Back at the end of September, I was corresponding with a reader named Kyle. He had just finished doing an update on a late 70s Bertin lady’s bike which quite impressed me. The bike itself was in outstanding condition with wonderful paint and graphics and clearly had been cared for during its life. Unusually, I thought, it was not a mixte. Typically, French manufacturers built mixte or cradle framed women’s designs. Clearly, from the photo below, that is not all that Cycles Bertin constructed.
They also built the “dame anglais”or English Woman’s style of frameset. It is less expensive to build than the other two styles but the three different types of design were offered by Bertin from the earliest days of production. A possible explanation for that may be in the fact that Britain was a solid export market for Bertin through his partnership with Ron Kitching and the preferences of the British market needed to be considered. Whatever the reasons, the bike itself is lovely from its glowing ruby paint, to the details of its Durifort frameset and its custom rear rack. Thanks for sharing the project with other Bertin enthusiasts, Kyle.
Endnote: In January, 2012, I will be writing about the different styles of women’s framesets at somewhat more length after I retire, again, at the end of December.
Bertin Classic Cycles 