Rover 1887

The Rover was the first safety bicycle that had commercial succes. Like they said in the 1890's: 'the Rover has set the fashion to the world'. After its introduction in 1884 the design of the frame changed several times, sometimes more than once a year. The original 1884 frame model had indirect steering. The commercial success came in 1885 with a slightly different model, which had direct steering. But very soon this model was superseded by a real diamond frame (link to a new page).

The Rover shown in the pictures here is an 1886-1887 model. It is a very nice example of a bike that you won't find easy for sale. This one found its place in the Velorama museum. Look at the original paint.

In 1888 the exaggerated curve in the top tube had disappeared, the rest of the frame remained mainly the same.  Click here for the 1887-1889 model.