Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1897-07-30
BICYCLE FIGURES.
Some Interesting Fact. Ecrar;.:;ns
the Output Of Crescent Bicycles in
1896 by the weotcrn Wheel Works,
nf Chicau0. III.

Some Interesting Facts EcEars;n ing
the Output Of Crescent Bicycles in
1890 by the wectcrn Wheel Works,
of Chicago. Ill.
The idea of this article il to convey to
the reader Il conception of the enormous
amount OF raw material consumed during
a season i'll supplying the demand tor
one of the most popular bicycles made.
The Western Wheel Works, Chicago.
makers Of the Crescent wheel, have the
largest. and without doubt the most com.
plcte bicycle factory in the world, and
can turn out. when running to fullest
capacity, 80 finished Cresccnts in twelve
hours, or IL complete ''up 10 date bicycle
per minute.
The following figures are based on the
material used 10y them during 1S.G in the
manufacture of Crescent bicycles, dur
ing which season they made more high
grade bicycles than any other two fac
tories i'll the country.
They used $50 miles of tubing, or
enough to nearly reach from Chicago to
ST. Paul if placed in Il straight line. The
spoke. We're made in their own factory,
aud required $50 miles of wire. or enough
to reach from Chicago to Lincoln. Neb.:
80 miles of brass rod was required for
spoke nipples. Ii the spokes. spoke mp
line they would reach from Chicago to
tho Rocky Mountains ut Denver. The
cranks. il placed end to end. would cover
n distance of 22 miles. They used ID
and pedal aNles. and 10 miles of steel for
seat posts Ii the rims that were used in
the manufacture of Crcscents in 9G were
placed one upon the other they would
make pile l9.SOO feet high. G.OOO feet
higher than Pixies Peak and about, the
height of Mount Elias in Alaska. whose
.suinmit has never yet been reached by
,man. If placed i'll Il straight line side by
side. these rims would reach q distance
of 72lla miles, and if the tires We're fitted
they would make a line l'Hs miles longer.
hangers on the 'aG wheels weighed. in
the rough. 113 $40 tons, and when fin
ishcd, 21 9-lO tons. showing a complete
waste of 81 $40 tons in drilling and fin.
ishing. 1t required S2oS4 square feet of
sheet steel 10 make the Crescent hollow
tooth, sprockcts. and .1.SIG square feet
for the steel stampings of the head and
seat post clamps. or in all enough flat
steel to cover an area of IA acres. There
We're used 10 miles of cork grips. 10Y:
miles of finished hubs. and 2S miles Of
brazing. The finished chains. end to end.
would reach 80 miles. and the different
pieces Of which they are composed would
reach 23STl% miles, or in all 3O7h miles.
the distance from Chicago to Cincinnati;
i$,oo7.soo steel balls. Which. il placed placed
in a. straight line. side by side. would
reach q distance of 45;t miles. To lace
the chain and dress guards on the ladies
Crcscents manufactured in 1896 required
434.1IO yards of cord. or 246lh miles.
enough to allow n small boy to stand on
the top of the Auditorium tower in CHI.
cago and fly his kite where the people i'm
Des Moines. Iowa. could see it. no sup
ply Crcscents sold in 1896 required 1.GOti.-
I42 bolts. and 1.4SS.O1:' nuts. having an
aggregate weight of 23 tons. Sixteen and
one;auarter miles of spring steel were
used in ntllemanufacture of saddle springs.
and the saddle and tool bags together
nse! np 1I1.SS3 square feet. or over 4
sores of leather. The total weight of the
complete bicycles was 23S22.S42 pounds.
or 1:ial tons; To crate these bicycles
made Up in pieces. which wonld make a
distance Of 1.139 miles. or more than the
distance from New York to Chicago: 70
71S.IS separate and distinct pieces en-
tered into the construction of '9G Cres-
cents, and if all We're placed in straight
line. end to end. they would reacl, from
New York to some distance in the Pacific
OCEAN west of San Francisco.-Crcsccnt
Bulletin, July I, 1897.