The Flying Pigeon Project

Oldest Forever

Recently at Panjiayuan I captured this photo of a head badge I didn't recognize. Later I was to find out it the bike is a Yongjiu, which is to say, a Forever. This may indeed be the oldest Forever I have yet seen. The frame and the lugs do not bear any resemblance to later Forevers. So, it may therefore date from before the mid 1950's. At that time, all the Chinese makes rationalized on the BSC standard and produced bikes with parts which, while not identical, were often interchangeable.

This Forever, however is different. The lugging pattern seems more similar to a period made Fuji. This would not be odd at all. Before the 1950's bikes were, of course, made in China. But they were built to a strange melange of standards. Some used British or Continental European standards, others Japanese. You can see this in the older examples of both Red Flag and Shuang Xi bicycles where the fender profiles emulated Japanese roadsters.

Even the granddaddy Flying Pigeon factory started as a Japanese enterprise, during the 1930s.

So what we may have here is a genuine survivor that is living up to the name Forever.
 

SOLD! Forever Randonneur

 
It seems some people have been keeping count. As you may have realized, I had at one point 4 bicycles.

1. My Flying Pigeon Light Roadster

2. My 1990's Forever City Bike

3. "The Little Blue Hat" Forever delivery bike

4. 1980s Forever Randonneur

#1 is now in a shipping container headed over seas

#2 and #3 were found pleasant new homes with husband and wife expats.

But what about #4.I suppose I couldhave shipped this too, but the reality was tht the frame proved to be too tall for me. So a few weeks aback I rode it out to Beixinqiao and sold it to one of the pawn shops there.

I went back the next day to check on it because I missed it so much (sob, sob). If anyone is interested it is now priced at 240 RMB. The shop is located just south of the south west exit to the Beixinqiao subway stop. Maybe it is still there.

Under New Ownership

Two of my bikes have found new homes.

Both my 1990's Yongjiu lightweight city bike, and it's diametric opposite, the super-robust, Little Blue Hat delivery bike have been sold. Claire Markgraf and Judah Sueker are the proud new owners. 

Claire and Judah pose with their bikes in front of the Sanlitun Village. An ultra-modern shopping area in downtown Beijing. Quite the contrast, but China has many such contrasts these days.  May they be served long and well by these two classic steeds. 

Stick a Fork in it....

When I first bought The Little Blue Hat, my impulse buy used delivery bike, it had a number of problems. Like a rear lock which could not be detached from the bike. This kept me from riding it on the spot. The boss of the Little Blue Hat delivery service was trying to tell me that something else was broken...as I soon found out, it was the front fork! After the lock was removed I soon found I couldn't keep the bike straight...or turn for that matter. Disappointment.

This, my friends, is what happens to delivery bikes that live a hard life...and in Beijing they all do. And this is why they are eventually put out to pasture. Notice that not only the rear tines on the fork are snapped but also the front tines are cracked. Now as you might imagine, this fork is HEAVY, and very, very strong. It's the kind of massive, blunt object that Col. Mustard might encounter in the Drawing Room. What did this guy stick his fork into that broke it? Nevermind, I can only guess...

 

Forever Rando (The most picture intense post yet!)

I could easily file this under score of the week, but I'll thik you'll agree it needs to be treated more in depth than most of my "Score" posts. 

Let's start, back in the 1980's....yeah...that's a good time to start. Back in the 80's most of the big Chinese bike manufactures realized that people wanted something else besides somber black roadsters. So they began manufacturing a variety of bikes.

One of these new types would be recognized in France as a "Randonneur" or a touring bike. Basically a lightweight 10 speed with racks and full mudguards, usually polished stainless or aluminum. These are the bikes made famous in France during the post war era and are synonymous with great names like Huret and Simplex.

I have seen a few of this type around Beijing. They are usually Wu Yang and occasionally Forevers. Truthfully they are not really Randos as just about nobody in China does bicycle touring. I think you can call them more of an "Urban Lightweight", but I'll call them a Rando anyway.

This morning at Panjiayuan, what should I see?  This Forever Rando.