Inherited a Pop Brennan velodrome racer from 1920’s - needs help

[Dinger]

Will post pics soon. getting my grandfather’s old velodrome race bike he rode in NY and NJ in the mid 1920’s. I was able to confirm it’s a Pop Brennan bike, and is complete except the front hickory wheel. At some point in his 70’s, he was cruising in FL and crashed into a curb, destroying the original hickory rim. It was replaced with a aluminum wheel. Otherwise, the rear wood wheel and skiptooth chain, Bianchi crankset, and unique Pop Brennan bars and stem are all there. The paint is some crappy blue house paint my grandpa brushed on in his FL retirement years.
So, any idea of value on this thing? I’d like to restore it with a correct front wheel, and paint scheme. Problem is I don’t have any pictures of him on it, just old race results and newspaper articles on him, Brennan and the race team.
any help here is appreciated!

 

[kccomet]

cool bike and family history too. I'm not sure thats a brennan bike though. post some head on pics of the front lugs

 

[bikejunk]

see if their is original paint under that brush paint Brennan bike usually just have a decal for a headbadge - original paint would be more interesting give it a try

 

[oldspoke]

see if their is original paint under that brush paint Brennan bike usually just have a decal for a headbadge - original paint would be more interesting give it a try

I would agree this is worth a try.

 

[Kombicol]

Welcome to the Cabe
As suggested you should try to get it back to original paint if possible
There are a lot of threads here and elsewhere on paint removal
Highly recommend you read these before doing anything with this bike

 

[corbettclassics]

Looks like an Italian bike - seat cluster, seat points etc. Not a Brennan.

Looks like an early Legnano

 

[49autocycledeluxe]

very cool bike. I envy people with grandfathers as both mine died long before I was born.... one in 1930 or so and the other in the late 40's.

 

[Dinger]

Got my hands on the bike today. Here are some more pics, found a serial number stamped on the frame. Any ideas? My dad thinks it was shipped from Italy but my grandfather was a glass cutter and knew Pop Brennan from the chandelier biz and rode for him.

 

[corbettclassics]

and there ya have it ...... Italian!! ( Not a Legnano though like I thought but a Bianchi )

Here's a 20's Bianchi that I know of - almost identical lugs with cups. Mine is 30's and slightly different.

 

[corbettclassics]

If this is a Bianchi ( which I'm sure it is ) then "@labile" would probably disagree because he says that all Bianchi's had forward facing dropouts till about 1954.
Forward facing dropouts are what ROAD bikes have and TRACK bikes have "rear facing" dropouts. This bike has the Track "rear facing" dropouts and it definitely looks 1920's or 30's.

Hmmm ......