Tequila Joe

I have a Falcon Olympic from the early 70's (I think). I've been trying to ID the exact year of this bike for quite sometime. Anyone have any idea? It has a Reynolds 531 frame, Titlist shifters, Titlist FD & RD, Wienmann Rims & Brakes, Concor saddle and a Sugino crank.

This bike rides really nice, I've converted it to my commuter/touring bike.

Thanks
T.J.

el twe

Does it have a serial # anywhere?

suntreader

Nice looking bike. Any idea where it was made?

Tequila Joe

Yes it does, 17183 stamped below the BB.

T.J.

number6

Graphics and cranks place it at 1973. Has had a few upgrades. Seatpost, saddle, tires, probably derailleurs too. These bikes had generally longer top tubes than competitive machines for any given size. The geometry was by Ernie Clements, the bikes rode beyond their price for those who noticed. At this price point most customers would test ride a bike and the one in the lighter gear was the favorite. We would often let the customer in on the secret and they would ride them again, for those who did, the European frames would make a better showing.

Just ditch the black wall tires, look so Schwinn Varsity. Fine on a Varsity but this is not.

be seeing you

Tequila Joe

Yes, This bike was made in Lincolnshire England. This has stickers on the chainstays that say it was designed by Ernie Clements. This is also on the head badge that is riveted to the head tube. I heard that in the early 70's Falcon Cycles manufactured the first Eddie Merckx bikes before Eddie produced his own frames.

This Falcon was purchased third hand last summer. It sat collecting dust in my brother-in-laws basement for 20 years before I convinced him to sell it to me. Before he had it, it collected dust in the original owners basement for over 10 years. Needless to say, it is in pristine condition. It had the original Falcon tires that were hardly worn and still have the little rubber nibs on them. The brake pads are hard as rocks but judging from thier wear, I would say that this bike had no more than 200 miles on it.

Here are some more photos. Any insight on its age would be appreciated.

T.J.

Tequila Joe

Wow, I've been wondering for over 1 year how old this was. Thanks for the input!

This bike had the original gum wall tires when I got it but they were rock hard and cracking. It was difficult to find 27" tires as no one here seems to carry them anymore. I bought the first ones I found. Unfortunatly they were the black wall Specialized All Conditions. A good commuting/touring tire but I would have liked to keep the original look though...

Below is a picture of it the day it arrived with the gum wall Falcon tires and original pedals.

T.J.

Clayton

Although I'm not as knowledgeable as number6 I believe he's spot on.

I still use a 72 Falcon as my daily commuter. It was my first "10 speed" purchased in February of 1972.

Many of the components on yours are definitely upgraded. When I originally shopped for mine some friends convinced me that I would never be disappointed in the frame and that I could swap out the components as time and money allowed. They were right. It still yields a nice ride and the Brooks B17 that came on it is still the most comfortable saddle I've ever found.

Question? The image on my screen is not as clear as I would like. On your Falcon, do the seat stays appear to wrap around the front of the seatpost? If so then I would have to say that our frames are identical with the only difference being the graphics.

I'm certain that you will discover a compliant ride combined together with a bike that tracks very well even on a poor surface.

Good luck and enjoy

HereNT

I've been borrowing a red Falcon from my brother that has a picture of Eddie on the head tube and the seat tube, so it's probably true

number6

Falcon hat the Eddy Merckx brand license for England in the middle 70's. Unfortunately they were just Falcons with different decals, Falcon's rode well but they did not have the Eddy geometry or look. They could have at least used different lugs and raked the fork as seen on Eddy's bikes.

At the shop for which I worked we got some in, everyone felt it was brand engineering at work.

be seeing you

johno

One of the Falcon trademarks was the wraparound of the rear stays over the seat tube. On the touring models, it was a round tube bent over, on the racing models it was filleted into the seat tube.

I started my cycling career in college on a 1972 Falcon San Remo 76, their top of the line model. Bought it used from some kid who didn't know what it was. Sky blue paint, chromed lugs, all Campy NR. Excellent riding bikes. Sold it after leaving college, always regretted selling that bike.

Thanks to ebay, I now own a pair of 76's, one is mint, the other is under restoration. On the flats, my state of the art carbon framed bike isn't much faster, and doesn't ride nearly as smoothly. The 70's British steel frames are legendary for their ride quality.

Tequila Joe

Hey, Clayton,

Sorry for the delayed respoinse. I have not had any internet connection for the last 4 days as I am in Poland on a vacation/wedding/honeymoon with my Fiance'. I just managed to connect to the internet tonight and guess what I check first? Business email, no! Bike Forums!! Yes, I know, I'm sick an addicted but happy.

To answer your question, yes, the seat stays on my Falcon wrap around the seat tube so we must have essentiall ythe same bike. I agree with you, the ride of this bike is phenominal. It is very comforatble and not too sloppy in the BB. I've lusted after a Falcon ever since a fellow "Bus Boy" at the restaraunt I worked at got a used San Remo when I was 14.

Question; Some folks in this thread mentioned that my Falcon has had a few upgrades. What did your Falcon come spec'd with that is dofferent than the one I have? If anyone else can shed some light on this I would greatly approciate it.

Nastrovia!

T.J.

Clayton

Hey T.J. congrats on the vacation/wedding/honeymoon.

The commute in this morning on the Falcon was good as usual. I hope my Orbea will prove to be as durable as the Falcon has been.

In answer to your question, your original post listed the components as: Titlist shifters, Titlist FD & RD, Wienmann Rims & Brakes, Concor saddle and a Sugino crank.

Unfortunately I can't remember all of the components that were originally on my Falcon. But I'll give you what I do remember.
The shifters were and still are campagnolo. The derailleurs were both bottom of the line campy. I'm still using the same FD but the rear was changed.

My brakes and brake levers were Weinmann center pull units that have been replaced. I still have the originals.

I don't know who manufactured the rims but they were laced to Atom low flange hubs, the freewheel was also an Atom unit, (14,17,20,24,28). I still have the original wheelset but I don't use them any longer.

My original saddle was a Brooks B17 and I'm still using it.

I don't recall the manufacturer of the stem, bars or seat post; they were unremarkable and have been replaced.

Unfortunately I don't remember who manufactured the cranks, chain wheels or pedals as they bit the dust very early on (second month) and were replaced.

Hope this helps.

Enjoy the ride!

MKahrl

I bought a Falcon Olympic in May of 1978 with Shimano Titlist derailleurs and Sugino crankset so your bike may be original in that respect. It had Reynolds 531 plain gauge tubing and the wraparound seat stays. Cost $200 at the time and was placed above Black Diamond and below or equivalent to some models in the San Remo in their lineup. Very nice bike.

lowelldavis

How can I see the falcon bike pix?

big chainring 

Get in your time machine and set it for 2005. Thread is OLD.