Viking 'SBU' Tracker 1954
Owned by: Maurice Bartle
| Frame | Viking SBU (Short Base
Underslung) 24" frame; 1953; 73º head and seat angles;
wheelbase
39½"; effective bottom bracket 10¾"; fork rake
1½" |
| Wheels | Fiamme sprint rims on Airlite small-flange hubs 32/40; DB spokes tied and soldered; Clement Condor tubs |
| Chainset | BSA 5-pin 27T with inch-pitch roller chain |
| Pedals | Brampton |
| Gears | Single speed fixed |
| Brakes | N/A |
| Stem/Bars | Gran Fondo bars on 5½" Cinelli stem |
| Saddle | Brooks B17
Sprinter |
| Extra details | This is a
genuine SBU and is in original finish. There are reproduction versions
to be found on the
market but this one of very few genuine Viking produced models. Early
models did not have the central stay between chainstay
and seatstay - needless to say it was very 'whippy'! |
Peter Underwood adds that "looking through Cycling's in 1954 I came across details of a Viking track machine known as the 'Viking S.B.U. Tracker' - 1954. In the Cycling road test they state: "SBU (Short-Wheelbase Underslung) design was arrived at after extensive research into lateral and torsional twisting stresses. As you can see, there are two pairs of chainstays, an upper and a lower, and the down tube extends down beyond the bottom-bracket for an estimated 28cm." Viking state that "The SBU separates the two stresses and concentrates each at a different point". Originally, in 1953, this frame only had the lower chainstays but the upper ones were introduced in 1954 – it should have been obvious that a big open quadrilateral would be more flexible than a smaller triangle but maybe the idea was to save weight. The bottom-bracket is in a lug behind the junction of the down and seat tubes, giving a short rear triangle of 16". The 1954 specification was: Brampton Alatet headset, Baylis Wiley 'Featherweight' bottom-bracket, Williams 5-pin inch-pitch chainset with Italian Noli and Catteano quill pedals. Christophe toeclips with AL-E straps. Brooks B17 Narrow or Sprinter. Wheels had Weinmann 'Scherens' sprint rims on Airlite LF hubs fitted with Cyclo domed track-nuts. Cinelli bars and stem with 15½" 'Gran Fondo' deep drops."
For more information on the Viking Cycle Company visit http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/Museum/Transport/bicycles/Viking.htm