The Finnish Pigeon is supposed to be my everyday "beater" bike for
running errands close to home. Trips to grocery stores, cafes, the
post office and library will be its bread and butter. It's a
workhorse, not a joy rider or a showpiece. It should be at home on
whatever terrain the above mission statement requires (which includes
cobbled streets, and gravel paths through parks), should be ridable in
most weather conditions (I probably won't ride to the grocery store in
a downpour, but I might ride there an hour afterwards when the roads
are still full of puddles), and should be able to carry a good amount
of stuff. It also shouldn't look terribly fancy - I don't ever want
to have to stress about it or parts of it being stolen, or worry about
leaving it parked outside in the rain. The bike should be as reliable
and maintenance free as possible, although realistically I am not
likely to ever ride this thing so far from home that it couldn't be
walked back in about half an hour if it became totally unrideable.
What's with the name? The most numerously manufactured vehicle of any
kind in human history is a Chinese bicycle called the Flying Pigeon,
which has been manufactured in Tianjin continuously since the 1950s.
Although apparently now very out of style, for several decades they
were the cornerstone of Chinese utility cycling, used by everybody for
everything. Heavily patterned after classic English roadsters, with
fenders, a sprung saddle and fully enclosed chain, to me the Flying
Pigeon is the almost-modern flagbearer for the concept of a practical,
utilitarian bike designed to be affordable, durable, useful and
repairable rather than light, fast, and flashy.
The old Tunturi I rescued has a lot of features which make it a great
base to build a Finnish-style tribute to the Flying Pigeon. It has a
heavy all-steel construction, with the same ultra-classic diamond
frame with very relaxed geometry, and fenders. The chain is not fully
enclosed, but it has a much larger chainguard than later Tunturi
offerings did, so it kind of looks similar. There's a rear rack and a
sprung saddle and upright, swept-back handlebars. Rod brakes are out
of the question, and I wouldn't want them anyway because they don't
perform well, but otherwise I should be able to build something pretty
close in both spirit and appearance.
