killercanuck
New Member
Good gawd woman, cover your ankles, this isn't a porn site, what would your husband think if he saw you half nude in some photographic image... oh my, just imagine the repercussions 
rustycase
Gutter Rider
Intrepid Wheelwoman
New Member
Good gawd woman, cover your ankles, this isn't a porn site, what would your husband think if he saw you half nude in some photographic image... oh my, just imagine the repercussions
Ah, but I haven't lost sight of proper behaviour as to wear those awful bloomers like those shameless 'modern' women do.
Rational Dress Reform, Victorian Bloomers and Cycling Costumes
killercanuck
New Member
aahch, just say a shark ate your britches when you come out of the water with that grin on your face, heh heh.
Allen_Wrench
Resident Mad Scientist
Intrepid Wheelwoman
New Member
No, no, no, no!
No! There is no such thing as a 1953 AW model two speed Sturmey Archer gear hub!
Allen_Wrench
Resident Mad Scientist
No, no, no, no!
No! There is no such thing as a 1953 AW model two speed Sturmey Archer gear hub!
Oh. Well, then I don't know. It made sense at the time. I've seen others similar.
Allen_Wrench
Resident Mad Scientist
No, no, no, no!
No! There is no such thing as a 1953 AW model two speed Sturmey Archer gear hub!
Aha! You are absolutely right! I got curious, and was looking here:
http://genetics.mgh.harvard.edu/hanczyc/pdfs/satriggersjuly06.pdf
And it would seem that, unless adjusted painstakingly, you could end up with just two speeds. But there are indeed three, no neutral.
Maybe maladjustment was the problem with one of my old "two"-speeds. Hmmm...
Jumpa
New Member
Intrepid _Wheelwoman Your AWESOME in your infinite wisdom & Thank you so much & Allen you are the man!!! if indeed you are a man that is !! That article was the best definitive article on any shifter Ive ever read. I even emailed the author a few pics of my shifter because it was one he didn't have a photo of as well I thanked him.
Also, I cant thank you enough for finding it as well thank you all for every bit of information you provided to help me figure out exactly what this 1953 quality bike is all about . As much as I wanted the "N" to be neutral it unfortunately isn't and Ive stopped finding the "Between gear" and fooling myself besides the more black junk and sand I got out of it the less and less I could find the "In between gear" The hub looks like it has less than 20 miles on it, as do the original brake pads and the rear tire
I'm not sure the front rim is original but that's my next history lesson. I love it how, when your looking an old bike "or any old thing for that matter" you come across a lot of the stuff from that time period. It's like a mini journey back in time. One thing Ive found out, there was more quality put into the making of one pedal on this bike than there was on all 4 of my other bikes together!!
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Intrepid Wheelwoman
New Member
Allen_Wrench
Resident Mad Scientist
Yeah, I wondered about that too. I'd also look for cracks around where the forks join the head/stem tube. The last rider of that bike hit something solid, but it doesn't look like he hit hard enough to bend the wheel. Of course, it's hard to get a really good look at the wheel, just by the pics.
Intrepid Wheelwoman
New Member
If there are no cracks or other damage it would be reasonably simple to straighten those forks with a large bench vice and a nice solid length of pipe. The trick is to gently ease the fork legs back into being true again and not to try doing it all in one huge heave. Rag stuffed into the end of the pipe around the fork leg will stop the fork leg from being marked as you gently apply leverage. If a mere woman such as myself can do it I'm sure you won't have any problems
Allen_Wrench
Resident Mad Scientist
My word that's really useful, - thanks for posting that
You're all quite welcome. It was no problem at all.
I'm a semi-retired private investigator. Research is what I do. Working for the government, I do it nearly all day long. If information exists on a given topic, I can usually find it in short order. It's one of the things they pay me for.
Incidentally, there's actually quite a bit of useful information about Sturmey Archers out there. The moment I started poking about, specs and diagrams started popping up. They're a very desirable hub.
Allen_Wrench
Resident Mad Scientist
... If a mere woman such as myself can do it I'm sure you won't have any problems
"Mere woman", eh? You've already shown your skill and experience. I, for one, can't be tricked into underestimating you that way. (That, and my wife has a higher IQ than I do, and it doesn't work for her either.)
Jumpa
New Member
If there are no cracks or other damage it would be reasonably simple to straighten those forks with a large bench vice and a nice solid length of pipe. The trick is to gently ease the fork legs back into being true again and not to try doing it all in one huge heave. Rag stuffed into the end of the pipe around the fork leg will stop the fork leg from being marked as you gently apply leverage. If a mere woman such as myself can do it I'm sure you won't have any problems
Ive been blessed Intrepid as far as the forks go.
Several of my ancestors were black smiths "back in the day", forging ,bending , cutting welding , threading ,fabricating seems to run in my families blood, what ever I do do heat will not be part of the procedure that's for sure. & I will not rush it Just waiting to see if it is claimed first Seeing that is what makes me think it fell off of a truck or ma motor home of some sort there was also two broken spokes I just couldn't leave broken. does anyone know anyone who might have a cheap plasma cutter " No not for the forks " I just want one and I don't have an extra grand right now just laying around. I bought one a few years back but the local crack heads broke into my shed and well......I no longer have a plasma cutter.
Intrepid Wheelwoman
New Member
Essentially your Armstrong bicycle is the same as a Ladies Raleigh bicycle of the same year. In fact your bicycle is almost the same as my 1947 Ladies Raleigh all except for the Dunlop alloy rims, rod brakes, prewar design coaster hub and the Terry three spring saddle.
As a rule of thumb when it comes to straightening your forks the fork legs should have no backward curve or kink. They should run completely straight until they taper into the forward curve at the lower end.
By the way I think you are right about how your bicycle ended up where it did. The possibility that it came adrift from a vehicle and bounced hard on its front wheel before ending up in the weeds at the side of the road would be highly likely in my opinion.
As a rule of thumb when it comes to straightening your forks the fork legs should have no backward curve or kink. They should run completely straight until they taper into the forward curve at the lower end.
By the way I think you are right about how your bicycle ended up where it did. The possibility that it came adrift from a vehicle and bounced hard on its front wheel before ending up in the weeds at the side of the road would be highly likely in my opinion.
Jumpa
New Member
I want rod brakes 
I looked under my seat and it has a bunch of horizontal springs on it and 2 in the rear vertical I would like to get a set of leather matching grips (same color as the seat) seeing as how there are no grips at all. Pewter design do you mean the badge ?
I looked under my seat and it has a bunch of horizontal springs on it and 2 in the rear vertical I would like to get a set of leather matching grips (same color as the seat) seeing as how there are no grips at all. Pewter design do you mean the badge ?
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Jumpa
New Member
Allen what search engine do you use sir?
I have 4 bikes now including my Motorized bad boy and they are all in the living room and the wifey poo is getting a little ticked off.I may have to get rid of one of the bikes.... or her... lol shhhhh ... who said that? My evil twin was to blame!!!
Also..
If I was to sell this chunk of history and that's a very , very big "IF" what would be a ball park figure, I should ask?
. I know it's all about what someone is willing to pay for any given item . Whats the going rate for such an item just under 60 years old w/90% of it's original equipment