I can only add that I feel your pain! My wife rides a 1900 Crescent Model 32. At one point I wanted to repack the bottom bracket before a century ride, and tried to get it apart using similar methods as above. In the end I gave up, flushed out the old caked grease as best I could with...

These are also known as "governess tricycles," because the tiller can be turned around and pulled by an adult. They were used for girls since they featured a bench seat, not a saddle, providing modesty for a dress. They typically bring around $300 in an informed market like Copake, but I've...

I finally stumbled on the pedal identification thread. Here it is; I haven't looked to see if it helps identify these. I wonder if it could be made a sticky thread? https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/rat-trap-pedal-i-d-thread.115930/page-2#post-979410

My bike is the blue one pictured higher up. The dark one immediately above with dropped bars is for sale by Caber Carlitos60. Assuming your rims are original, then some day I would like to restore my Snell similarly with wood clincher rims. Like I said I do have a pair of wood TOC clincher...

These are certainly very early pedals because they are "nutted" and don't thread directly into the crank arms. I'd say before 1895. I think "rat trap" is a loose term for any open frame pedals with grip teeth and no rubber blocks, so these would count. The tapered center tube reflects the...

Here is another Snell, that is currently for sale. It interests me that the seller says the bike originally had 30" wheels! My frame and forks are relatively tight around my 700x38C tires. Slightly larger 28 x 1 1/2" TOC tires would certainly fit, but I can't see 30". I wonder if these...

I think you all have identified my own favorite bicycle. I bought mine as a frame-set fifteen years ago and built it up as a rider for Wheelmen centuries. Mine also has the original Fauber cranks and large chain ring of a different pattern. The frame details and compression fittings at the...

I've had a conveyor chain on my 1893 Featherstone Road King for about ten years, and I've raced the bike and ridden it on centuries. The bike has a small chain ring and rear cog, which actually increases the load on the chain. I am a light older rider, but a strong friend who weighs more has...

The Morrow rear coaster brake is a great hub. It was made in that form from the very early 20th century until mid-century. The New Departure front hub is a common one, and yours is a newer style. Both of your hubs may be WWII "black out" hubs from when chromium was rationed for the war.

A 700A rim is a really big 642 mm diameter rim. A 700C tire is much smaller, only 622 mm. A traditional 28 x 1 1/2" roadster tire is closer in size to the 700A, at 635 mm, and I have found them in both white and cream. They usually have the traditional English roadster tread.

Since racing bicycles are relatively rare, I'm curious why we're assuming the bike is a racer. All TOC bikes were lighter and more sporting than 20th century machines, and TOC frames show fewer clues to their purpose than modern ones. In this case it's hard to tell from what I see. TOC...

Do know the connection between Lion Victorieux in Thielt, Belgium and British B.S.A.? I'm sure the similarity to French Lion d'Or and this bike's B.S.A. chain wheel are more than coincidence.

I don't read much French but there are a number of early advertisements showing what must be this brand of cycle, although under the name "Lion d'Or" (Gold Lion) not "Lion Victorieux" (Victorious Lion). Both brands clearly had connection to B.S.A. and both head badges featured a gold lion. It...

1897-8 Columbia 2-piece crank and sprocket.

Sometimes, a block chain's "master link" was just a screw that took the place of the last pin. It had a smooth shank like the other pins, and there were just enough threads to screw through the final side plate and receive a thin lock nut. You might be able to improvise that. You would have...

Interesting! If the electric was a juvenile machine, that would explain its technology being a couple years obsolete. By 1889 adult bicycles had closed-head steering, and by 1890 they had diamond frames. But children's models often lagged a few years behind.

Open head, cross-frame. 1886-1887? Cool bike, and I love the name and badge!

Here is a similar seat in the 1922 CCM catalog. Unfortunately the woodcut illustration doesn't show the clamp in great detail, but it does confirm your general idea of how the seat mounted. Also notice the safety belt! I have a slightly more complicated TOC child seat that can mount either on...

I worked on a teens-twenties tandem that had Fauber-style cranks that were definitely not made by Fauber. The parts, sizes, and thread pitches were interchangeable, but the quality, finish, and design was definitely not Fauber. My suspicion is that once Fauber's patents ran out other makers...

There's a whole sticky thread at the top of this page about dating New Departure and Corbin coaster hubs. According to it, the Model A originated in 1902-3 and started being marked as such in 1906.

There were literally thousands of bell designs, most essentially similar but differing in outer form and detail. But a good clue that a bell is from the 1920's or older is if it's nickel plated instead of chrome. And of course, no Phillips head screws or plastic parts.

But definitely real!

Jean-Marie, look on your chain wheel for a small mark like this. It is the Fauber trademark which is an abstraction of the one-piece crank.

I believe the "screen door imagery" is a moire pattern from taking live photographs of pictures on a computer screen. If possible it would be better to post original digital photos, or at least proper screen captures. Something that makes me cautious is that the patina is so even. There is...

That's a pretty bike and a pretty crank set, Jean Marie! But while the star pattern looks like a Fauber star, the crank design isn't like a Fauber at all. The Fauber was a one-piece crank and an interchangeable chain ring attached with four screws. In fact even the bicycle's frame was...

The piece on the rear axle is the mounting peg. From a modern perspective it's not really necessary, but it was a carry-over from how people were used to mounting a high wheel bike.