Mr IGH

Well, you did say, "almost". Come on, have you ever seen a Flying Pigeon? People spend obscene amounts of money on all sorts of stupid stuff (watches, booze, cars, drug, etc). If you tried to build something close, it'd be $1000 pretty quickly. So maybe it's a little overpriced, but not for it's target market. BTW, Enron and Madoff are historic, kinda of a stretch to say Pasley is "almost" in the same league, doncha think?

I_bRAD

I've worked on flying pigeons before, they're utter and complete garbage. The saddle on the pashley is worth 200 by itself.

Mos6502

What's wrong with them? I have not seen one in person, but I have seen one of the Indian roadsters, not sure if they are really comparable, but it seemed perfectly serviceable to me.

BTW: I picked this up for $35, seems a relatively good deal to me.

Mr IGH

with all your background on the subject, I'd say you're a perfect internet expert

Mos6502

Because asking for information implies I am an expert? 6__ 9

I'd honestly like to know, from somebody who has worked on one, what about the Flying Pigeons is bad.

bigvegan

Basically, both the Pashley and the Flying Pigeon are based on the old British Roadster style of bikes. In Pashley's case, despite being overpriced and grossly overweight (it's the 47lb thing that kills it for me, but maybe that's because I don't live on the ground floor), they are very well constructed bikes, made by hand in Shakespeare's hometown of Stratford upon Avon, by a company that's been in existence since 1926.

The Flying Pigeon, on the other hand, is a cheap Chinese knockoff of the 1949 Raleigh Popular, with very few of the improvements that have been made over the last 60 years included. Cottered cranks, rod-activated brakes, marginal build quality etc., etc. etc. Basically, think of everything makes fun of about Wally World bikes, and then subtract any inclusions of modern technology, and you'll get the idea.

If you want a roadster style bike for a minimal cash outlay, it's an OK choice. If you want heritage and something ready to ride, the Pashley's hard to beat. If you want a cool classic townie / roadster style bike that weighs a third less, and costs a third less (or more, depending on which features are essential) than the Pashley, your best bet is to start with a well made steel road bike, and do a build up yourself.

It all depends on what you're looking for.

macteacher

And on that note, im off to get my Pashley

xray1978

Just get the Pashley if you want it. There is no way compare a Pigeon to a Pashley except for looks, at a distance.

A friends Flying Pigeon I rode had some issue with the head tube not being perfectly round, oblong somehow or perhaps the bearings were crap. Either way it steered "funny". The wheels were steel, which does not bother me, as I rode steel rims for years; however, these were not close to being round and was really noticeable when the brakes were applied. Not that the brakes worked too well any way.

Keep in mind this was on a brand new bike ordered off ebay, assembled by a bike shop.

The thing is a rattle trap. My friend has bits and pieces always falling off of it or something breaking.


The Pashley comes with alloy wheels, a brooks saddle, lights, a dynamo hub for lights, a 3 or 5 speed IGH, brakes that actually work, I would assume good tires, it probably doesn't rust at the first sighting of rain, Ect, ECT.

I am not saying that the Pashley is cheap but, given the the exchange rate, customs, and how it is equipped it is not a bad deal if you keep those facts in mind. And that it is the only British made roadster in current production is pretty cool too. Which, in my opinion, is worth something in and of itself.

Mos6502

Unfortunately, that's just the reality of rod brakes. The wheels being even slightly out of true makes brakes ineffective, you run into the same deal on a well constructed Raleigh DL-1.

On the other hand the Pashley has drum brakes front and rear - which is probably overkill - and probably one of the reasons it weighs well over 40lbs.

You could get an old Raleigh Sports, and do better than either in most regards, especially concerning price.

bigvegan

ENJOY IT! Post up and tell us how great it is!

gna

Did you get it? How heavy is it?

macteacher

<sigh>...YES..I did indeed pick it up. I have just been waiting to make a proper post with pictures. There are tons of reviews of other pashley bikes (typically the step through ones) but there really are no hard review of the sovereign. I was going to do it today, but the pictures I took were with my phone and they were blurry. Tomorrow i'll use my proper camera and it should be sunny, so the pictures should be good. I also haven't had the chance to really take her out for a ride....hence why I haven't made a post yet.

To answer your question, she does weigh in at about 47 lbs. So she is certainly not a light bike. I do have some complaints with her..but I will address those in my upcoming post (probably tomorrow evening or Thursday Morning).

I'll make a new thread for it.

Cheers

bigvegan

Congratulations! It always takes a while to get a bike properly dialed in, so I'm sure you'll be fine once you get it set up.

mconlonx

Congrats on the new Sovereign!

Hate to jack roadster thread, but I just stumbled onto these beauties.

Yowza:



Guv'nor Plus Four

The Guv'nor Plus Four will feature brass plated lugs, a Sachs Duomatic rear hub and Speed Drive front chain wheel (providing the four gears the title alludes to). Brooks leather bar tape and B17 titanium railed honey saddle finish the classic look. A limited run of 50 Plus Fours will be made.

NB - ALL 50 GUV'NOR PLUS FOUR'S HAVE NOW BEEN SOLD [Dang]

SRP : £1495.00 [Double-Dang]






Pashley returns to the Club
October 15, 2009

Pashley is re-introducing its Clubman range after 75 years. Based on the classical elements of its 1930s predecessor, today’s Pashley Clubman offers the same pure riding experience.

Built in Pashley’s factory in Stratford-upon-Avon, Clubman frames, in 20″, 22″ and 24″, are constructed traditionally with Reynolds 531 butted steel tubes brazed into lugs. Frame geometries are unashamedly classic and comfortable, allowing them to be fully at ease with all riding styles, from the energetic to the leisurely.

The ‘urban’ Clubman gives the street rider a simple, reliable bike for everyday use. The specification offers a choice of minimal maintenance transmissions from Sturmey-Archer: the S3X-3 speed fixed gear [awesomeness!], the SRC3-3 speed with coaster brake, or the latest S2C-2 speed kickshift with coaster brake [WOAH, WTF?!? New S-A 2sp kickback hub!!!] (this hub having the advantages of needing no control cables for brake and gear, so no adjustment is required). All versions use a maintenance-free Sturmey-Archer drum brake in the front wheel, for effective all-weather braking.

A special-edition ‘urban’ Clubman (shown above) was displayed at the London Cycle Show at Earl’s Court. This edition is equipped with the S3X-3 speed fixed gear, a classic, beautiful Miche Supertype crankset, and a Brooks Swift with titanium frame.

The ‘country’ Clubman reflects on the era when one bike would be used for many purposes – club cyclists would put mudguards and saddlebags on their bikes to go touring, strip all accessories off for the weekly club time trial, and ride to work in between. With generous clearances under its centrepull brakes, this Clubman is equipped with the new Sturmey-Archer five speed ‘wide ratio’ gear, giving a typical gear range of 35-90″. Mudguards will be fitted as standard, as will a Brooks leather saddle. The frame is fitted with braze-ons for bottles, a pump and a rear carrier.

The Clubman range of models and fittings will be available from Spring 2010. [...and will be way too expensive for mconlonx...]

gna

Looking forward to it. I was curious about the weight, as a gentleman in another group I belong to mentioned his girlfriend has one, and she has trouble carrying it up and down the stairs from her apartment. I believe he said it weighed "eleventy thousand pounds," and described it as having "planet-crushing weight." Pretty funny, but apparently she LOVES the bike.

TenorClef

Just to comment on the Pashley Roadster Sovereign. I bought one a little while ago and would have to say its a fantastic bicycle. Its a pity they dropped the rod breaks though for the cable ones.

Sixty Fiver

The drum brakes are superior to rod brakes as they offer consistent performance in all kinds of weather and most riders don't have a clue as to how to keep their rod brakes working at peak efficiency.

The Guv'nor has never really done it for me although that Clubman makes me feel all warm and fuzzy as I have two vintage club bikes and appreciate their virtues immensely.

Just built this one (it used to be a roadster)... my back won't let me ride a roadster for any period of time so I am stuck with these sportier versions.



There still may be a Pashley in the works as The Girl loves her roadsters.

AdamDZ

The sweat issue is resolved by riding slowly, very slowly

TenorClef

The Pashley doesn't seem that much heavier to me than your typical mountain bike, not that that's really an issue for me. I bought the 26" wheel version as seen in the attachment. I figured it was a better choice given that i have a 29" inside leg, I probably could have got away with the 28" wheel version but decided to hedge my bets on the 26" as its a lot easier to buy replacement tyres locally. Great ride at any rate and it gets lots of looks from people.

electrik

If the pashley weighs 46lbs, it weighs almost double what an XC MTB would. In general, mountain bikes are to be had from 24-30lbs.

tjspiel

46 lbs. ?

If you want a vintage looking road bike that weighs 40+ pounds, you can get an actual vintage Schwinn and it will cost a lot less.

gna

TenorClef, it looks like a very nice bicycle. Enjoy the ride. BTW, welcome to the forum.

sauerwald

I live car lite, I commute on a bicycle every day for work, as well as running errands. I have two bikes that are configured almost identically because I rely on my bikes, and if one has an issue, I don't want to have to adjust a cable or tighten a nut before I leave for work in the morning. From the perspective of most commuters, I spend an outrageous amount on my bikes, both acquisition and maintenance, but what I spend is nothing in comparison to what my wife spends on maintenance, insurance, registration etc on her car. For me, most any bike purchase is easy to justify. Besides, just look at how pretty that thing is!

gna

I'd hazard a guess that Schwinns are not common where either the OP or TenorClef are located.

njkayaker

$1600 for the 47lb (!) Pashley Guv'nor.

https://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/thebik...comp_spec.html

$1600 for the 29lb "typical" mountain bike (which is ridable on rough terrain).

https://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/thebik...comp_spec.html

That is reasonable.

Enjoy it!