General Cycling Discussion - Crazy bike designs

Like crazy, one-of-a-kind bike designs? Check these out:

http://www.smithsonianmag.si.edu/smithsonian/issues96/sep96/bikes.html

I'd love to take this one for a spin:

http://www.smithsonianmag.si.edu/smithsonian/issues96/sep96/images/circular.jpg

I have personally seen a frame that was epoxied with the standard, hardware store variety junk. It was a mix of many broken frames. The guy cut good pieces from each and glued them together using hose clamps as back-up. Imagine a 260lb. guy trying to ride a pieced together contraption from rejected Cannondale frames. I dubbed it the "Frankendale". He was so bent on riding it that we worried for his safety (& ours!!) so we distracted him, took the whole bike and threw it into a far away dumpster, never to be seen again. We explained to him that it was for his own good and that someday he would understand and thank us.

Wow, the trike is HUGE! :D Quite a few unique bikes there, they would all be fun to own.

http://www.dclxvi.org/chunk/ ahows a lot of unusual bikes cobbled together by welding pieces of other bikes together.

In Chicago, there's a small niche of people who do similar things. These bikes are best ridden at a leisurely pace, so that if the bike falls apart on you mid-ride, you don't get into a serious accident.

I would suggest that you check out the Bicycle Museum of America in New Bremen, Ohio. They have many old and not so old bikes, and a lot of other related items. There are some pictures on their website:

http://www.bicyclemuseum.com/Html/main.html

I've been there and throughly enjoyed it. I believe any serious cyclist would think a trip there worthwhile.

Ken

Also have a look at our Vintage Bicycle Picture database.
Currently 583 pictures and growing:

http://oldroads.com/pic_query.asp