Norris, nice of you to mention Ellis Briggs frames. Because Shipley is not in anyone's vacation (holiday) plans, it is seldom visited and as a result doesn't get the recognition places in London receive. I have always been very pleased that the Briggs accepted my request to learn framebuilding there. The people of Yorkshire county are more like Midwesterners and the nice fixture at Briggs and the way they put frames together is similar to how Americans work. I spent a lot of time chatting with Jack about building frames and related subjects. I remember him telling me about how those from Yorkshire and Lancs would group together in the army during the war and be somewhat separate from guys from the South. He said it was just natural to divide that way.
I certainly remember the punch that created their fancy lugged model. It had 17 different dies cuts (that I remember) and I used one of them on the side of a Prugnat lug when making my own first frame. It had a list of steps to follow. One of the times I visited some years later, it seemed this machine had lost some of its parts and later still the whole thing disappeared. I was sorry because I wanted to claim it. Jack gave me all the blank lugs (which I still have) because he knew I liked fancy cut out lugs. A fancy lugged frame made out of these punch is at the top of my wish list. I should admit that I don't think these lugs are particularly attractive but my need to have an Ellis Briggs frame and my memories of playing with this machine make we want one really bad. My perfect size is 22 1/2" but any size would do. Keep a lookout for me.
One of the famous riders to also use an Ellis Briggs frame was the best women cyclist of all time, Beryl Burton. She rode for Ron Kitching but, as so often is the case, had an EB painted in her sponsors colors. I remember Jack saying she requested pencil thin seat stays. If memory serves, those are 1/2" and very small at the dropout end. Paul Briggs (Jack's son) said that he was in a time trial once and she came by him effortlessly and so smooth. He thought he was standing still.
Time goes by quickly, Norris, and it was Christmas time 1999 that Jack died. In the summer of 2000 when my daughter and I were coming back from Ukraine, I stopped in to show her where I learned to build frames. They had just built a new Holiday Inn Express across the road from Briggs shop. She was tolerant of my visits to where I got my Cycling Weekly and salad sandwiches (particularly because it now served pizza she liked - the sandwich place long gone). Harrogate just further north was a great place to take her shopping and the car trip the 40 miles to York is pretty nice. Up and down and up again.
Andrew can still make a frame but is mostly idle because they sell the cheap aluminum frames from China. Prices are not expensive and the waiting time must be about zero. They have their frames painted at Bob Jackson's.
Thanks for bringing back the memories, Doug Fattic Niles, Michigan
Date: Thu, 23 Jun 2005 01:04:16 +0100 From: "Norris Lockley" <norris@norrislockley.wanadoo.co.uk> To: <Classicrendezvous@bikelist.org> Subject: [CR]Classy Northern Frames Message-ID: <003b01c57787$18ca5250$d7504254@norris> Content-Type: text/plain;charset="iso-8859-1" MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Precedence: list Message: 6
One of the most underestimated northern frames ...and a brand that has stood the test of time, is the Ellis-Briggs, from Shipley near Bradford, where Doug Fattic took his first file strokes in anger some..was it 30 years ago did you say?
The 1952 Ellis-Briggs International now selling on Ebay - item No 7164379008 - seems to be vastly under-priced to me. This model was the company's top-of-the-range model, and was used by countless top road-racing men in the 50s. The seller mentions that Ken Russell road one when he did hid one-man-team victory in the Tour of Britain, but what is a little known fact that none other than Britain's finest road rider of the 50s, Brian Robinson also road E-Bs. In fact when Brian set off for fame and fortune in France, he road his Briggs for quite a while on the continent. A close friend of mine, Ken Balmforth, who rode as an "Independent" - a type of semi-professional - alongside Brian, still uses his Briggs as a regular training machine.
I have a 21.5" International in my collection.. and I have to say that it is one of the most elegant machines I have..some nice detailing on it....beautifully tapered fork blades.... Jack Briggs, never a man to "flannel" his customers, made no attempt to hide the fact that the fancy scolloped lugs were fly-pressed out, with nice windows as well. I remember that he showed me the dies. Jack died unfortunately about 18 months ago, but his sons still carry on the business
Also being sold on Ebay is a 70/80s Ron Kitching Cyclassic, in a very typical, but not Team, RonKit colour., Item No 7164830885. If the buyer is lucky he will buy a frame made by Steve Elsworth, the foreman builder, at MKM, who built most if not all of these frames, Steve, who must have been one of the UK's top builders, particularly of lugless frames and tandems, never ever used any form of jig. Everything was done "by eye", even the bending of fork blades.
Norris Lockley...Settle UK