W. F. Grew

“ However, this being the final chapter of my book on the cycle industry, I will risk it on the assumption that if I prophesy what does not materialize, I shall not be alone in having stated what did not subsequently prove true.
The cycle industry of the future is assured, because no matter what happens there always must be a big demand for the cheapest form of locomotion known. Aye, even cheaper than walking. Is not leather more costly than rubber and does not a bicycle tyre cover outlast several boot soles, besides being a quicker means of getting about, either for work or pleasure? ”

“ It is the ambition of almost all cyclists to make one cycling journey to the Continent. The change of scene, customs, dress, and language alone repay the rider for any inconvenience that may be experienced, without counting the old world towns and cities that may be visited in France, Belgium, and Holland, to name the three countries most easy of access from our shores. ”

“ Only by working to the finest limits employed in any branch of mechanical engineering is it possible to produce an intricate piece of mechanism contained in the space of a large sized bicycle hub. The plant, installed originally by the Raleigh Cycle Co., cost thousands of pounds, and cyclists certainly owe this firm a debt of gratitude for making it possible to buy such a beautifully made gear at a moderate price. ”

“ On the other hand, the pedal bicycle is a restful and noiseless form of locomotion for those who do not care for the hurry and bustle of a motor cycle ride, and cycling, when undertaken in accordance with ones powers, is probably the most health giving form of recreation for the mind and body. ”

“ Time was when engineers in some other branches rather looked down on cycle factories as the home of the inefficient, but the trade journals of the mechanical world have recognized, more particularly during recent times, that a high-class cycle factory possesses some of the best brains in light mechanical engineering, and some of the best plants of tools and machinery it is possible to obtain. ”

“ Whether the cyclist elects to provide the motive force by his own efforts or prefers to call in the aid of the internal combustion engine is a question of personal choice. The pedal bicycle, as it is termed, provides exercise with recreation, and the motor is therefore scorned by some athletic enthusiasts. The dependability and speed of the motor cycle are, however, now an established fact, and the advantages of the mechanical propulsion cannot be overlooked where time is a factor. ”

“ On the other side of the picture there is much that appeals to one in a factory of the best class, where the
directors or owners have a pride in putting their trade mark on every machine that leaves the works. The staff and workers have, I feel sure, from personal experience an increased interest in their daily task, quick to resent any slur cast on the productions with which they are so closely allied. ”

“ We have now arrived at the stage when a high bicycle was regarded as dangerous, and, if the front wheel were too small, it detracted from the rider’s speed owing to the shorter distance covered by each turn of the wheel. What was the next move? The engineer’s mind turned towards a method of gearing by cogs or chains, by which one turn of the crank axle would cause the driven wheel to turn more than once. That is where we get our method of describing the ratio of gearing between the crank and the wheel of a modern safety bicycle. ”

“ In a large factory the organization of a cycle producing staff is as complicated and efficient as in any other branch of modern mechanical engineering. The innumerable parts of a bicycle render the organizing of production in large quantities a question of brains and system. ”

“ In conclusion, those who imagine the cycle industry has anything left of its old time sporting glamour, when to be connected with it was regarded by some as a pleasant means of existence hovering between work and play, with a big proportion of the latter, should at once disabuse their minds of any such ideas. The cycle industry is now one of Britain's staple trades, and has settled down on industrial lines of great magnitude. ”

“ Money poured into the coffers of men who had done nothing to build these businesses; they had only been astute enough to see that the market was ripe for flotation, and as the public cried for cycle shares they got them. ”

“ Provided the rider is speedy enough there is nothing to prevent him winning important events; he has not to contend with the betting side of the question, which is sometimes rather startling to a novice. There are such occurrences as being purposely upset; luckily, they are not common, and are only instanced to show that while the average healthy youth may indulge in a little road racing every week without considering such eventualities, he who aspires to track honours must be prepared for the worst whilst hoping for the best. ”

“ To-day a side-car body is made of metal or wood, has a side door, springs in the upholstery, windscreen, hood, etc., just like a miniature car, and the wheel is sometimes sprung on car lines. The passenger is therefore quite as comfortable as if in a motor car and quite as well protected from the wind and rain. ”

“ There is no subject in connection with cycle making that has been more discussed among riders and makers than the all important weight question. It is obvious, without much explanation, that where human power alone is employed for propulsion the weight of a bicycle is vital. It must not, however, be imagined that the lightest bicycle is the easiest to propel in all cases without other consideration. ”

“ Enormous sums of money are locked up in plant and machinery at its various factories and works which produce the subsidiary articles that go to make up that portion of the trade known as accessories. It is quite impossible to give an accurate figure as to the amount of this capital or the number of employees, partly because a good portion of the capital is in private concerns and also on account of the cycle and motor industries being interconnected to so great an extent that it is difficult to say where one begins and the other ends. ”

“ The Continental army authorities, particularly in France, have long recognized the extreme practicability of cycles in war, and the French army have largely adopted a bicycle with a folding frame made by one of its largest and best known manufacturers. This machine, when folded, can be slung across a soldier's back when the ground is too broken to allow a bicycle to be ridden. Thus, the French soldier-cyclist is supplied with a rapid means of transit, and whole companies are equipped with these folding machines and move very rapidly from place to place. ”

“ That the tandem form of bicycle is a most fascinating machine few will deny who have had an opportunity of riding one. Compared with the single, however, they are not popular, as for every tandem thousands of singles are to be seen on the roads, and that is caused by the increased handiness of the solo mount and the fact that the double type necessitates the partner always being ready to accompany one on rides. ”

“ Previous to the pneumatic tyre the bicycle maker bought solid and cushion tyres from firms who left the advertising of their wares to occasional announcements in trade journals and depended for trade on the reputation they had gained among their customers the cycle manufacturers. Not so the pneumatic tyre manufacturer, who commenced in an astute manner to advertise every win made on machines fitted with his tyres. Thus, the competition that previously only existed among cycle makers was increased by about 100 per cent. Men were racing to advertise tyres just as much as machines. ”

“ The manufacture of accessories is a separate branch of the industry, and has, like the actual cycle production, grown from small businesses to the very large factories that are now solely devoted to such articles as saddles, bells, tool-bags, lamps for oil and acetylene gas, tyre pumps, and a host of other articles that may be seen displayed in the windows of cycle and accessory depots and shops. ”

“ The great boom year in the history of cycling and cycle manufacture has had a tremendous influence on the trade, and history has undoubtedly repeated itself in connection with the sale and manufacture of motor cars and motor cycles.
The boom year in cycling occurred in 1895–96, when the popularity of the pastime for fashionable women became an accomplished fact, and there was a sudden rush for bicycles by a class of people who had never previously given the sport a single thought. ”

“ We can therefore safely assume that bicycles will always be with us, because if a very cheap form of power were ultimately devised for propelling a bicycle on present motor cycle lines, no machine so fitted could be produced and sold at the cost of a bicycle that is propelled by human power. ”

“ Under the latter conditions, viz., with the higher gears in use, the rider's feet revolve the crank axle slower, but the ratio of gearing being about one to two and a half turns of the road wheel on normal or middle, and three to three and a half turns of the road wheel on top gear, the machine moves faster with approximately the same exertion; or to explain it another way, the rider has no need with a high gear in use to exhaust himself with rapid pedalling as he would do if he wished to ride fast with a normal single gear. ”

“ To-day, American manufacturers have changed their tactics, and although no very serious effort has been made to further the export of bicycles from the United States to Europe, the trade "over there" have not lost sight of the possibility of capturing some of the European markets, if not our own British one. Enquiries have been instituted by the American Chamber of Commerce as to the pattern of machine most likely to be demanded, the names of large buyers, their methods of payment, etc., etc. ”

“ The manufacturers recognized in the earliest days the value of the publicity gained by an important win on a bicycle of their make and bearing their name and trade mark. The value of racing successes is not now quite so high as in the past, but it still plays an important part in keeping the names of various makes of bicycles before the public eye. ”

“ Weight also counts down hill. Luggage carrying capacity is said to be reduced to that of a single because there is only the space over the one rear and one front wheel in which to place carriers for two people. This may be an objection, but in my opinion a tandem is an ideal touring bicycle for husband and wife, because the weaker efforts of the lady rider can be compensated to some extent by the more energetic and powerful pedalling of the partner. ”

“ A change speed gear is a device that allows the gear ratio to be altered to suit the conditions of the road or the riding conditions prevailing at the time. A low gear ratio, one to two, for example, means that the rider is enabled to climb hills better but not faster; the power of the rider does not vary but the power strokes in pedalling are divided into a greater number of efforts in a given time. ”

“ The Motor Cyclist's Newspaper
If you are a motor cyclist, you are a reader of "The Motor Cycle," of course.
If you are a cyclist, and are thinking of becoming a motor cyclist, you will find "The Motor Cycle" exactly the paper you want.
IT will assist you in choosing a suitable machine, and give you many useful hints on driving, care and management, equipment, legal matters, etc. Special attention is given to the needs of beginners, and advice may always be obtained from the Editor, free of charge. ”

“ The objections to the high bicycle were many, and among its chief drawbacks were that owing to the disparity in wheel diameters and the small weight of the backbone and trailing wheel, also to the rider’s position practically over the centre of the wheel, if the large front wheel hit a brick or large stone on the road, and the rider was unprepared, the sudden check to the wheel usually threw him over the handlebar. ”

“ With regard to other Continental countries the British bicycle is favoured everywhere by those who know what a bicycle should be. Since the war it is, however, very difficult to speak confidently of the future. Russia, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, etc., were all large buyers of British bicycles up to August, 1914, and doubtless will be purchasers again when conditions are more settled and our home and colonial trade is supplied. ”

“ Another popular type of brake is the roller lever brake. This is usually made up by the cycle maker to suit his own models and consists of a lever placed each side of the handle-bar which rolls or turns in a bearing. At each end of the lever there is a crank which pushes down a rod in communication with the front or rear brake shoes. The handle-bar brakework is usually assembled on the bar ready to slip into the machine in the finishing shops.
Handle-bars are largely bent by specialists, but some firms make their own. ”

“ Hub gears lost favour with motor cyclists on account of the weight of the gear being in the wrong place, and because so many hub gears intended for solo riding were used with side-cars and passengers, and proved unequal to the task of the double work. The modern motor cycle gear is now almost wholly of the countershaft type, and contained in a separate box or case like the change speed of most motor-cars. ”

“ Many keen practical minds were at work, and one part after another was reduced in weight until there were few parts of the machine that were not made either of hollow steel tube or stamped hollow; even spokes were tried of thin steel tube before the introduction of the suspension or wire wheel. The backbone of the bicycle which was evolved from the boneshaker was of steel tube, at first of flat steel folded and brazed and, lastly, drawn out from a solid steel block without a join, or weldless, as it is termed. ”

“ The average French cyclist is rather different from a British rider; he is seldom a tourist and appears to follow the pastime more for the sport of racing than riding from town to town on touring bent. The French bicycle is therefore, as may be expected, largely of the road racing type. ”

“ The latest models of motor cycle have all the attributes of a well-designed motor car chassis, and some are best described as a car chassis on two wheels. The outstanding difference between a motor car and a motor cycle is that the latter is practically always fitted with an air cooled engine, i.e. an engine which radiates the heat generated by the explosions of gas in the cylinder directly from the cylinder to the atmosphere, instead of through the medium of water. ”

“ The cyclist sections paraded at the usual annual camp meetings and engaged in manoeuvres, some of a highly instructive description to the men engaged and authorities alike; all honour and praise to those who worked hard, against strong opposition at times, to prove the handiness and extreme mobility of a soldier when mounted on a bicycle. ”

“ The secret of the extra speed lies in the fact that a thin walled tyre is more resilient than a thick one, and when suitably inflated the rapid expansion of the tread, previously compressed by the rider's weight, does not retard the propulsion of the machine so much as a thicker one. A technical explanation of the why and wherefore of this must be sought in theoretical treatises on pneumatic tyres. ”

“ Broadly speaking, the first class of manufactory has a much larger staff and is confined to the production of high-class machines, which are designed and made throughout on the premises. Such machines are distinctive in appearance and their makers do not sell the parts they produce to assemblers, so that their special features cannot be copied. Naturally, a machine of this class is more expensive and, generally speaking, will command a higher price on the second-hand market. The reason for increased cost is not far to seek. ”

“ I do not agree absolutely with this opinion, and I think it has arisen chiefly because tandem pairs do not practise together sufficiently often to acquire the unity of action that is required to make hill climbing as easy on a double as a single. Also, tandems are often geared too high. On level ground and down hill the tandem scores every time, principally because the surface area offered to the air resistance is but little more than that of a single machine and rider plus the increased propulsion effort of the second rider. ”

“ So one might go on enumerating the different centres of industry that supply the cycle trade; but it does not require much imagination to compare the early struggles of the pioneer cycle mechanics with those of the present day, who have largely to fit together what is made for them by other producers. ”

“ If the hole was small the tyre was heavy and the machine ran "dead"; if large, the sides pressed hard against the edges of the rim and cut through. Some cushion tyres were more like a glorified thick garden hose, and various shaped rims were introduced to obviate the tendency there was to cut through at the sides. The expense of india-rubber resulted in great adulteration of cushion tyres, and although cycle makers of repute paid a fair price to obtain a good article, the makers of cheap shoddy bicycles often used cushion tyres that had very little india-rubber in their composition. ”