1910 Chater Lea No 8 Lady-back Tandem

1910 Chater Lea No 8 Lady-back Tandem

Frame: 22″ front & 20″ rear

26 x 1 1/2″ Wheels

Fixed wheel

Brooks Model B66 Gents & B73 Ladies saddles

(Now sold)

Chater Lea was one of the world’s leading suppliers of components for bicycles and motorcycles, on a par with BSA for quality. Their cycle department specialised in tandems, offering a wide range of styles. There were cycle agencies around the country that stocked Chater Lea bicycles and motorcycles. Machines could be purchased through a trade catalogue as fittings for a local cycle shop to build. If there was no agent nearby, a customer could also order one direct from the company, complete and ready to ride. It would be dispatched by train, to be collected at the local railway station, or delivered from there by horse and cart to the customer’s front door.

I bought this Chater Lea tandem in 2016 (No, not from the factory delivered by train, but from my friend Paul in Tonbridge). It’s an older restoration that’s still in good order throughout. It came out of storage recently. It would look nicer with matching handlebar grips and as the old repaint is now a little scruffy it could be a candidate for fresh paint, but otherwise this rare machine is quite acceptable. New tyres and tubes have been fitted and it’s ready to ride.