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1938 Camel Back
I picked up an old camel back today. The serial number is 4B2453 which leads me to believe the year of manufacture was 1938.
The bike is in serviceable shape but it looks as though some parts have been replaced because they dont match the catalogue posted on here.
The wheels are 26" chrome westwoods covered in grey paint. CCM hub in the rear and a "made in England" on the front. Both have oil ports along with the bb. The tires are old 571 kenda gumwalls. They dont appear to fit quite right so perhaps 590s would fit better.
The chainring is 50 tooth mounted to 7" ?triplex cranks. From investigating the catalogue it appears that the 50t wasnt ever matched to 26" wheels except for the delivery model.
The seat looks like the wright saddle but it does say flyght across the back and has seams on the sides that dont appear in the catalogue. I dont know if this is a replacement but it looks alot like the seat on my 67 Imperial. The stem looks newer as well.
The pedals are clearly replacements. The fenders appear to be as well but im cant be sure.
The whole frame has has had a coat of light blue paint brushed on. Underneath is a sort of navy blue, and what looks to be red primer. White paint shows up in p!aces as well.
Im trying to figure out if this is the boys frame or the balloon frame. The stem, handlebars and seatpost match the boys but the wheels and cranks match the balloon (according to the catalogue)
The seat tube measures 20" from the CENTRE of the bottom bracket. Does that mean its a 20/22 frame as listed for the balloon model?
A 20" seat tube would rule out a juvenile model. However, I'm not sure if it started out as balloon model or is just a standard frame with smaller wheels. Normally, one could tell by the fenders but these appear to aftermarket. In the 1950s, a 20/22" balloon frame could be distinguished from a standard frame by the length of the head tube, as it was 1" longer, to compensate for the smaller wheel size but I'm not sure about the pre-war balloon frames.
I have a 67 Imperial with a 28"rear wheel and comparing it to the 38 frame it appears that the frame was built for 26" wheels
Scratch that, a 28" wheel fits the frame but im not sure if there would be enough room for the original fenders because i dont have them
Pretty sure its the balloon frame. I found some gold letters on the navy blue paint on the down tube by the bottom bracket so that must be the original colour which matches the catalogue. The seat, stem, seatpost, handlebars and fenders must have been swapped out because they dont match. The wheels and rear hub and cranks match. The front hub is a bit of a mystery as it doesnt match anything
If anyone has measurements or pictures from a balloon frame from around this year it would be helpful
On the right isna 1942 CCM Special with 28 x 1-1/2 tires on a F13 Rim. On the left is a 1938 Balloon Tire with 26 x 2 x 1-3/4 (54-571) tires on 26 x 1-3/4 rims.
The difference in the frame is pretty clear with the distance between the bridge and the bottom bracket being significantly different lengths. Clearly the balloon frame is made for smaller diameter tires that are wider. The forks are different as well but forks can be easily replaced.
Here is the bike as i currently have it.