So I was garage saling and noticed a lady having alot of antiques....practically all she was selling. She asked what I might be looking for and I said, "old neglected and beat-up 10 speed bikes". She said I have a couple to get rid of. One is Italian (yay) and the other is Austrian. She asked for my phone number and said she will call me later on after the sale.

What Austrian companies made 10sp bikes? According to the lady it's a company that also produced motorized bicycles. She bought the 10sp back in '72.

Puch made the Ted Williams Free Spirit around that time.........a decent 531 frameset

The same ones sold by Sears?? I thought those were gaspipe specials and heavier than Schwinns.

Austrian Five Speed that I passed on to another fellow recently...

Sears bikes were good quality stuff until 72 or so. Mine was easily as good as a Raleigh Sports, and it wasn't the best bike they made. I've got other Puch bikes which are excellent bikes...chrome-moly frames, nice rims, etc.

How do you pronounce, "Puch"?

-pooch
-puck
-puke
-?

I've heard both "puck" and "pook" from different sources .. both were involved with the line back in the '70's

Scott

Thanx, Scott. If this is the Austrian bike she is talking about I'd like to be able to say it right.

Here's a great history of Puch/Austro Daimler, it's a long, dark history but worth the read:

https://www.company7.com/bosendorfer/ADbicycle.html

Scott

Yes, they made one for Sears and Roebuck Company.........easily indentifiable by the puke yellow color, Reynolds 531 decals on the seat tube and forks, shimano dropouts and integrated derailluer hanger. I have had a couple pass through my hands, neither was my size. People sometimes try to hide the fact that they are Free Spirit brand by removing the headbadge and the lettering on the top tube.

Puch also made many of the Allstate motorcycles which Sears sold during the 50's and 60's...excellent workmanship, but a dated design and resulting low performance for a given displacement.

Rhymes with "look".

It's pronouced "pook."

Actually, the "ch" is not quite a 'k' sound, but it's not the gutteral sound that you hear from Hebrew. It's in between. It's hard enough for English speakers to make the sound, so using a 'k' sound in its place is close enough.

So in that case, it's pronounced "pook."

Be ready for a nice surprise with these, they are good bikes. I always enjoyed the twist, good ol' American made Sears offering" Made in Austria."

I love the ride with these, hope she has the Ted William s for you to decide on.

3SS

And the "oo" isn't pronounced like "book" but like "boot."

I remember those.

They also made mopeds.

Back to the opening question, A-D-P of Graz made about 100K bicycles / year at its peak, whereas **** Cap's Vienna-based company, which is now run by his son, Harald, made about 5K / year. I have had the privilege of owning three ca. 1960 Capo bicycles, two of which survive and hang in my garage. One is waiting for a rear axle, the other, a major restoration.

Ed: What's with the ****? The guy has a very common German first name which begins and ends with O and sounds similar to the American pronunciation of "auto."

Weird. Must be a name that's also an offensive term in some country on this planet.

Thanx for the additional info. I hope she calls back, sure would like to know what the Italian bike is. Hmmm.

I've been bleeped for that one before too. I don't get it.

Austro Daimler is the first that comes to mind for austrian bikes. Keep your fingers crossed for a Vent Noir or a Super Leicht.

Or better still an Ultima.

Scott

https://classicrendezvous.com lists only two Austrian marques, Austro-Daimler (SDP) and Capo, but I am sure there were others. These were probably the only ones exported to the U.S. Before 1990 I assumed that SDP and Capo were part of the same company, after a friend in the bicycle lubricant business saw my first Capo in 1974 and said, "A Capo -- That was the top of the Steyr-Puch line." I suspect O tto Cap targeted SDP dealerships when he made his limited marketing push into California in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

I have a couple of the Ted Williams Sears 531 bikes, both unoriginal, 1 a single speed. They're crude, but ok bikes, considering.

And my Capo, built from a rough bare frame:

I had no idea Capo was a Steyr-Daimler-Puch brand. I just figured based on the name and pronunciation that it was French.

Now I'm wondering if the pronunciation I was told was correct is incorrect. German would have you pronounce 'Capo' with a hard "K" sound, rather than the soft "Sch" sound I was told was correct.