Info on Latonia?

[BRied]

Attached photo's is Latonia Badged bike with wooden wheels. Any idea of age or whether it's worth restoring?

 

[DonChristie]

Definately worthy of gettin back on the road. Looks all original and you have the fenders. I know of nothing about the maker. Appears to be from 1900 -1925

 

[Andrew Gorman]

The Wheelmen.org manufacturers list has:
Miami-(M) Miami Cycle and Manufacturing Company, Middletown OH, 1906-1916
Miami-(M) Miami Cycle Manufacturing Company, Middletown OH, 1896-1898
From my limited experience, based on the geometry, stem, bars, saddle and metal fenders it looks more like 1916 than 1898. Is the rear hub a coaster brake or a fixed hub? some early coasters did not have torque arms. The make and model of the hub would really help narrow things down. Definitely worth fixing up to ride!

 

[BRied]

I couldn't find a name on the rear hub. I believe it's a coaster brake; can't rotate the crank arms backwards...but on the other hand, it's not got what I'd call much braking action either. No sign of a torque arm. At the risk of sounding ignorant, what's a fixed hub?

 

[Andrew Gorman]

A fixie hub, just like the hipsters are riding. No freewheel, no brake, just a sprocket bolted directly to the hub shell. Soin the pedals forward and the wheel moves, spin the pedals backward and the wheel move backwards. They were the only hub available until the late 1890's, and overtaken in popularity by coaster brakes by 1910 or so. They were still available for racers and serious cyclists continuously, though.

 

[sam]

Not all coasters had brake arms---musselman made an armless coaster---and musselman was part of Miami and later murray of ohio
Ross Perot's first bicycle was a Latonia.They were sold by a bicycle supply in Dallas.And the name Latonia is from a race track.