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Hi Alistair. My old school pal from my days at the John Hamilton Technical High School - George Munday who now lies in Spain had a Wally Watkins red track frame that was handed down from his father to George in the very late 1950's. The bike had been fitted with flat bars which George used until...

Hi Old Ned. Hi Old Ned. No,sadly I never actually joined a club as a member but I would often ride out with or behind them. My work often prevented me from doing anything on a regular basis. I was one of eight lads that would ride together whenever the opportunity allowed albeit I would often...

Hi BB. I don't know whether you are aware but Norman Roberts (Walvale Cycles) passed away last year. I was getting over a rather unwanted but necessary stay in hospital and therefore not only found out rather late but also missed his funeral - I am reliably informed that it was very very well...

Hi Old Ned. Did you live in Liverpool or somewhere on/in Merseyside or have you always been a Yorkshire lad ? Betty was the sister of Harry & Jimmy Quinn when they joined forces and Harry moved from Walton Road (H&J Quinn at Rice Lane,Aintree was formed) Betty alledgedly wanted to make frames in...

Hi to you all out there. As the topic title is headed has anyone got one of these rather rare hand built frames or indeed a complete bike. The were made by Betty & Dicky Hughes,County Road,Walton,Liverpool 4. There workshop/retail shop was directly opposite Arnott Street School. Due entirely to...

Hi to you all out there. Reluctantly my fully retro refurbished 52 cm Benotto Modelo 850 paris Roubaix is for sale. I am not using it after a rather expensive load of work including a new Stove Enamelled finish and brand new Chromed Pantograph Benotto Forks was completed some 4yrs ago. The...

Hi again. O N. Yes,the finish is really quite remarkable considering that it is still a hand finished process but I do not think that the Stove Enamelled finish is as hard as it was all of those years ago. It might be something to do with the paints having been reformulated in accordance with...

Re: Hi again O N. Do I see a triple chainring set-up and a Brooks B17 on your Soens ? Chances are that the paint-work was the handy work of Gerry Cunningham at C&G Finishers,Liverpool when they were in Back Faulkner St. They are now in Smithdown Road,Liverpool. I recently had a second bike...

Hi O N. James Fothergill frames/bikes were a bit like Rocking Horse Muck even in those days. If you lived in Liverpool or in the immediate vicinity you just might well know myself or indeed some of the lads that were about at the time. Les Brown,Billy Tucknott,Norman Carr,Tony West,Phil Towler...

Re: Hi to you all out there. I have only just found this post/reference to Wally Watkins. Indeed there was a Wally Watkins cycle frame builder in Liverpool,he was thought to have had a lock-up type premises somewhere off of Stanley Road,Bootle and only a short distance from the Harry Quinn...

Hi Jamie. Thank you for your comment. Yes I will post as the build progresses. Although the frame-set is a November 08 build ( stamped as SG 2 11 08) making it only a 6 1/2 yr old frame - it is nevertheless a frame with nice lines and fine build features. Indeed it has similar lines to my...

Hi to you all again. For those of you that had been following my Benotto rescue accounts :- here is another rescue in the throws of progress !!! A few months ago I acquired a rather nice Steve Goff frame-set in a Metallic Royal Blue. It had been fettled with a file and needed some serious...

Re: Re: Hi pp. Yes. There are fewer and fewer of these really classically fine line frames about these days. My first encounter with Benotto was seeing the two images of those owned and restored by Malcolm Summers on Classic Lightweight Cycles ( Readers Bikes). The Benotto 3000 really did...

Hi to those that are following my Benotto 'rescue post'. After a period of riding and fettling and a bit more riding and more fettling I had settled for a Triple Stronglight set-up on Thorn 140mm cranks (limited bend after a total left-knee replacement in November 2007)as a 50:40;30 with a 7spd...

Hi again Kevin. There are one or two interesting pages to be looked into by Google'ing The History of Benotto. Yes,the story goes that he met and married a Mexican girl and then move all of his cycle building to Mexico - seemingly with some unwanted results and especially when the quality (or...

Hi Kevin. I am afraid that I simply do not know albeit I do recall reading someone's opinion somewhere that the low end stuff was used on the frames that were made in Mexico. There were reports of cracking and breakages at the union with the lugs and snapping of tubes. It has also been reported...

Hi to you all out there. Well the once very sadly neglected Benotto Modelo 850 is ready for riding again,albeit a few tweaks are required to the choice of gearing as I cannot use a 14 -28 it has got to be a 13 - 28. That is on route and hopefully will be fitted by Friday 21st. It has been...

Hi to you all out there. Yes - I know that this is probably a dead in the water or gasping thread BUT I have just started a project on a Champagne - 52cm Benotto Modelo 850. The bike has been seriously neglected/bodged and neglected even further than anyone could imagine even a total cycle...

Hi to you all out there. I have unearthed a pair of toe-clips with a rather unusual Motif/Logo on the web just below the keep/pull through for the strap. I think that the design is a Four Leaf Clover. Does any one recognise them at all?.

Hi tokoloshe. What a fabulous paint job. I bet that built up with all alloy components and Chrome Spokes looks stunning in any weather never mind just on a sunny day.