Originally Posted by
T-Mar
I believe that he was talking about the parts that are normally chrome plated being black. That was a characteristic of World War II era bicycles.Eliminating the chrome reduced the reflectivity and consequently the visibility, while saving the chromium for the war effort. Of course, it could also be a case of repaint over rusty chrome.
It may well have been different on your side of the pond, but here in Holland bicycles were black before WWII. Really black. Including rims, spokes, seat posts, bars, the lot.
