One of only five original Wright Brothers bicycles known to still exist, the St. Clair shown here is on display at the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum in Washington, D.C.
The pics here don’t do it justice, I was bending my way around a tour group and shooting with a camera phone through glass and in the dark, but they show just how little things have changed since this bike was built in 1898. Click on through for detail photos…
Adjusting for inflation, this bike would cost $1,098.79 today.
OSBB? Kidding…more likely about the same type of cranks still used on kids’ bikes today. Chainstays were definitely pre-Genesis Geometry.
Threaded adjustable dropouts.
I wonder if a Brooks saddle would look as good after 113 years.
Note how the stem clamps the handlebar by being compressed on the steerer tube.
The NASM is a blast to visit and totally worth the trip if you’re in or near D.C.
