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Browning Fixed-Gear Conversion

By mrfred on 02/26/2008. Bike tags: Fixed gear | Browning | conversion | fixed | fixed gear | more tags >>
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This is a fixed-gear conversion of a 1970s era Browning road bike. I believe this is the first Browning on Velospace. Browning is the same company of long-standing firearms fame. If anybody is interested, I have done more research on Browning's bike era and can provide greater detail on their history -- please just PM me. Brownings are an odd short saga in bike-building.

Here's a quote from a webpage about Browning and their foray into bicycles:

"In the early 1970's, Bruce and his sons formed a family research company to invent, research, prototype and sell ideas. Among these ideas was the concept of an automatic/electric bicycle transmission. For a short time in the early 1970's, Browning Arms marketed a bicycle as part of their sporting goods business. Under an agreement with Browning Arms, Bruce and his sons worked on an automatic bicycle transmission as part of this project. In 1977, Browning Arms closed their bicycle business, so Bruce and his sons continued to develop the transmission on their own. Since then it has undergone continuous change and improvement at the Browning Research. The company buildings are nestled in the woods, a half-hour ferry boat ride from Seattle, but about a century away in their idyllic surroundings."

Click here for the Source of the above quote.

This bike is number 4427 on the Fixed Gear Gallery.

People who friended this bike CONDENADO, Italtrek, imetazoa, Tremdo, van, mrfred
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some updates

Submitted by mrfred on 03/23/2010.

Hello -- I've added two more pictures showing the bike in its current configuration: fenders, a rack (color-coordinated bungee cords!), and a couple of other tweaks. This bike sees primary use as a commuter, with some rides into the country.

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I have one...

Submitted by ddiamondd on 12/03/2008.

https://velospace.org/node/11294

Browning makes greeaaaat frames. Rare as shit.

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Thanks, you all!

Submitted by mrfred on 02/28/2008.

Thanks, you all!

Birmingham Small Arms (BSA) also made bicycles:
Wikipedia Entry on BSA
Yes, the entry on Browning bike transmissions is interesting but not terribly relevant to this bike -- it was (truly!) the only discussion about Browning bicycles that I could find on the web! There is now one other Browning fixed conversion on the FGG site, number 5101 -- it's basically the same frame (I corresponded w/ its owner), but in a smaller size. This is a straight steel frame, nothing fancy, and my headtube says "Made in Belgium". I did research on Brownings in old issues of "Bicycling", and I found out that they did have higher-end frames and components, but I've not seen one anywhere on the web. I'll do some new pictures w/ a few close-ups, once the warm weather hits.

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another arms company

Submitted by c-v-tich on 02/27/2008.

just poped to my mind that another arms company that produced bikes was Miyata

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Nice bike

Submitted by Italtrek on 02/26/2008.

I commend you for keeping the centerpulls and dropped bars. The page about the transmission is interesting, but the production bikes were mechanically ordinary. The owner of the bike shop where I hung out rode one. They had really nice ornate lugs and paint. I would have bought one, but I had to have a Viscount.

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