Bicycle [BSA]
Maker and role
Birmingham Small Arms Company, Manufacturer
Production date
1938
See full details
Object detail
Accession number
2002.209
Production period
Description
Ladies bicycle, pre-war, BSA fitted with small child seat at rear. Purchased 1938. Bike frame dark blue (repainted), mudguards have rust showing. Wheel rims and spokes rusty. Standard chrome handle bars with white hand-grips. Has bell and front hand-brake. Rear foot-brake. Chain guard. Child seat has plastic leg/wheel guards. Black. (No obvious maker information). Wheels take 26" x 3/8" tyres. "Terry Springseat Saddle" New Zealand made bike, although handlebars are Phillips, made in England. The handle bar grips are 'Klenna' made. The cross bar of the frame has a yellow and white label printed with the name 'Comet', and 'Salter Hayes' is painted on the seat post.
Brief History
By the late 1930s the British industry were producing close to two million bicycles a year. This is an example made in Great Britain and imported to New Zealand. This 1938 BSA bicycle was purchased by a schoolteacher in Aotearoa, used to cycle between her home in Fairburn and the school she taught at in Kaitāia. It was then repainted and gifted to the teacher’s daughter where it was used around Auckland and, later, the family’s holiday section in Pauanui.
Marks
Comet, Custom Built Racer, Slater Hayes Newton Auckland Label
Phillips Made in England Impressed
COMET/ SLATER HAYES/ 37 / KARANGA HAPE / RD/ AUCKLAND/ N.Z. Printed
TERRY/ SPRING SEAT SADDLE/ MADE IN ENGLAND Maker's Plate
Phillips Made in England Impressed
COMET/ SLATER HAYES/ 37 / KARANGA HAPE / RD/ AUCKLAND/ N.Z. Printed
TERRY/ SPRING SEAT SADDLE/ MADE IN ENGLAND Maker's Plate
Media/Materials
Credit Line
Birmingham Small Arms Company. 1938. Bicycle [BSA], 2002.209. The Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT).
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