Gus “Augie” Juner’s 1930 Appelhans

Gus "Augie" Juner's 1930 Appelhans

This beautiful Appelhans originally belonged to Gus Juner.

We have a few Appelhans racing bikes in the museum.  Frank Bartell’s speed record bike is certainly impressive, and Ted Bendi’s copper-plated bike is a rare jem, but nothing preserves and displays Appelhans craftsmanship quite like this bike.  The lugs are neatly detailed with gold pinstriping, the finish and components are original and in excellent shape, and the bike is not nearly as battle-scarred as some of our other surviving Appelhans machines.

The Juner family

Simple and precise lugs join the tubing

The contrasting colors highlight Appelhans' style

Gus, a.k.a. “Augie” was one of three cycling brothers in the Juner family.  Born and raised on City Island in the Bronx, New York, the Juner brothers are royalty in bike shop culture.  They were the keepers of secret old-world bike knowledge and lore, and cycling advice given by a Juner brother was treated like it was gold-plated.  Brother Oscar was immortalized in Maynard Hershon’s 1989 book “Tales from the Bike Shop” as the crusty but wise shop owner and mechanic.

Gus may not have had the success on the bike that his brothers did (Adolph won the Tour of Somerville and Oscar was a successful six-day track racer), but he certainly was a big influence on his brothers, and in turn, they fostered thousands of aspiring cyclists.  Oscar started American Cyclery in San Francisco in 1941, while Adolph had a bike shop on City Island in the Bronx.