Another great pic from an early 1899 Catalog. Sent the image to Wheel Fanatyk to see what he thinks. Wheel Fanatyk is a cool blog about wheel building with an emphasis on wooden wheels.
Early Bicycle Rim Drill – 1899
Slow Frame Building Progress
Not a lot going on in the frame building front. Working on getting an alignment table figured out before I can go much further. Will probably not get the frame complete by the time I go to the Handmade Bicycle Show in Feb.
First Lugged Joint – Bottom of Head Tube / Down Tube
My first brazed lug! I bit more brass than I probably needed so the cleanup was a bit much. I do think that the penetration of the joint was good though. I did some cold setting on it and it did not flinch. Overall I am pleased with the newbie attempt.
Going to find a source for “blemished” lugs so that I can practice a whole lot without breaking the bank. Getting Down Tube Length – Frame Layout
With the bottom bracket / seat tube down I can pull the down tube length from the drawing. Carefully aligning the frame over the drawing with the help of a machinist square and v-blocks I can now scribe the lines where the down tube intersects the bottom bracket. Also note, only the lug is only attached to the head tube at this point.
With the frame aligned about the drawing I can scribe the lines where the bottom bracket and down tube intersect. Notch out the lines and the down tube length is done.
Frame Building -ST/ BB Weld Done!
The seat tube is brazed in the bottom bracket shell. I can start pulling off the rest of the dimensions from the drawing. I am using a reasonably flat surface from and old cast iron table saw.
The brazing is not cleaned up yet. Will work on that soon. Also, it is a pretty messy joint but seems to be solid which is what I am most worried about for now.Bottle Tree
I friend has been bugging me for a bottle tree now for over a year. I am not crazy about them although they are growing on me (pardon the pun). It will look great outside and complete with assorted bottle shapes and colors.A few more vintage bicycles…..
Pictured here are a couple of womens Schwinns. One Hollywood and the other a three speed. In the middle is a boys Columbia Newsboy Special. 
J.C. Higgins
J.C. Higgins
Frame Drawing – Using the Paterek Method
Drawing out the first frame. Pretty much completed the drawing so I can get my final tube lengths and cut the final miters.
Head tube – small frame so lugs are pretty close to one another.
Bottom bracket shell will dictate the angle of the down tube. I am struggling with final alignment of lugs/tubing but I think a lot of cold setting and lug prep will do the trick.Drafting Table up and Running
Went old school and picked up a drafting table to hand draw my bicycle frames on!
Details and pics coming soon…
1896 Bicycle Tubing
For all you tubing aficionados out there – steel is real!
Check out that seam!
Check out that seam!
From Bicycle News – 1896