Originally Posted by Poguemahone
"I know nothing about vintage bikes, but I came across this Magneet at a thrift store"
I've got a Magneet. Still have yet to do a thing with it. Interesting bike, mine has Campy shifters and mechs, nothing hi-end. Yours looks like Simplex from the shifters. What little I've been able to find indicates Magneet primarily made euro city bikes. They were absorbered by Batavus, a larger Dutch maker, around 1970, though Batavus manufactured bikes under the Magneet name at least until 1972. That is the whole extent of my knowledge on the Magneet.
here's what I know:
Magneet was established 1909 in Amsterdam by
Alexander Velleman and Abraham Gompert Verdoner.
they moved to Weesp, Netherlands after a fire.
They were one of the first Dutch framemakers
to offer a Cross frame (ca. 1935) (no not cyclocross, see below)
Up to this time they built mostly citybikes and workbikes.
In the late 30's they build a track frame for Cor Blekemolen
a well known professional. This helped Magneet
pioneer light touring and recreational bikes in the Netherlands.
During the 2nd world war Magneet(the company) was dismantled
by the Wermacht due to Verdoner's being Jewish, he goes into
hiding for the duration of WWII, his factory is converted to
produce Fokker aeroplanes.
Verdoner died in 1947, never returning to bicycle manufacturing.
The company moved into an old chocolate factory and set up
a modern bicycle manufacturing process.
In the 60's Magnet was the importer of Peugot work bikes.
Due to changes in the industry in the mid to late 60's
the firm merged with Batavus in 1969, by 1976 Magneet
no longer existed in any form.
That's all I have on Magneet, all in all a large
builder but not known for high end bikes.
If that one was mine I would keep it and not
use it as beater, its pretty unusual to say the least.
Below is copy of Advert from 1937. The frame on the
left is the cross frame, of which the most modern
form is the mixte.
Marty