A visit to Colin Kirsch: the world of bicycles

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For some months now, PreWarCar.com has featured a new category: bicycles. From the very beginning it has proved surprisingly popular, thanks in no small part to the remarkable machines of Colin Kirsch, the man behind the Online Bicycle Museum. That alone was reason enough for us to visit him at his home in Brighton.

We meet Colin as he is loading his van for the Beaulieu Autojumble, where he has held a regular stand for many years. You cannot help but smile when you see him. Colin is not your typical dealer – not in looks, not in outlook, and certainly not in background. Stories abound about him: from his time as a garage owner and his trade in cars, to his deep knowledge and affection for historic bicycles.

What strikes you immediately is his passion. He shows us a remarkable Hayward Onward bicycle from 1899, complete with its original invoice. With clear enthusiasm he explains the so-called cushion tires – a design somewhere between solid rubber and pneumatic tyres. After 126 years the rubber has grown harder, but it is still original. Such details make the bicycle unique: unlike cars, bicycles were hardly ever registered at the time, so their histories are rarely traceable.

Colin finds his treasures everywhere: in museums, from antique dealers, or from private collectors selling off their collections. His career began with vintage cars and motorcycles, and in the 1980s he set up a business restoring them. In the past 18 years, his primary focus has been on early vintage bicycles, when hiis passion for old bicycles led him to create the Online Bicycle Museum. There he built up a remarkable body of information, which has since become a valuable resource for our own editors as well.

The Museum is supported by his sales of exclusive and rare vintage bicycles, which are sold to collectors and museums worldwide. In fact, in many parts of the world the hobby of collecting vintage British bicycles started because of his website - beforehand, very little was known about the era before World War One when bicycles were built to such a high standard that they were the most expensive in the world and only affordable for the aristocracy. 

It is a testament to the superb quality of those machines, built by Triumph, BSA, Humber, Rudge-Whitworth, Premier, Singer, Sunbeam and many other British firms that there are still survivors of these marques in good riding condition. For a fraction of the price of a vintage automobile or motorcycle, you can ride a bicycle 120 years old or more and look down on the handlebar with exactly the same view as the customer who first picked it up from the factory.

He himself finds the British market rather quiet, but his clientèle now extends far beyond. And now that he has reached an age where he wants to enjoy his work even more, it seems exactly the right path.

His current selection can be found here.

Text and photos by Laurens Klein

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