Viscount bikes

Harnor
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Harnor » Mon Jul 16, 2012 10:19 pm

http://i1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj5 ... C_3324.jpg

I have uploaded my Viscount photos to Photobucket...I hope the link works! This is for the first of a series of photos.

Harnor
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Harnor » Tue Jul 17, 2012 7:50 pm


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find_bruce
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Viscount bikes

Postby find_bruce » Tue Jul 17, 2012 8:04 pm

Harnor wrote:http://i1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj5 ... C_3324.jpg

I have uploaded my Viscount photos to Photobucket...I hope the link works! This is for the first of a series of photos.
Image
nice

Harnor
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Harnor » Wed Jul 18, 2012 10:07 pm

Thanks for posting the photo for me!

The chrome forks in the photo are attached to help me with assembly. I am still undecided as to whether I will use them or other forks that I plan to spray black.

The only damage to the finish of the frame is some scratching, mostly to the black parts (which I will touch up) and fading to the emblems (which I will have to leave as is). I get the impression that the bike was used very little and most of the marks occured during storage. The strappping to the handlebars is immaculate, including the hoods.

My hope is to end up with a bike as impressive as Bendo's!

MarkusG
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby MarkusG » Wed Jul 25, 2012 7:37 am

I have one the Viscount models with the proprietary BB (ie. oversized smooth shell, circlips, no threads)
What i found worked quite well was one of Velo Orange's Grand Cru threadless BB's.
http://store.velo-orange.com/index.php/ ... ckets.html

It's just tad undersize when done up, but a single shim strip of the ever useful Coke can made it clamp quite well.
You just have to decide what length spindle you want before you buy the BB.

Mark.

Harnor
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Harnor » Wed Jul 25, 2012 6:13 pm

Thanks Mark, that link is just what I needed.

I had heard of Velo Orange, but had not seen their products before. I had been looking at press fit BBs but these look far sturdier and are not much different in price. They actually seem to be better than the original setup too. I have the original spindle so even know what size to get.

Today I received the derailleurs I bought on eBay - 1970s Shimano 600 front and rear. They are a little scuffed, but so is the bike! I just love the look of them. Cost me a massive $25 plus postage. I just have to get the matching downtube shifters.

I have a SunTour7 GT as a standby just in case.

I also bought some Sugino cranks - just have to see how good they are (and if they are genuine - they seemed to be too cheap).

Thanks to some invaluable advice, this bike is now coming together. I just have several other bikes to finish of before I can start assembly on the Viscount. Naturally, I will be adding further photos.

Scott

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ldrcycles
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby ldrcycles » Fri Oct 12, 2012 10:16 pm

Just saw this cool poster on ebay and thought i should share it. http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1975-Viscoun ... 1e72563d54" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

My Viscount project may finally be coming off the backburner, just deciding what to do with the build, i'm contemplating using a SunTour GPX groupset i have, as i like the feel of it.
"I must be rather keen on cycling"- Sir Hubert Opperman.

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Bendo
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Bendo » Thu Nov 15, 2012 11:40 pm

hi all, back again after a while. Just wanted to share my Aerospace Sport resto is done.

http://www.bicycles.net.au/forums/viewt ... 43#p881543

Harnor that's a nice looking Aerospace Pro you've got there. And some good parts to go on it. If they are indeed Viscount sealed bearing hubs they are worth restoring definitely. And you've even got one of the dust caps from your Viscount quill pedals! Those things fell off so regularly they've become pretty rare.

About the cast aluminium fork, check out Dr John's informative blog. He can help you identify whether they are the ones that you need to steer clear of or not. Most of these forks were fine BTW. Also lots of other good stuff about Viscount BBs, hubs and so on. http://viscount-lambert-bikes.blogspot. ... death.html

Here's another Viscount, their folder called, rather grandly, the "Spacemaster" <insert cheesy reverb effect>. SA 3-speed hub. Kickstand. Own mini-pump. Pletscher rack. Rides much nicer than my Raleigh Stow-Away.

Image

Image
folded on-board a Melbourne tram

Image

b :D

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ldrcycles
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby ldrcycles » Fri Nov 23, 2012 12:01 pm

Just got the first coat of colour on the Sebring, looking good already. I've just about made up my mind to use a 600 Arabesque group, unless something i like better comes along. The original wheels are still usable but a little rusty, however i have a set of matching rims and hubs so i'll just lace those up, i think that will be easier.
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ldrcycles
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby ldrcycles » Fri Nov 30, 2012 9:16 pm

2nd coat of colour on the Sebring, not going quite as well as i want but a bit of elbow grease should sort it out. Definitely going with the Arabesque group, so i'll start polishing that up soon.
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cycles gitane
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby cycles gitane » Wed Dec 12, 2012 9:21 pm

Found this ad in my bike folder.
Not sure of the year.

Image

cycles gitane - owner of a Viscount Sebring (blue)
There is NO room in the shed for the next bike! New shed rqd.

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ldrcycles
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby ldrcycles » Wed Dec 12, 2012 9:46 pm

I suspect it may be a bit late, but i would love to pay $2 for a Viscount racing cap!
"I must be rather keen on cycling"- Sir Hubert Opperman.

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Bendo
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Bendo » Wed Dec 12, 2012 11:36 pm

cycles gitane wrote:Found this ad in my bike folder.
Not sure of the year.

Image

cycles gitane - owner of a Viscount Sebring (blue)
Thanks Gitane, I've never seen a Viscount ad with the Spacemaster, much less an Aussie one. Cool!

b(endo) - Owner of a Victor (red), Sport (red) and Spacemaster (can I call it "champagne"?)

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cycles gitane
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby cycles gitane » Sat Jan 19, 2013 9:49 pm

Here is a scan of a sales brochure. Unsure of date.
Could be mid '70s?

Image

Image

cycles gitane
There is NO room in the shed for the next bike! New shed rqd.

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Bendo
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Bendo » Thu Feb 07, 2013 12:29 am

Can you post a link to where the scans are hosted? I'd like to see the RHS! :D

b

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cycles gitane
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby cycles gitane » Thu Feb 07, 2013 10:04 pm

Bendo wrote:Can you post a link to where the scans are hosted? I'd like to see the RHS! :D

b

Excuse my ignorance....... RHS???

cycles gitane
There is NO room in the shed for the next bike! New shed rqd.

Wal42
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Wal42 » Thu Feb 07, 2013 10:22 pm

Right hand side.

You know the right hand side of the page shown.

Jackinator_VA
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Jackinator_VA » Sat Feb 09, 2013 5:01 pm

Hey Bendo, you seem to be quite knowledgeable about Viscounts. Today I found a 'foldable' one that I couldn't resist buying. Damn, it just looks so cool! I had no idea about these types of bikes until today and have been led to believe they are rare and valuable. If I post a few pics up (when I can) could you help me identify the bike properly. I saw a picture of your foldable Viscount, pretty sure it's identical to that one, and in rideable condition as well. Let us know

GregB
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby GregB » Sun Feb 17, 2013 5:09 pm

I bought an Aerospace Pro back in 1976 and rode it for about 5 years around/through Sydney. We had a lot of adventures together, but never ever did the fork reveal it's hidden nature to me. We hit car doors, got caught in stormwater grates and more. I even rode from Sydney to Melbourne on it, via (insert drum roll) Jindabyne and Suggan Buggan. Now that was a road waiting for MTBs or Hybrids to be invented. I sold it in the early '80s and cried for days. It was a great bike.

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Bendo
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Bendo » Tue Feb 26, 2013 9:03 pm

Jackinator_VA wrote:Hey Bendo, you seem to be quite knowledgeable about Viscounts. Today I found a 'foldable' one that I couldn't resist buying. Damn, it just looks so cool! I had no idea about these types of bikes until today and have been led to believe they are rare and valuable. If I post a few pics up (when I can) could you help me identify the bike properly. I saw a picture of your foldable Viscount, pretty sure it's identical to that one, and in rideable condition as well. Let us know
Hey Jack, post em up, I'd love to see! The main thing that will identify if it's a Viscount folder is the folding mechanism (I'm assuming that all the decals are missing).

If you've got less that 10 posts you won't be able to host the pics on this forum. But if you've got them hosted somewhere else on the web like Picasa, just get them embed code (something ending in .jpg) and then put around it. b

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ldrcycles
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby ldrcycles » Sat Mar 02, 2013 10:45 pm

A Sebring on ebay for $100, looks pretty clean, except for the ugly cheap cranks.

[ebay]http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Viscount-Seb ... 3380441922[/ebay]


My own Sebring is still waiting to get finished off, i'll have time to do it soon...
"I must be rather keen on cycling"- Sir Hubert Opperman.

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Bendo
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Bendo » Sat Mar 23, 2013 3:40 pm

ldrcycles wrote:A Sebring on ebay for $100, looks pretty clean, except for the ugly cheap cranks.

[ebay]http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Viscount-Seb ... 3380441922[/ebay]


My own Sebring is still waiting to get finished off, i'll have time to do it soon...
Wow, the seller did well on that one! As you say, ugly crankset, dodgy front wheel, original tyres, crap saddle... Not a great buy for a $150. There's at least $300 worth of work needed on it to make it decent, as in just OK. Still, at that price I suppose it means the buyer will love it, which is the main thing.

I'm partly to blame for my participation in the CTC Forum's "Viscount bicycles!!!" thread, now in its 4th year and up to page 67! Anyone googling Viscounts is now finding that thread either before Sheldon's notorious and intemperate "death fork" warning, or at least a close second, and it's convincing them to buy... Should have kept our collective mouths shut! :,(

b

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Bendo
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby Bendo » Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:04 pm

My latest set-up, I've finally gone for "standard" drop bars on the VA Sport:

New set-up:

Image


and the old one:

Image

The reason I've been reluctant to use drop-bars is the great handling and control I get from the North Road bars. But I thought I would try drops just to see if the extra hand positions available meant anything to me over a period of time on the bike. I'd also been inspired by the many beautiful racing bikes in this book.

b

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ldrcycles
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby ldrcycles » Fri Apr 12, 2013 8:07 am

Looks good. My Sebring is still not finished, having trouble getting the paint to behave due to crummy weather.
"I must be rather keen on cycling"- Sir Hubert Opperman.

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WyvernRH
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Re: Viscount bikes

Postby WyvernRH » Fri Apr 12, 2013 10:39 am

Those are hellish deep drops! You might be better fitting a shallower model like a Cinelli Giro d'Italia or some sort of Randonner bars
Bendo wrote:My latest set-up, I've finally gone for "standard" drop bars on the VA Sport:

New set-up:

Image


b

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