Pedaling Peddler Sharpens Scissors
Both transportation and power supply for his work are furnished by the bicycle of the British scissors grinder pictured at the left. For the rear wheel of the bicycle that rolls this sharp-witted grinder from house to house in search of jobs also whirls the grinding wheels on a shaft mounted on the handlebars. A belt connects shaft and rear wheel.
I don’t know how well this worked, but I love the idea of just tacking an engine onto the side of the wheel.
Bike Power Unit will convert any bicycle into an honest-to-goodness motor bike in 15 minutes. It attaches to the front wheel as shown. Its single-cylinder, three-horsepower air-cooled engine provides 100 miles to a gallon. Fuel tank is at top. American Brake Shoe, Rochester, N. Y.
Amphibian Bicycle Can Travel on Land or Water
A hybrid among vehicles, an amphibian bicycle that can travel on land or water, was demonstrated by its French inventor at a recent Paris exposition. Its wheels are hollow, bulbous floats that, with the aid of four smaller globes on outriggers, sustain it in the water. All of the floats revolve freely like wheels, resulting in a minimum of drag. When the rider pedals across the water, fins on the rear wheel serve as paddles to drive the machine forward. For a ride on dry land, the outriggers supporting the outer floats may be folded up clear of the ground. Proof that the floats would be sufficiently buoyant to support the rider was given when the inventor navigated his device, without difficulty, across a large swimming pool.
This bike seems like it’s a little more complicated than it needs to be.
Supergeared French Bike Gives Cyclist Choice of Several Speeds
There’s a weird assortment of sprockets and chains incorporated into a supergeared bicycle invented in France. The chains appear to run at random all over the framework of the bicycle, but the arrangement gives the rider a choice of several gears. The bicycle has two-wheel brakes.
That’s actually a pretty cool looking bike.
Odd Bicycle Made from Bed
An English comedian recently entertained crowds at a cycling meet by riding the odd bicycle shown above. The frame of the curious wheel was made from the head of an old iron bed, to which old bicycle parts were added.
The Bicycle Comes Back
In amazing revival of fad of the nineties
By John E. Lodge
THE bicycle is back. Four million Americans now pedal along streets and highways. And, last year, factories in the United States turned out 750,000 machines, nearly equaling the peak production of the gay nineties. News items from all parts of the country tell the story of this dramatic boom in popularity.
In Chicago, Ill., for instance, 165,000 persons recently signed a petition asking for cycling paths to be constructed in the city parks. In Washington, D. C, a huge crowd of enthusiastic spectators, last winter, braved frigid winds for hours to watch an amateur bike race. From coast to coast, cycling clubs are i springing up. The veteran League of American Wheelmen has come back to life. The Amateur Bicycle League of America has approximately ninety affiliated clubs; the Century Road Club, promoting amateur races, has twenty-five or thirty, and there are upwards of 300 unassociated clubs in the country.
Work Capacity of Athlete Measured in Bike Test
How much work can an athlete turn out, and what does it cost him in oxygen consumption and heart effort? A group of Stanford University athletes has set out to measure their work-output capacity and “fuel” consumption while pedaling a test bicycle. The driving sprocket of the “bike” is connected to a dynamometer which translates leg effort into horsepower. Over the subject’s head is placed a copper helmet into which measured air is pumped, then exhausted air from the lungs is piped away to be measured for oxygen depletion and production of carbon dioxide.
Boys Build “Pumpmobile”
TWO young inventors in Dobbs Ferry, N. Y., combined their resources, consisting of half of a bicycle and a four-wheeled coaster wagon, to produce a novel vehicle which they call a “pumpmobile.” The fork of the bicycle was mounted on the rear of the coaster wagon, locomotion for the combination vehicle being secured by pedaling the bike’s one wheel.
Motor Unit Runs Bike or Mower
Powered by a 1-1/2-hp. engine, a two-wheeled unit designed and built by William Lusk of Cicero, Ill., can be readily attached to a bicycle, lawn mower, or scooter. Small pneumatic wheels carry its 200-lb. weight without marking soft turf and give ample traction for cutting heavy grass. Used on the highway as a scooter or bike motor, the unit delivers better than 25 m.p.h.
Lusk used a 1/8″ steel plate as a combined platform and chassis. The axle is a 5/8″ steel shaft running in ball bearings, with a small over-riding clutch at each wheel to give differential action. Power is transmitted by a pair of V-belts from the engine to a 7-to-l gearbox taken from a washing machine. A movable idler acts as the main clutch. By using V-belt pulleys of different diameters, Lusk changes the effective gear ratio to suit the job the unit is doing.
Eccentric Cycles
BIZARRE bikes are back! In bicycling’s early days, granddaddy went wild over eccentric cycles. Then, bike tastes leveled off. But the comeback of the bicycle industry has changed things.
In 1948, almost three million bikes (eccentric and otherwise) were turned out. Currently, the U. S. owns 14 million cycles - a fifth of the world’s total. Even exclusive Skidmore College bowed to the trend and introduced a course in Bi-Psychology!
So, purloin a peek at the two-wheelers on these pages and you’ll begin to realize how far the fad has gone since you last looked.
Bike Side Car for Baby Passenger
AT A rally of bicycling enthusiasts held recently at Hedgerly, Buckinghamshire, England, a novel bicycle side car was demonstrated which makes it possible for parents to take along their infant offspring when they go for a ride in the country. This side car, shown above, is equipped with a single bike wheel, has a bed-shaped body, and is attached to the bike frame with a metal rod.
Moving Reflectors Protect Riders
MOVING reflectors mounted on bicycle pedals provide a conspicuous warning to motorists of the rider ahead. They are easier to see than the stationary type, the flashing disks attracting immediate attention. They are the invention of an English bus driver.
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