The Singer Challenge No 2 Tricycle was a good seller for the company, as it was their cheapest adult model, selling at £18. The folding No 2 was advertised at £19 10/- while the top-of-the-range tandem and sociable sold for £52.
Surprisingly few have survived. This example is in sound condition. A few spokes are loose so I’ll take it to the workshop during the week. As you can see in the video further down the page, I was surprised by how narrow it is when I took it for a test run around the yard. But companies were under pressure to keep their tricycles as narrow as possible so customers could get them inside their gates. This model is 36″ wide. It is illustrated in the catalogue picture with a wagon seat, but this one has a conventional saddle fitted. While the tricycle itself is of robust construction – Singer was famous for the quality of their machines – wooden seats do not age well. The other item that has been replaced is the pair of treadle rubbers: they were replaced by wooden ones many years ago.
You can also see, etched into the non-drive side hub, the year 1880. The wheel diameter – 44″ – is also stamped in, as well as its serial number 2129. I’ve reproduced a Singer frame number chart further down the page and #2129 fits neatly between a tricycle #1723 owned by a ‘Swiss Collector’ estimated as 1879, and John Pinkerton’s Ordinary #3104 given a date of 1880. The chart is from 1996, and I think many more Singers have been added by now.
