Lots of things came to mind…
First, this was highly cool, thanks for posting it.
Then,
– single “shower” and an oven…so they were enamelled? Must have been pretty crude finish with the way the paint was showered on.
– the chainwheel hobbing was amazing. I’m surprised that on a mass-produced bicycle they weren’t just stamped that way. Do you know how the Ashtabula crank/wheel was/is produced?
– notice that most of the workers are walking away – not bicycling away- at quittin’ time. I don’t know about Holland, but my Italian relatives tell me that in the 30s, owning a bicycle was an expensive luxury (ferget about owning a car, that was clearly out of reach of factory workers), such that even then bicycles weren’t locked up on the streets at night, they were toted up flights of stairs to the 4th floor garrett apartment at night to avoid theft. No small feat with what these things weighed.
– Instructive to see how fabrication, plating, machine work and assembly were conducted when safety depended upon operator care, not OSHA mandated devices and processes….
That lathe in the video is awesome. Gotta love the “paint shower” too. Great vid, Mike!
Can’t go wrong with a paint shower🙂
Just like your shop, eh?
Yea, I love to dip my bare hands into the zinc coating😉
Lots of things came to mind…
First, this was highly cool, thanks for posting it.
Then,
– single “shower” and an oven…so they were enamelled? Must have been pretty crude finish with the way the paint was showered on.
– the chainwheel hobbing was amazing. I’m surprised that on a mass-produced bicycle they weren’t just stamped that way. Do you know how the Ashtabula crank/wheel was/is produced?
– notice that most of the workers are walking away – not bicycling away- at quittin’ time. I don’t know about Holland, but my Italian relatives tell me that in the 30s, owning a bicycle was an expensive luxury (ferget about owning a car, that was clearly out of reach of factory workers), such that even then bicycles weren’t locked up on the streets at night, they were toted up flights of stairs to the 4th floor garrett apartment at night to avoid theft. No small feat with what these things weighed.
– Instructive to see how fabrication, plating, machine work and assembly were conducted when safety depended upon operator care, not OSHA mandated devices and processes….
Wonderful video! This brings into perspective, your production. You are the whole ANT factory! Keep up the amazing work. Loving my Scorcher!