Malvern Star Family Star

[goribildo]

Hi people, i love vintage bikes and i just got a Malvern star family star light blue in good condition, all original parts and even the bell still rings like in the good days, it rides like a dream, what a bike!, speeds are working perfectly, it has some rust of course but i won't touch it, i don't wanna ruin the patina, i just sprayed some wd40 and put it in the shade, front brakes are great but the ones on the back are wasted, didn't have a proper look at it but it sounds like they should be replaced.
Anyway my question here is: Is this amazing bike considered more for ladies? or it's unisex? i guess the model "family" star means that every member of a family can ride it , right?
The Apollo cruiser looks very similar almost like a twin and many consider it as a ladies bike...
I also own a Fluid Mars white and blue which i moded it a little by installing a front vintage light lamp, a front hook-on basket and a pannier bag and it looks a million dollars
I'm now after a Raleigh Stowaway for the collection
Thanks everybody and if u know of other beautiful vintage retro bikes please let me know.

[Derny Driver]

Hi mate and welcome ...yes Ive always liked the look of the Family Stars and you are right, they are unisex although with no top tube I guess they are suited to ladies. I'd be happy to ride one though. Very cool little bike. Theres a few collectors on this forum. I myself collect steel racing bikes from 1930 to 1990 although I think I have enough / too many already. I have a soft spot for the Malvern Star Skidstar and the MS Coronation ... these sort of beautiful old cruising bikes might be something that you might fancy. I have so far resisted the urge to get one.
Brake shoes are an easy fix, your LBS would have some, and a guy on the Retro fb page is selling some NOS 1950/60 vintage pads and shoes for $9 a pair posted.
Good luck with the collecting.
DD

[HappyHumber]

Some of that bracket of bike iirc had a funky wheel size... like 22" or something. You may need to source online when the time comes. Take careful note before you go to replace them - don't turf the originals before you've sourced the correct sized replacements!

There was a few similar models put out by other makers around the late 60s through mid 80s; they competed with the likes of the (non-folding) Raliegh 20 and I do recall some Indi 500 model as well.

I think they were just marketed as a sort of "compact" utility bike; but I reckon you could bet your bottom peso that most print ads etc portrayed them with women or girls on them.

true story : I remember picking up one up off a pile of junk on a hard waste collection to look at for some reason - and some cheeky little scallywag walking past with his mates yelled : "Hey! that's my Grandmas bike!"

[goribildo]

Hi mate and welcome ...yes Ive always liked the look of the Family Stars and you are right, they are unisex although with no top tube I guess they are suited to ladies. I'd be happy to ride one though. Very cool little bike. Theres a few collectors on this forum. I myself collect steel racing bikes from 1930 to 1990 although I think I have enough / too many already. I have a soft spot for the Malvern Star Skidstar and the MS Coronation ... these sort of beautiful old cruising bikes might be something that you might fancy. I have so far resisted the urge to get one.
Brake shoes are an easy fix, your LBS would have some, and a guy on the Retro fb page is selling some NOS 1950/60 vintage pads and shoes for $9 a pair posted.
Good luck with the collecting.
DD

Thanks very much mate, will post pics tomorrow was too hot today, i saw the ad of this lady selling this beauty and immediately contacted her paid 70 bucks and rode it right away no time wasting, i can tell she was kinda attached to the bike she was actually saying "good bye bike i'll miss u" so i just said here's the money byeeee and flew away from there before she regrets mate and goodness me what a pleasure it was, 11am in Thirroul (u probably know the place if u're from Wollongong) very sunny and breezy, passed through a cafe and i can swear people were staring at me with envy haha, man what a bike, it's an absolute pleasure.
I know and love the Skidstar mate but it's waaaaay too pricey so i'll pass.
I'm aiming now at the Raleigh Stowaway as i said before and then one more bike just one more otherwise my wife will be pissed and that's anything vintage with a top tube probably also Raleigh as well.
One more question mate, what's the story behind these Fluid Mars and Venus, why it's so rare to find them and why they don't make them anymore? if i'm not wrong i think i read somewhere that Fluid used to make these ones exclusively for Anaconda for a period of time and then no more? i'm glad that i own one.
Cheers mate and show your collection some day

[goribildo]

Some of that bracket of bike iirc had a funky wheel size... like 22" or something. You may need to source online when the time comes. Take careful note before you go to replace them - don't turf the originals before you've sourced the correct sized replacements!

There was a few similar models put out by other makers around the late 60s through mid 80s; they competed with the likes of the (non-folding) Raliegh 20 and I do recall some Indi 500 model as well.

I think they were just marketed as a sort of "compact" utility bike; but I reckon you could bet your bottom peso that most print ads etc portrayed them with women or girls on them.

true story : I remember picking up one up off a pile of junk on a hard waste collection to look at for some reason - and some cheeky little scallywag walking past with his mates yelled : "Hey! that's my Grandmas bike!"

Yeah i heard about the wheel size being kinda hard to find and well for ladies or not the bike is just amazing and yeah hahaha u got a funny story right there mate u know what my wife said when i showed her the bike today? "oh, looks like a bike for a little girl" hahahahaha man i hated her for a few hours
Thanks for your tips and advice mate and as i said above i'll aim to a top tube like a Raleigh or this great looking Malvern Star Touristar
Cheers

[Derny Driver]

One more question mate, what's the story behind these Fluid Mars and Venus, why it's so rare to find them and why they don't make them anymore? if i'm not wrong i think i read somewhere that Fluid used to make these ones exclusively for Anaconda for a period of time and then no more? i'm glad that i own one.
Cheers mate and show your collection some day

Your story of buying the bike reminds me of buying a car in my 20s. My brother and I were hotting up Datsuns and we found an old lady who lived locally who was selling a pristine rust free straight Datsun 1600 ...cheap. We couldnt believe our eyes when we saw it. We didnt even drive it cos we had a worked 2 litre motor at home ready to drop in it. She called it her "little blue boy" and made us promise we would take care of it as it was her pride and joy and she had owned it since new. Dont drive it too fast, be careful not to scratch it, look after the seats etc ...We paid her and couldnt get out of there quick enough before she changed her mind. 10 minutes later it was in our carport getting stripped and rebuilt with all the rally gear, wheels, suspension, new motor and gearbox, Recaro seats, racing harness, roll cage, aluminium bonnet and guards. "Look after my little blue boy" lol
Anyway I digress. Yes those Fluids look great, Ive never seen one in the flesh, I bought my gf an Electra Townie which has been great for the Blue Mile bike path, we often ride north on a Sunday morning, I will keep an eye out for the Family Star in full flight
Im actually thinking about displaying 5 or 6 of my bikes at the Ken Dinnerville race at Calderwood Christian School next month ... I have quite a lot of bikes which are not quite finished yet but I thought I may as well put a few of the finished ones there near the sign on and presentation just for people to look at while they are waiting before and after the race.

[goribildo]

One more question mate, what's the story behind these Fluid Mars and Venus, why it's so rare to find them and why they don't make them anymore? if i'm not wrong i think i read somewhere that Fluid used to make these ones exclusively for Anaconda for a period of time and then no more? i'm glad that i own one.
Cheers mate and show your collection some day

Your story of buying the bike reminds me of buying a car in my 20s. My brother and I were hotting up Datsuns and we found an old lady who lived locally who was selling a pristine rust free straight Datsun 1600 ...cheap. We couldnt believe our eyes when we saw it. We didnt even drive it cos we had a worked 2 litre motor at home ready to drop in it. She called it her "little blue boy" and made us promise we would take care of it as it was her pride and joy and she had owned it since new. Dont drive it too fast, be careful not to scratch it, look after the seats etc ...We paid her and couldnt get out of there quick enough before she changed her mind. 10 minutes later it was in our carport getting stripped and rebuilt with all the rally gear, wheels, suspension, new motor and gearbox, Recaro seats, racing harness, roll cage, aluminium bonnet and guards. "Look after my little blue boy" lol
Anyway I digress. Yes those Fluids look great, Ive never seen one in the flesh, I bought my gf an Electra Townie which has been great for the Blue Mile bike path, we often ride north on a Sunday morning, I will keep an eye out for the Family Star in full flight
Im actually thinking about displaying 5 or 6 of my bikes at the Ken Dinnerville race at Calderwood Christian School next month ... I have quite a lot of bikes which are not quite finished yet but I thought I may as well put a few of the finished ones there near the sign on and presentation just for people to look at while they are waiting before and after the race.

Yeah mate amazing car the Datsun 1600 and yes sometimes god is good and lets u find things like this and i didn't mention before but it happened to me too, i put my Fluid Mars for sale for a few days and a bloke offered me 400 for it (god was good with me a few months ago when i found an asian lady selling it for 50) i said yes ok when do u want to come and pick it up? he said tomorrow i said ok see u tomorrow... 10 mins after i found myself deleting the post, true story
I was in the pub with my mates a few weeks ago having some beers and some bloke parked next to us a beautiful yellow Moke we couldn't take our eyes off of it, we had a quick talk with the guy and he said gimme 15 grand now and it's yours and i'm being very generous...
Gotta stick to the cheaper yet beautiful things like bikes and speaking of bikes i found a beautiful vintage looking Papillionaire i heard this company has a great reputation, only problem is the bloke selling it is from around Sydney and right now i don't have a car and if i take the train it'll take me over 2 hours but man bike is gorgeous.
I also found a yellow 1974 Peugeot steel racing bike mate and i thought of u
Tell me about your bikes so i can google them

[Derny Driver]

Tell me about your bikes so i can google them

1930 SJH (Stanley James Hillsden) with Major Taylor stem and bars and inch pitch running gear
1940s Speedwell with wooden wheels
1940s Slim Ward satellite with cotter cranks and 5 speed Simplex gears. Airlite hubs, wing nuts, Weinmann rims and brakeset.
1950s Bismire track bike with Titan stem and bars
1960 Cinelli with Campag Gran Sport components, Ambrosio bars and stem, Ambrosio wheels
1960 no-name Italian track frame running full Campag gear including NOS Omega wheels and Cinelli pista bars and stem
1970s Blom with 6 speed Galli and Ambrosio wheels
1980s Lennie Rogers with Zeus gear, Titan stem and bars
1981 Royal Star - built by Ron Bates and Graham Seers, Hurstville Sydney. Ishiwata tubing. Everything is Campagnolo Gran Sport including headset, BB, seatpost, front and rear mechs, cranks, pedals, hubs ...campag toe clips and chainrings. 6 speed. Rims are Fiamme red label tubulars, handlebars are Fiamme Dallas, and a rare Fiamme stem.
1983 MIKI frame with a variety of Japanese components including a Nitto adjustable stem
1985 Eddy Merckx Panasonic running DuraAce AX everything with 8 speed Gipiemme wheels
1990s Faggin with 6 speed Galli and Campag Vento wheels
1990 Lotus Sport 110 monocoque copy running 10 speed Shimano and Xtreme Tri spoke wheels
1991 alloy Fausto Coppi (team Polti) running 8 speed Campag Athena / Chorus gear with Mavic Cosmic wheels. Coppi saddle.

[10speedsemiracer]

OH.
Can we have some pix of the Merckx Panasonic?

[goribildo]

Tell me about your bikes so i can google them

1930 SJH (Stanley James Hillsden) with Major Taylor stem and bars and inch pitch running gear
1940s Speedwell with wooden wheels
1940s Slim Ward satellite with cotter cranks and 5 speed Simplex gears. Airlite hubs, wing nuts, Weinmann rims and brakeset.
1950s Bismire track bike with Titan stem and bars
1960 Cinelli with Campag Gran Sport components, Ambrosio bars and stem, Ambrosio wheels
1960 no-name Italian track frame running full Campag gear including NOS Omega wheels and Cinelli pista bars and stem
1970s Blom with 6 speed Galli and Ambrosio wheels
1980s Lennie Rogers with Zeus gear, Titan stem and bars
1981 Royal Star - built by Ron Bates and Graham Seers, Hurstville Sydney. Ishiwata tubing. Everything is Campagnolo Gran Sport including headset, BB, seatpost, front and rear mechs, cranks, pedals, hubs ...campag toe clips and chainrings. 6 speed. Rims are Fiamme red label tubulars, handlebars are Fiamme Dallas, and a rare Fiamme stem.
1983 MIKI frame with a variety of Japanese components including a Nitto adjustable stem
1985 Eddy Merckx Panasonic running DuraAce AX everything with 8 speed Gipiemme wheels
1990s Faggin with 6 speed Galli and Campag Vento wheels
1990 Lotus Sport 110 monocoque copy running 10 speed Shimano and Xtreme Tri spoke wheels
1991 alloy Fausto Coppi (team Polti) running 8 speed Campag Athena / Chorus gear with Mavic Cosmic wheels. Coppi saddle.

Oh wow... u are a real collector mate respect
of all of those which one is your favorite? i know it's a tough question but let's see if u can answer

[Derny Driver]

Oh wow... u are a real collector mate respect
of all of those which one is your favorite? i know it's a tough question but let's see if u can answer

The Merckx rides beautifully but the AX brakes are awful. My favourite bike sits next to my bed and its the last thing i see before i go to sleep. Sweet dreams. The Coppi. Its also beautiful to ride.
Merckx is not quite finished ...waiting for bar tape and the right saddle. Will post photos in a couple of weeks time.

[goribildo]

Hi people, i love vintage bikes and i just got a Malvern star family star light blue in good condition, all original parts and even the bell still rings like in the good days, it rides like a dream, what a bike!, speeds are working perfectly, it has some rust of course but i won't touch it, i don't wanna ruin the patina, i just sprayed some wd40 and put it in the shade, front brakes are great but the ones on the back are wasted, didn't have a proper look at it but it sounds like they should be replaced.
Anyway my question here is: Is this amazing bike considered more for ladies? or it's unisex? i guess the model "family" star means that every member of a family can ride it , right?
The Apollo cruiser looks very similar almost like a twin and many consider it as a ladies bike...
I also own a Fluid Mars white and blue which i moded it a little by installing a front vintage light lamp, a front hook-on basket and a pannier bag and it looks a million dollars
I'm now after a Raleigh Stowaway for the collection
Thanks everybody and if u know of other beautiful vintage retro bikes please let me know.

Here are some pics of the bike, wanted to give it a nice clean and a few adjustments but it's bloody windy outside:












Note: I don't know if the saddle is original, i've seen same ones but blue colour and don't know about the blue grips but i can tell they're extremely comfy and haven't seen on other Malvern star bikes, kickstand is missing and don't know where i can find ones that fit this bike, stickers unfortunately are barely visible, tyres seem to be original if somebody can confirm please and despite all these bike as i said before rides like a dream

[Clydesdale Scot]

decals:
have a look at Cyclomondo's Malvern Star listing (scroll down)

[goribildo]

decals:
have a look at Cyclomondo's Malvern Star listing (scroll down)

I can see the family star there but can't find a way to order them... do u know how i can contact these people to order?
Thanks

[Bunged Knee]

decals:
have a look at Cyclomondo's Malvern Star listing (scroll down)

I can see the family star there but can't find a way to order them... do u know how i can contact these people to order?
Thanks

Here`s the contact info.

[goribildo]

decals:
have a look at Cyclomondo's Malvern Star listing (scroll down)

I can see the family star there but can't find a way to order them... do u know how i can contact these people to order?
Thanks

Here`s the contact info.

Thanks heaps mate