1987 Phoenix Bicycle
1987 Phoenix
If Wikipedia needs a photo for the definition of “Bicycle”, we’d be happy to let them use a picture of this Phoenix.
No matter where you happen to be on this planet, and no matter the year, bikes that look like this one are likely to be rolling down the street.
This Chinese Phoenix, which was built in 1987, is nearly identical to bicycles produced by dozens of different manufacturers over the decades. Raleigh probably built the great-grandfather to this rig back in the 1920’s. We have an Italian Bianchi just like it from 1940 and an Avon that was made in India during the 1960’s. The timeless design was obviously a winner. Built to be really tough, fairly comfortable, easy to produce, and inexpensive to buy.
When organizations like World Bicycle Relief give bicycles to rural Africans, it’s bikes very similar to this Phoenix that are donated. If you were a visitor to Holland or Belgium, standing in a parking lot outside of a train station, you would see hundreds of bikes just like this one (and they would all be the same color).
All of the deluxe options
Rod brakes
Made in China, not Arizona.
The frame, built with a second top tube, is meant to be strong and provide stable handling even while carrying the heaviest loads. The fork has more rake to it than you’ll find on most bikes, a feature helps to smooth out the ride. Gravel roads and cobblestones are no match for the Phoenix.
Industrial strength kickstand
Here’s your suspension
While the Rod-actuated brakes are not the most powerful design, they are reliable. Leave the bike out in the rain for weeks at a time, you don’t have to worry about rusty brake cables. Hard rubber brake pads and big steel rods (instead of thin wires) are used so that the brakes, as mediocre as they are, rarely need adjustment.
You’ll find bikes like the Phoenix sometimes equipped with 3-speed hubs. Let’s call multiple gears a luxury (they need occasional maintenance) in this instance, so a single-speed will have to do.
Phoenix frame detail
Heavy duty rack
A ton of bricks
Now let’s talk cargo capacity. The industrial-strength rear rack and kickstand can handle some pretty heavy and unwieldy loads (certainly more weight than I would want to haul). We have used the Phoenix to pick up pizza on numerous occasions, and the rack was perfect for that. A couple hundred pounds of stuff should be no problem. School books? Groceries? Construction materials? 50 pound bags of rice? Two or three of your best friends and family perched on the bike? Bikes like this Phoenix laugh at cargo constraints. I’m guessing that you could handle the average Costco shopping cart load with little problem other than negotiating the parking lot.