About Ebykr
Ebykr celebrates classic and vintage lightweight bicycles through provoking imagery and opinion. Let's roll together!
About Ebykr
Ebykr celebrates classic and vintage lightweight bicycles through provoking imagery and opinion. Let's roll together!
I have just acquired through eBay a HOBBS ladies mixte , can’t find much out about it on the internet anyone got any idea what year it was built the frame number is 30627
[…] Hobbs of Barbican: The Strength is in the Spine […]
I have just inherited a Hobbs bicycle. It needs some work but was wanting to check its age etc. Does anyone have a contact email that works for Mervyn Cook or others who may have taken over the Hobbs register?
[…] Readers who are interested in the history of Hobbs of Barbican and some other interesting photos of this particular tandem can be found in an EBykr article from December 2005 HERE. […]
I did have a very special Hobbs of Barbican cycle as it was made by myself and Dave Bedwell one weekend at the Sterling Works in Dagenham where I lived in those days.
If I have your email address I can send you a picture of me on the cycle.
George Staples.
I did have a very special Hobbs of Barbican cycle as it was made by myself and Dave Bedwell one weekend at the Sterling Works in Danenham where I lived in those days.
If I have your email address I can send you a picture of me on the cycle.
George Staples.
itoo have been trying to track Mervyn Cook as I have a 1930s(?) Hobbs frame #326. Legend has this cycle was used to set the 50 mile record . Can anyone help or is it of any interest to anyone? From what I believe this makes it one of the oldest ( and possibly tidiest ) around. Please feel free to e-mail me if you would like more info or pics, or if you can steer Melvyn or anyone else interested in it. I am unsure what exactly to do with it at the moment.
Hi.
The Hobbs bicycle is mentioned in a song by a band called The Buff Medways. The track is called “Medway Wheelers” , which I believe was a cycling club around in the 30s – 40s
On youtube –
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOo7DepCd9w
…. cycling on a Hobbs Supreme, light weight, made to measure fixed wheel ???? crossbar ..
???? can’t make out this word..
I’m not a cycling buff but I think it’s a great song
I have in my possession a Hobbs Superbe model tandem with quite fancy
lugwork. I have owned this machine since about 1954. The lugwork is
idntical to the Blue Riband type. I bought the tandem scond hand from A
F Mills cycles (owner Sid Batham). The story was that this was Hobbs own
tandem but I have no evdence of this. It did have 27in. bamboo sprints
with it but the original wheels were 26in. steels with hp tyres. The
tandem was equipped with a Cyclo 4 speed eighth in. chains. It now has
27in. srints with tubular tyres, Weinmann side pull brakes and 60 tooth
driving chainwheel. I had the frame re-enamelled round about 1980 but
has been little used since then. In the restoring process the original
head badge was lost so I had a stick on type made up with the original
Hobbs scroll. The tandem was extensively raced in the 50’s & 60’s both
on the road in time trials and on the track(mainly Herne Hill. the
numbers on the front bottom bracket are as best as I can tell are
3-643. I have been trying to contact mervyn cook with no success to find out any further info. I have a photo of it in racing action but am unable at moment to attach it. look forward to your response
Cheers Joe
As a new owner of a 1950 Superbe tandem frame I’m delighted to find your pix, which will help with my rebuild/restoration project. Can you put me in touch with the owner of this tandem, who I guess is in the USA (I’m in the UK)? Or any other Hobbs tandem owners?
BTW I also own a solo Hobbs frameset, and rode many miles on a Hobbs as a teenager.
Hello Timm,
Sounds like a wonderful pair of Hobbs you have there. Thanks for rescuing them and sharing a bit of their past with us. We would happily add photos of these bicycles when available, either here in this Hobbs article or a separate Tech Specs feature.
Kind regards,
Eric
Hello!
Congratulations on a nice, informative Hobbs website which I have per chance just come across.
I own 2 Hobbs, one a lugless Jan 1947 model, presumably a raceweight or sportweight, Mervyn Cook of the VCC cannot determine quite definitely which model it is. Mz next door neighbour gave it to me about 6 years ago, it was in a poor state, but I managed to restore it to its former glory. It is black with white panels and red script on the downtube, and it has feather lining. I ride it on 80″ fixed gear, with an original double-fluted BSA crankset, which at that time was regarded as “the bee’s knees.” I even found an original 1948 GB handlebar in original wrapping and packing, which is now fitted to a chrome plated GB stem. The wheels (I built myself) feature Conloy rims on LF Racelite hubs. And it still has its original Brooks 57 saddle! It all looks rather nice. Once I got an electronic photo, I will send it to you.
The second is an Oct 1950 “Savernake” model, which has not been mentioned in your website at all. The name “Savernake” is borrowed from an ancient forest in the south of England. It is in need of restauration, unfortunately Lytaloy components are now impossible to get hold off, “rarer than hens’ gold teeth”, as we say here in GB. Currently it features v. early Campagnolo gears, but of course they are not right for the period.
Once the weather is warmer, I will strip down all the paint (tatty, hand-applied by a previous owner), and repaint it properly with primer undercoat and quality lacquer, applied with a special quality brush. It is going to be Brunswick green (dark British Racing Green) with light green panels and red “Hobbs of Barbican” script transfers on the down tube.
Greetings and best regards. Don’t fall off.
Timm F
If memory serves, that design is called a ‘marathon’ and Santana used it for their early tandems. Most builders went to ‘direct internal’ where the extra tube runs to the stoker’s BB to save few ounces, but this is still a great design.