Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by globalguy on March 9, 2010 at 9:06am

Ah, the Viscount - I believe this is a fine question for Lord Alan ... feel free to contact him if he isn't lurking out there as I write.

Permalink Reply by Alan Lloyd on March 9, 2010 at 9:38am

You might want to leave it in retirement, from what we've heard. The "death fork" was it's most notorious component, but there were many other problems.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/lambert.html

The following narrative summarises many of the problems, but omitted the snapping bb/pedal spindle ...

"We used to sell Lamberts (which became Viscount)

The company decided they could make every part themselves. They copied other bike component designs' style & looks but apparently never ran any thing thru r & d or testing. The result is every last part on the bikes would fail. Frames, forks, handlebars, pedals, hubs, bb axle, crank arms, spokes, seat posts, stems, shift levers, free wheels, etc. The company quickly discovered what junk they were making. Later Viscounts came with other manufactures parts but the frames & forks kept breaking.

The last generation of Viscounts have lugged frames and nothing in common with the earlier bikes except the name.

I still remember opening 1 straight from England only to find the head tube had snapped off the frame during shipping. Maybe that boat hit an iceberg. The pressed in bottom bracket axles would fail. The axle had no taper where it met the crank so those would wear out fast. The bb shell was way to thin and would crack open. The shell was too thin to try to thread for a standard bb. There was an after market bb that threaded into itself from each side that could work as a replacement. Okay that new bb and new crank would cost as much as the bike was worth. Seat tubes would split open when you tightened up the seat post bolt. The shift levers would not hold together. Freewheels would arrive from the factory seized up. The pedals had tiny roller bearings that would lock up and self destruct. The hubs had cartridge bearings and no way to adjust all the side to side play. The original deraillers made hong kongs' worst look good. The cast aluminum seat posts would snap off a the top. The handlebars would break.

The original fork has a solid aluminum cast fork crown that extends up about 2 inches with a steel steering tube pressed over it. They had some early failures where the fork separated so they decided to drill two holes and insert pins to hold it together. That just made it worse. Drilling a hole near the crown provided a breaking point. So instead of the fork falling apart, it would just snap off without warning. Hence the first ever CPSC official recall of a bike product in the USA prompted by all the injuries. By then the line had been sold to a japanese company so they had to cover the recall.

My own Lambert had some parts replaced before I bought it used. It had suntour bar ends on it. I sold it to a friend. Then the seat tube split open so he drilled thru the frame and just bolted the seat post in place. Good or bad, he got run over soon after and the bike was destroyed.

I must have replaced over 100 forks personally during the recall. The odd thing is about half the occasional Viscounts I see on the road today still have the original fork. Can we assume if they lasted this long they are good or ready to snap any minute? The reality, like many bikes of this era, they have just been sitting untouched in a garage for 25 years or long since tossed."

Permalink Reply by alewyfe on March 9, 2010 at 3:32pm

Yes, I knew her many flaws when I bought 'er... but for $200 with a new sprung Brooks, I figured, give 'er a go. Steve has a backup bottom bracket he pulled off a later Vicount... unfortunately that bike was too tall to swap out the forks too (I think he tried to pawn the frame off on you at the bike swap, Alan). :-)
I'll try to get more details from the fellow on the frame size... I'd prefer a chrome replacement, but blue or red could work too. Not in any particular hurry, though it would be fun to have it rideable by the May Day ride... otherwise I'll be on the Peugeot, and I wouldn't want to rekindle any cross-channel rivalries. Though if it comes to that, I could always take the faded tricolor down off our shop door and wear it over my cape (I don't speak French, just food). :-)

Permalink Reply by alewyfe on March 9, 2010 at 3:42pm

Permalink Reply by globalguy on March 11, 2010 at 2:23am

While we enthusiastically support the riding of British Steel and donning of English Tweed we are no fanatics! Whatever you ride, especially if you don a cape, will be fully applauded!!! I have a beret if you need one %-{)>