|
|
Post by jeffh on Aug 15, 2016 19:50:27 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by velocipete on Aug 16, 2016 6:22:06 GMT
Nice bike,and the tow path is excellant compared with some I've riden in England.
Cheers,
Pete.
|
|
Jem
Viscount
?
Posts: 3,390 
|
Post by Jem on Aug 16, 2016 9:06:36 GMT
I like a background story! It brings the bike alive.
Great pics too - Loving the type face and design on that sign!
|
|
|
|
Post by sprockit on Aug 17, 2016 10:19:10 GMT
Lots of canal towpath riding is done on Viscounts, and I do quite a bit myself.
That path looks positively motorway-ish compared to the section between Hatton and Lapworth (in England) that I rode with RMW at DFR4, where the path was perhaps five or six feet wide but was so overgrown that the worn track was only the width of a tyre, and we were thankful of Viscount's cyclo-cross heritage!
Not done the towpath through Accrington though - last time I rode on the Leeds & Liverpool canal I arrived in Burnley and went in the opposite direction. Accrington is only about 15 miles from me, but to get there wholly on canal towpaths would be a trip of at least 60 miles!
Great to see you've re-found your bike - keep it rolling!
|
|
|
|
Post by jeffh on Aug 18, 2016 19:35:00 GMT
As people above have said it's a great path, smoother and flatter than most roads. The only downside of that is that it attracts the mountain bike fraternity some of whom must be travelling at speeds in excess of 30 mph. With the wide handlebars you basically hold your breath as they whizz past you . With my narrower bars it makes slow speed maneuvering a bit wobbly and one false move and you're in trouble. Thanks for the comments.
|
|
|
|
Post by busaste on Aug 24, 2016 17:51:57 GMT
I have one of those!! A bit of an 'end of an era' bike for the VA Sport (sniff...). Here are a few pics of mine: ![]() ![]()   I've managed to keep it original even down to the bar tape, hard saddle, shortie guards, pump and tyres! If I remember right, the VA Sport was about £100 in 1979. I can still recall drooling over a red VA Sport in Harry Hall Cycles in Manchester around November 1978. Jeff, where you say "I couldn’t financially stretch to a complete Reynolds 531 framed bike" my answer would be "don't worry!" as you got better for less money. Your reference to Reynolds 531 tubing reminded me of a point I have made before (but can't remember where) about the frame tubing used for Viscount's 'Aerospace' frames. The tubing used was 'Phoenix 1027' which despite having a thinner wall section than 531 was stronger. To me, this was an amazing achievement by Phoenix Tube Co. which, within the UK cycling community, has never got the recognition (or even acceptance) that it deserved. An Aerospace frame will always be lighter and stronger than an equivalent sized lugged frame made with plain guage Reynolds 531. That may upset the traditionalists out there but please don't shoot me - I'm just the messenger. When I met the former head of quality control at the Trusty Bilston factory he remarked that even to this day he was still impressed by how much effort it took to destroy an Aerospace frame, especially at the joints which could easily survive holding over 10,000 pounds in weight. The slatted roller test which was developed to reassure the USA market - a bike was fixed to two rotating drums 'surfaced' with wood slats which it ran over none stop till it disintegrated - would wreck a 531 framed bike (I'll not mention the competitor's name for fear of legal action!  ) in less than 24 hours whereas an Aerospace bike would just shrug it off and keep going. These were not special test mules either. They were bikes randomly plucked straight off Trusty's production line. Not bad, eh?! Who needs Reynolds 531 when you have got Phoenix 1027? |
|
|
|
Post by jeffh on Sept 4, 2016 21:54:26 GMT
Hi - Wow that is just how I remember the bike when I got it home, right down to the short mudguards and handlebar tape. That's a very interesting piece of information re Reynolds 531. I remember riding a friend's bike which was 531 and it didn't feel anywhere near as light and smooth. To that day I had always thought if I'd stretched myself I might have got a better bike, that feeling of getting a car that wasn't the deluxe version and always regretting it. This piece of technical information is more to confirm the feeling that I originally did make the right choice for less money. Many Thanks.
|
|
|
|
Post by kickstandman on Sept 5, 2016 4:01:33 GMT
Undoubtedly, we knew Busaste knew his stuff; but this was an amazing read. I'd urge one to take a minute or two to note this.
|
|
bob
Viscount
Posts: 1
|
Post by bob on Sept 5, 2016 20:55:08 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by velocipete on Sept 6, 2016 6:25:46 GMT
Nice bike bob. Welcome. Are you UK based?
Cheers,
Pete.
|
|
|
|
Post by cusqueno on Sept 6, 2016 11:56:04 GMT
Nice bike. On Flickr, you might like to take a look at the Viscount (& Lambert & Trusty) Group and perhaps join and post your Viscount pictures there. I can't invite you to the group as your pictures on Flickr aren't public. |
|
rmw
Viscount
Posts: 143 
|
Post by rmw on Oct 16, 2016 16:28:27 GMT
Mine is May 1978 and very similar. It was bought from Thomas Piper cycle shop in Edinburgh, and like Bob's, there is no braze on pump pegs and it had the aerospace technical information sticker. Technically challenged at the mo, the board won't let me upload and I have just locked myself out of my flickr account. It cost £115, with an extra £10 to replace the shortie guards with full length Bluemel Olympics. It had a respray in 1999, so no longer has chrome forks (they were rusty). I hadn't really realised the Viscount had such good off-road credentials when I rode (pushed) it over the Cauldstane Slap to Carlops. You can see what it look like now in DFR pictures.
|
|
) in less than 24 hours whereas an Aerospace bike would just shrug it off and keep going. These were not special test mules either. They were bikes randomly plucked straight off Trusty's production line. Not bad, eh?!
