Old unloved Brompton - FOUND!

[tom73]

Reading stuff like this makes me think the fun me and dad would have had going stuff like this.
loved seeing him at work as kid I learned a lot. A true craftsman 7 year apprenticeship and time spent in the REME along the way.
It showed in everything even in the little things.
Even now the smell of tap oil brings it all back.

 

[rogerzilla]

You've got a lot of knowledge on this subject @rogerzilla have you refurbished many?

I've rebuilt three, although I only did the rear hinge on two of them. Reaming the new bushes is a dealer job but, if you remove the old bits first, mine only charges a tenner. Most of the work is in removing the old bolts.

I've also done a seat tube shim, which turned out to be trivially easy. The secret was to really clean out the old glue and stuff first.

 

[chriscross1966]

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/193011748767

That one went for £200. Cheap ones are out there, but not in London, where they are most in demand.

If you're doing a rattle-can respray you should be able to leave the hinges and free them up between coats. Dismantling requires reaming for new oversize pins, which Brompton will probably not sell you. In fact, Brompton won't sell many parts to end users now, which makes a refurb tricky.

I strongly suggest that one got pulled as the original bidder offered him cash on the side for a quick sale ....

 

[chriscross1966]

Interesting... I've got welding gear too I've recently signed up for a C&G welding refresher course starting in January so this could be a good subject to play with I would be interested to find out what the rest of the bike looks like and how much you would want for it Where abouts are you based?

That's a brazing job on a Brompton, go near it with normal welding equipment and it will almost certainly fail catastrophically.

 

[Freds Dad]

Very interesting, thanks for sharing! I may well take a punt at it

Did you have a punt?

 

[JhnBssll]

Did you have a punt?

No I didn't, but I am popping to see @ABikeCam this afternoon and will hopefully be leaving with a lighter wallet

 

[JhnBssll]

Thanks again to @ABikeCam - I now have a slightly sad Brompton in my garage ready to play with





I'll start a build thread at some point soon when I've had a bit of a play

 

[gary r]

My old sad Brompton before and after pics, cost me £50 to purchase.