The new light is installed on the "new", 1948 Baden-Württemberg Polizei Dienstfahrrad!
Not only is the new light installed, but I also finished up the new Identification Placard as well. Now the transformation is nearly complete. I am still holding out for an original Berko dynamo for the light. I guess I'll be surfing eBay for a while longer!
The new Identification Placard was completed last night, and promptly installed. It looks great and was exactly what I was shooting for. I love it when a project comes together so nicely.
The light mount looks great and is very robust and heavy duty, not like the modern bits that are floating around these days. Finding an old mount like this that was new, and never used, was a great stroke of luck. The elegant curves of the old style parts really give an installation like this the "right look"!
The Baden-Württemberg Polizei placard is based on a number of period dienstfahrrad "signs" that I have observed in old photographs, and not an exact reproduction based on an original (or maybe I just haven't found that original photo yet!).
I designed the layout and had the lettering, and Baden-Württemberg crest, professionally made on vinyl transfers. I contemplated hand painting them, but after a few "less than acceptable attempts", decided to go the modern route. I am glad I did! The bike looks great.
When the weather gets better, and I have the time, I'll be doing a full "photo shoot" of the bike, and will get those shots posted, but that's for another post.............. for now enjoy a few quick shots from yesterday.
As promised, here's the next treasure that I picked up for the Polizei Dienstfahrrad.
After years of looking, I finally found the perfect "oldtimer" light for the restoration! (The Germans actually call these old bikes Oldtimer Fahrrad's!).
This light is an original, never used, or mounted, Berko brand light from the 1930's. I spotted this on US eBay, and ended up getting it for an outstanding price! The seller said that he picked it up in France last year, so after sitting on a dusty shelf for years, it finally found it's way to the US, and into my happy hands.
This model of Berko light was made by the Berko-Werke company of Berlin. This particular model appears to have been manufactured from about 1929 until about 1939. It is the "classic truppenfahrrad" style of light used on the official German Military Truppenfahrrads of WW2. After this old boxy style fell out of fashion, the "bullet" housing lights appeared.
This light is marked "Importe' d'Allemagne", so I imagine this was imported to France, before France was invaded and occupied by Germany in 1939!
I located a scanned version of the French instructions for this light. The instructions date to the 1930's, and shows the light inside.
These lights are designed to use a 4.5 volt battery, or to be connected to a dynamo that ran off the front tire. The most common method was to wire it up to a dynamo. I would imagine that the battery operation was mostly saved for an emergency option when one's dynamo quit working.
The light has a heavy glass lens, and still has the original, frosted bulb inside.
On the back of the light, there are two knurled knobs to secure the two wires from the dynamo.
Between the knobs is a three-way switch: Battery - Off - Dynamo.
On the side there is another knurled knob that holds the hinged front tight when in use.
Inside there is a clip to hold the 4.5 volt battery, and a basic wire to switch arrangement. Pretty basic.
The light came with the original mounting plate attached.
I opted to remove the original plate-bracket, and mount the light on the Polizei Dienstfahrrad using a 1950's style, light mount (in keeping with the actual age of the bike). This light mounting arm is also a "new old stock" part made of heavy steel and chrome plated.
Until I find a period-correct dynamo for the light, I'll just have it mounted as a "battery light". There is always something else to hunt for!
I'll post a more comprehensive posting about the finished light mounting, in an upcoming blog post, so for now I'll just show off the "as found" light, before installation.
Here's a quick update on the continuing restoration and "updating" of the old "BGS" bike. (Quickly nearing the end of the "conversion" to a Polizei Dienstfahrrad).
As we saw in the last posting, I had located a "new" pump to mount on the frame. Now I have located and installed, a set of vintage "pump pegs", or as they are also known, pump mount brackets.
The pump pegs were made by the Cyclo company of England, and are marked Cyclo British Made.
They have a great vintage patina since they were made back in the late 1940's to 1960's. I would guess this particular set was made in the early 1950's, placing it exactly in the time period of my bike.
To mount the pump, I had to do a "period modification" to the pump, in order to give it some "spring tension" to hold it in place on the pegs.
I wound a light, short spring around the pump shaft, between the cylinder cap and wood handle. This allows the pump to be compressed enough to fit between the pegs, and then expand a slight amount to seat firmly on the pegs. I finished the spring with a light brushing of black enamel, so it has an appropriate "aged look.
The pump handle and end, were both indented, indicating that the pump was originally mounted on pegs, so the new Cyclo peg system is "period correct" and the pump fits perfectly!
Stay tuned for more updates in the upcoming posts......I've been busy in the Bunker Workshop, and have a few more Dienstfahrrad surprises to show off!
This past week has been a big week for new additions to the Polizei Dienstfahrrad, my 1948 German Police Service Bicycle.
I finally tracked down a suitable, vintage, and original, frame mounted tire pump, a new "stomp brake" pad, and even picked up a book that I've had my eye out for! It's been a good week in the Trupenfahrrad world.
Here in the US, it's tough to find authentic Trupenfahrrad parts. You can find them in Europe, but the shipping to the US often makes the deal, "not so great". So I was thrilled to locate a pump here in the good old USA! To make the deal even better, they had a new old stock, "stomp brake" pad! I contacted the seller, struck a deal and ordered them up. Now they're on the bench waiting for restoration and installation.
These old frame pumps were standard for nearly every Truppenfarrad, or Diensfahrrad, or as the German's call the civilian version an "Old Timer" Fahrrad.
These pumps were basically the same as the newer frame pumps that came along, and were widely adopted by most cyclists, in the 1960's, on up to the present day. But instead of modern, lightweight materials, they were old-school steel with a wood handle.
The valve stem fitting was set up for Presta or Woods valves.
This particular pump is complete, but in "restoreable condition". The leather cup inside is oil soaked, torn and rotted. So, until I find, or make, a new leather cup, it won't pump air.
The valve stem fitting needs a new rubber seal.
But, the very best thing about this particular pump, is the fact that it was once on an actual service bike of some sort! The seller said he picked it up in Germany and it was with a batch of similarly marked hand tools, and other old bike pumps. It appears that these came from some sort of government agency at one time.
The pump dates to the 1930's or 1940's, and has a wonderful patina. There are still some traces of the original black paint on the cylinder tube.
The wooden handle is marked with a burned-in brand of RWF, on two sides. I am working on tracking down what this stood for, but for now it adds a great overall look to the pump, and impression on the bike. If any of my readers have information about the "RWF" brand, or have an idea about it, please, let me know in the comments or by email. Thanks!
The ends of the pump have been dimpled, for mounting with a pin clamp on the frame. I have a few leads on some old steel pump mounts, but nothing firm yet.
The brake pad will replace the worn out pad that is currently installed on the bike (probably the original pad!). It should be a fairly straight forward change-out, but when you are dealing with 70+ year old parts, it often gets a bit complicated................
To top off my score on the bike parts, I also found a new copy of the book Radfahrschwadronen. This book covers the WW2 German issued Truppenfahrrad's and is filled with great photos out of the original military manuals, field photos, and other great details. There is just one hitch though, it's in German! Time to brush up on my German skills again!
I also want to add that I recently picked up an original front fender ornament from the same parts seller. The ornament is an original 1930's to 1940's, Victoria Bicycle Company ornament (German). The bike had the original base from an old ornament that was still bolted in place, but the original main part had long since snapped off and disappeared. Now I have a classic, and complete look, for the bike. One step closer to getting the bike back in its original Polizei configuration. (The bike is an original 1948 Dienstfahrrad, for those of you who don't know).
An now that we've reaquainted ourselves with the old "Fahrrad", let's take a closer look at that old pump and pad!
