[Jim Berry]

I’m a new member in Mid-Michigan, USA having just acquired my first Moulton, an F frame. It was discovered in a flea market near Traverse City on Lake Michigan then sold to me by a local resident. Someone had slapped dark blue paint over everything including the brakes. Thankfully no harm was done, all the parts were there and the corrosion was minor. Close inspection at home revealed it to be #63520027, an export bike with QR rear rack, low front rack, prop stand, 4 speed, pearl grey original paint and a ”standard” decal. It is identical the the Huffy-Moulton 4-speed model that appeared in 1964. Interestingly, there is a press photograph in the possession of Pete Mole showing the same configuration bike with Horace Huffman, Alex Moulton Pete and Phil Mole at the Huffy plant in Azusa CA. It is dated Feb. 5, 1964, five weeks after my bike was built. I talked with Pete Mole on the phone about that meeting and the bike. Pete was then president of the John T. Bill Co. the US distributor for Huffy and other smaller brands including Moulton from the introduction to the US in the late summer of 63. Pete is also the originator of the high-rise banana seat bike now known as the sting-ray. He said the the bike in the photo was from his distributor stock and not a prototype. About a 1000 bikes came through their company before the Huffy-Moulton deal kicked in. They were all models and colors as he recalled and sold mainly in Southern California to to high end customers. The sales flurry co-insided with the publicity then tapered off. Pete is sending me a copy of the photo from his collection of business papers. At age 87 he is still consulting for Dahon on marketing. I plan to keep in touch and complete my restoration by the bike’s 50th birthday. Anyone else in the US have one of these pre-Huffy imports?

[Jack Finucan]

I didn’t see any mention of early bikes in Paul Grogans book, Classic Moultons Abroad. Ian Spencer with Moulton Works in Ohio may know something; he’s quite a collector. http://www.moultonworks.com/

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