[CR]RE: Collecting Preference

(Example: Framebuilding:Tubing)

From: "Paul Williams" <castell5@sympatico.ca>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
Date: Fri, 26 Aug 2005 20:32:01 -0400
Subject: [CR]RE: Collecting Preference

Evening Folks,

Out of lurking mode. For work-related reasons I have been away from the CR list for the past six months (at least I have been pressing the delete key on the Digest mode more often than not - I am now back to the regular postings). It is nice to have a gentle discussion like this one to get me back into the swing of things.

My preference - although not yet reflected in my meagre collection - is for the British makers (and preferably the smaller makers). For me this perhaps reflects my British background but also the sense of whimsy which I feel accompanies many of the British made bikes. I immediately conjure up pictures of a craftsman honing his skills in a shed at the bottom of the garden (wasn't that where the Taylors first started) or in a village workshop. The "factories" of the "hand-mades."

My "Britophilia" has recently developed into a fascination with the bikes of the British "glory years" - the birst of colour which followed the War, the sometimes over-the-top lugwork, the semiheraldic crests, the semi-mythical model names - all add to the whimsical nature of the British bicycle. I am intrigued by the Patterson sketches and have come to appreciate the look of a full mudguard, an overstuffed saddle bag, a fork-mounted lamp. But, there is also a serious and studied sense of purpose and a pride in craftmanship; a craftsmanship which once marked the steel-industry in places like Sheffield.

Perhaps, I also find delight in finding and restoring a bike which will provide material for Dale's website for those marques where there are gaps!?

Paul Williams,
Ottawa, ON, Canada