3 speed Elgin Velocipede 1934

Thought I'd start a thread on a bike I've been working on in between other projects.

It is a 1934 Elgin Four Star which I call a "velocipede". As a young man in college I had an elderly professor who always referred to my Austin Healy roadster as a "velocipede" and so I have always liked the term. It actually refers to the earliest bicycles, so I thought the reference to the early days, "velocity' suggesting speed and the "pede" part of the word having to do with pedals... seemed like a good name for it.

The first photo shows what I'm working on. Second shows an early forties version of the same bike.

Elgin had a winner with this design and kept it for nearly a decade. Many were made and sold as this was a time when art deco was big and those very cool fender skirts were what art deco was all about. Even some of the men bought these as the skirt guards were also referred to as coat guards and long coats were popular then. Especially older men found it easier to mount a step through bike than having to swing the leg over the seat.

The next three photos show a 1939 version of the same bike which was my entry in the Rustoration Buildoff over a year ago. I made a sidecar to go with it for my dog, Aaniimoosh. It ended up twisted metal from a fire which burned all the contents of my truck. Bummer for sure since I had less than fifty miles on it.

Since then I've built a number of bikes and know more now than I did then. It happens that I have another old Elgin, this 1934... which is gonna be a cool bike in my opinion. I love board trackers and classic cruisers, but I also like something different and maybe even beautiful... which is all in the eyes of the beholder of course. My intention is to make something good looking, unique, have an early motorcycle look to it and be a great and practical ride. Here goes...
SB

The bike as it was a year ago... first stage of the long creative stare... what to do with this bike? I had earlier tried a 36 Volt pancake motor wheel up front with the batteries on the rear rack and didn't like it. This summer I mocked it up with the PK-80 Pirate Cycles engine which had been on my Indian (removed from the Indian to make way for a Villiars engine as the Indian becomes a tri-car). So I had this great PK-80 engine from Pirate Cycles not even broken in yet and an SBP pipe to go with it... the engine was sitting too high in the Elgin with the mounts I had used for the Indian, so later changed things around to make it sit lower than you see it here.

I also wanted suspension up front somehow.. having used it on a couple of other bikes, it is hard to go back to a stiff front end. I thought about asking Curtis Fox to make a second set of leaf spring forks for me, but did not want to impose as he is already making a set for the Indian. I set up the Herculese moped fork you see in the photo and pretty much liked it and the ears to hold the Puch headlight. Usually a moped fork on a vintage bike is too long for the head tube and requires shims to make things right. On some of the vintage ladies bikes the head tube is very long. I looked at the head tubes on a 39 Hiawatha and a 42 Schwinn and they are extra long like on this Elgin. It was even too long for this Herculese fork. Later I tried it with a Tomos fork and it is enough longer that it will work. An added benefit of the moped fork is that it in effect stretches the bike out by a couple of inches and makes it feel better for me. I'm 6 feet tall and the frame felt small to me. Better now along with the 7 seat post reversed to set the seat back a bit.

I also found the original seat to be too small. Must be that in 1934 girls were a bit more trim than the ones I see now who have been super sized at MacDonalds. Ha! I made this seat bigger and man sized by adding some padding (that rhymes) and some extra thick harness leather that was very difficult to work with.
SB (continued)

In the previous post the third photo shows the engine lower in the frame. Fourth picture is of a 1938 Elgin chain guard I salvaged from the fire. I have since painted it and will decide later if it looks right on the Velocipede... more art deco.

Motorizing this bike is problematic due to the fender skirts. I had a lot of trouble running the engine drive chain on the 39 and ended up messing up one of them a little. It always worried me that the chain would catch on one of those ribs and result in mayhem.

Back in the Rustoration Buildoff I fell in love with BarelyAWake's Rollfast in part because of his 3 speed shift kit and internal rear hub. So when I was day dreaming this build I realized this would be the answer since the chain driving the rear wheel is the pedal chain. Perfect.

I have also been on an ongoing quest for a bike capable of climbing hills with my dog in tow either in a trailer or light sidecar. So I think this is going to be a sweet setup. I ordered a 3 speed Sturmey Archer hub through Amazon along with a heavy duty front wheel to take apart and re-lace as a back wheel. The wheel and hub arrived a day ago and are now getting to know each other.
SB (cont.)

Excuuuuse me! That was Barelyawake's Rollfast. (Since corrected)
SB

Glad you like it, too, Harry. Elgin had an amazing designer for some years there back in the 1930's. The Bluebird and Robin boy's models are something else.

The seat turned out pretty nice and is in better proportion to the rest of the bike. It isn't perfect, but nothing hand made is. In traditional Ojibwa decorative bead work there was always an intentional mistake included in an otherwise flawless piece of work as a reminder that we two leggeds are imperfect and not to imagine for a moment that we are. A lesson in humility, I guess. I like things better which are hand made... like a hand stitched quilt is nicer than one stitched on a machine in my opinion. Anyway, the seat sits lower, looks better and is more to my liking.
SB (cont.)

I also made a new gas tank for in a larger size than the V8 juice can. This is about twice the diameter and the same length... like a coffee can, but still has both ends intact as it had tomato sauce inside. The bung is made from a brass hose coupling and has a brass hose cap with the back side of a quarter soldered on top. I have yet to drill the air vent between the eagle's feet. The 39 Elgin chain guard looks more promising painted.

I'm committed to not altering this bike in ways which can not be reversed. I will keep the original fork and the original chain guard so the bike can become as it was again if someone wants that someday. The shift kit is going to require altering the chain guard and is usually dispensed with. I don't have that option as the skirt guard bolts directly to the chain guard. I do have a second chain guard like the one on the bike now... it came through the fire in good enough condition to be used and I also have this 39, which I think is going to work. I won't know until I try it, just as I won't know if the gas tank will look OK until I'm more or less done.

The handlebar is a cut off ape hanger found at the dump. It may not be long enough, but again I won't know until I ride it. The left handlebar grip has a three speed twist shifter inside from an early 1960's English 3 speed. Clutch will be on the left and on the right the throttle and a dual brake lever for front and back drum brakes. Headlight is Puch.
SB

Hey Ron,
Fishing is terrible on our lake... a combination of rusty crayfish invasion some moron introduced from the Ohio Valley which has destroyed our weed beds and strange weather. I figured you'd be floating around on the boat by now killing fish to eat.

If for some reason I ever have to go to prison I hope they let me build motorbicycles in my cell. I'll be happy, especially if I can take them out and do laps in
the exercise yard.

If you can get up this way I'll buy the fish sticks and we can ride a couple bikes. Yes, I still have the HF greyhound in the cantilever Schwinn, but was thinking today I may give it to my son. Too many bikes.
SB

Ron said,

NEAT TIMES said:

Sb

i thought the work horse of a hf 79cc would be your main squeeze!

You could herd it to ely or tower with out trouble!

Ron

Click to expand...

Nope,
My dream machine is the 50 Panther. The HS motor costs more than the greyhound, but having used both of them with the same drive system for many miles, the HS is a better motor. With that transmission everything is so smooth and the Suzuki fork while a pain to get set up due to the need for a custom axle... is just amazing. The ride is great and I love the way it looks. That big old headlight fits right in there and everybody who sees this bike loves it. I do, too. I still have to make a prototype tin gas tank to fit in the frame and eventually a copper one... I think... or I may paint the tin one to match the bike. This is the best ride I have right now, so it's my favorite bike. I'm anxious to do this Elgin to see how the PK-80 and 3 speed shift kit works out... and then there's the Indian tri-car with the Villiars engine coming up once Fasteddy gets here from Vancouver. That's something to look forward to. What fun this stuff is. Woohoo!
SB

NEAT TIMES said:

Sb

I will search your build threads and "relook" at all of them. I have a great memory, but is getting shorter.

Glad you like the titans , 3 have three of them. One is on my diy shifter and one is on a cvt rack mount. Planning on putting my "big headed morini" in my stretch cruiser, This falL/winter. What did you use a reduction box?

Ron

Click to expand...

Ron,
Either your memory is like mine... or you have me mixed up with another bear. I don't have any Titans.
I have a little memory story for you, though.
The guy I built a 49 Panther for took me to lunch yesterday at a kind of expensive place in town for the tourists to empty their pockets. I looked over the lunch menu and was joking that I thought I'd order some crumbs and a thimble of soup. He said the prices were normal, but not on my social security check are they normal. Anyway, he was paying so I had a great lunch and decided to get a doggy bag (in this case a classy black box) and have the rest for dinner last night. Cool, two free meals that even taste good. I picked up my glasses, my jeans jacket and headed out for my car. Got home and had no danged little black box. I had left it at the restaurant or the bank. Who knows? I'm doing this kind of stuff all the time now. Scary actually. That same guy was slowly climbing stairs at his place the other day and looked back over his shoulder at me and said, "It's tough gettin' old. It ain't fer sissys!" That's the truth.
SB

Hey Dan,
Boy, you've got a lot more patience than I have. I'd be so antsy to ride that stretch Worksman of yours that I'd of had it out without the fenders and half painted. I'd like to be there to see your first take off.
I have the wheel apart and may get to lacing it up in a day or two. And I have some more photos I'll post over the weekend.
SB

Harry said,
"The meal didnt go to waste, my girlfriend awoke last night to the sound of my pitbull chewing the tupperware to get the meat inside. "

Gives new meaning to "doggy bag".

Dan, good to hear you're getting close on the stretch Worksman. For those who can't see the photos Dan has not posted (hint) his build is a Worksman Industrial Bike with a different front down tube (early 50's Schwinn step through) and some additional length added in as well. He has all the room in the world for his four stroke HS engine mated to a Qmatic clutch. He welded up an in frame gas tank, very cool rear drop stand, spring loaded chain tensioner and overall built a killer ride. Can't wait to hear about that first ride, Bud. Wish I could be there riding next you, watching the stretch smile in the middle of all that beard. Ha!
The welding on the Worksman for my Indian tri-car is done and is perfect. Check out some new photos over on the Indian Tadpole thread.
SB