50's Speedwell Popular roadster
I couldn't help myself here...after the Raleigh DL-1 refurb I really wanted an Australian roadster, and this one came along at a very reasonable price. A simple 50's bike with bolt-on rear stays, utility cranks, mudguards, and continental headset bearings - it's running the typical single speed coaster brake, cottered cranks, and 28 x 1 & 3/8" - 642mm (700A) Westwood rimmed wheels, a common size for wheels used in pre-60's Australia. The front Westwood rim on closer inspection was a bit too rusted for comfort - quite thin in places after rust removal, but I was lucky enough to find another front Westwood wheel in great condition and exactly the same colour green as the frame. The mudguards are very straight, but the paint is barely there now. I'll have to see what I can do with them, maybe try to do some colour matching with some fresh paint.
The plan is to add gears with a 50's Sturmey Archer 3 speed hub, and brakes with a 50's Sturmey Archer drum hub at the front and a rear Philco centre pull brake.
I'd never had to deal with a completely stuck stem before, and after mechanical means didn't budge the stem I realised I'd have to resort to dirtier means of removal involving stem destruction. I cut the top off the stem so that I could remove the forks and clamp them in my vice, and applied a few cycle of heat and lube with no success. I then took the forks to Adam of 'Adams Bikes' in Canberra. He'd re-curved a fork blade on the Raleigh DL-1 for me and did a great job, having trained not only as a bike mechanic but as a machinist as well. Adam did a few more cycles of heat and lube, and with his specialised fork vice was able to wrench really hard on the stem to finally remove it without marking the paint on the forks!
The frame cleaned up well, and of course I totally forgot about the fifty or so loose 1/8" bearings that were going to erupt from the continental style headset. I managed to find them all but they deserved replacing anyway, so new bearings were ordered. The cups were a little rough after cleaning up, but the headset felt smooth with the new bearings and a re-grease. After seeing the photo below I took the time to clean them up a little more.
I temporarily installed a wheelset with a 3 speed coaster brake and 700C wheels just to test the frame size and geometry, and to see how it would ride - and it did, pleasingly. It was tempting to leave it in this state, as the ride was plush with the 40mm tyres, and the Fichtel and Sachs hub shifted and braked well. But I want to stick with the parts plan mentioned above - even though this would have been a rare set up for a utility bike.
Next up is hub refurbs, wheel building, and mudguard de-rust and paint. And find a nicer saddle
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