Dale wrote:
> #320062087983 and 320062471061
>
> That is a funny-cool-weird-odd-scary bike! These "Iron curtain" companies are sort of like Yugos.. They LOOK normal but are still distinctly Third World when it comes to machining tolerances, etc.
>
> One thing bothered me in this auction.. Ths seller appears knowledgeable so why would he say "Has a really nice leather seat made by Brooks or Ideale I suppose." He knows that is pure BS. Troubling... What else is BS in what he says?
>
> Dale Brown
> Greensboro, North Carolina USA
Thanks for the comments, Dale, especially for the "What else is BS" heads-up. I read right past that, and never imagined for a moment that the saddle would be anything other than a Warsaw-Pact copy. I had only seen the listing for the full bike, not the other one for just the saddle.
Yes, about "iron curtain" companies, I have several dozen Russian and Ukrainian copies of Leica and Hasselblad cameras. Their factories were capable of some very technically sophisticated stuff when they felt like trying, and consumer goods were often made in the same plants as their weapons and aerospace products. But worker morale was typically at rock bottom and quality control usually non-existent. Doug Fattic has relayed some great anecdotes about this world.
Part of the charm for me is that it's a window into the world we didn't get to see at the time, "behind the Iron Curtain" that I heard so much about while growing up. Also Czech culture is wonderful and much overlooked (like the influence of Alphons Mucha on classic bicycle ads and graphics) and Prague is a most wonderful place to visit, fabulously beautiful and cultured. But the cameras sure are a lot cheaper to buy and ship and easier to store too.
Peace,
Tim Victor
Greensboro, NC, USA