1948 Malvern Star
1948 Malvern Star 5 Star
Here is a terrific import from the land down under, a top-end Malvern Star, their 5-star edition.
Since the bike doesn’t come equipped with caliper brakes, it would be natural to assume that the bike was just meant for riding on the track. Back in those days, however, a fixed gear (no coasting) road bike was really common. A bike built with tabs to hold a tire pump was almost certainly ridden on the roads.
So, not just a bike for racing at the velodrome. Also, although this bike is from the southern hemisphere, it still goes counter-clockwise around a velodrome….Sorry, bad coriolis effect joke for you there…
Malvern Star bicycles have been making some fantastic machines in Australia since 1902. Long before Nicole Kidman was a “BMX Bandit” on her Malvern Star (seriously, check out the 1984 movie), you could have ridden around on a bike like this beauty.
“The worlds super cycle”
Five stars are better than two or three…
Original hand painted frame
Gas mask hose for grips
Painted BSA crank set
Hand painted downtube
This model, a Five Star, is the top of the line from 1948.
The amazing paint details on this bike are original, done by the steady hand of Ken Dickie, a talented artist working in Melbourne. Like many early racing bikes, this one had a place for a pump and a front brake for training out on the roads. Check out the cool grips on the handlebars. They look like they are made out of military surplus gas-mask hose.