Hyman ('Harry') Hetchin started selling bicycles in the 1920s; later he acquired a partner and frame builder, Jack Denny. Victory in the World's and Olympic Championships in 1936 entitled Hetchin to display the champion's color bars on his transfers. The elegance and fine workmanship of the frames have made the marque legendary. This web site is offered in appreciation.
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Historic Hetchins (hetchins.org) is dedicated to Hetchins bicycles of historic interest. The web site is concerned with the history of the marque, model types and frames of special interest, and assisting in the identification, dating, and renovation of Hetchins frames.
This web site (hetchins.org) is not concerned with new production and is not the official organ of the manufacturer, Hetchins Lightweights. The production web site is at
hetchins.com. For new production
This web site serves the following purposes:
1. to assist in the preservation, restoration/renovation, and appreciation of Hetchins bicycles and frames;
2. to assist owners of Hetchins bicycles and frames by providing them with information and links to further information; a forum for the exchange of information on classic bicycles of all marques may be found at Classic Rendezvous;
3. to assist in the identification of Hetchins frames and frame types (model, year of construction, etc.);
4. to assist those who maintain the Hetchins Archive, which consists of information on the history of the marque and other related materials such as catalogs, press articles, technical specifications, etc., as well as physical objects such as tubes, lug sets, metal badges, transfers, jersies, printed bags, accessories, shop paraphernalia, and so on;
5. to assist those who maintain the
The Hetchins Register, the list of Hetchins known to survive;
6. to warn buyers and collectors about forgeries and rogue builders (Copycats);
7. to provide a virtual museum of the Hetchins firm, its production and racing history, its bicycles & frames (Gallery), accessories, and related items.
Above: 1976 Keyhole criterium racing bike.
The bicycles and other related items displayed here are all in private hands, distributed all over the world. The Gallery section includes over 100 complete bikes covering more than 85 years of continuous production. A single collection of Hetchins bicycles and accessories of this magitude would be impossible to assemble, much less maintain, under one roof. Moreover, many of the bicycles featured here are still in daily use. Hence, a virtual museum is the most appropriate means of presenting these items to the public.
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The following abbreviations are used at this web site.
Hetchins models:
AC: Anglo Continental
XC: Experto Crede
MB: Magnum Bonum
MBS: Magnum Bonum Spyder
MO: Magnum Opus
MO Mil: Magnum Opus Millennium
ND: Novus Ductor
SB: Scorpion Bonum
VM: VadeMecum
Frame tubes:
bb: bottom bracket, dt: down tube, ht: head tube,
st: seat tube, tt: top tube.
The Editor has no first-hand knowledge of the Hetchins operation as it was under Harry's or Alf's direction; he depends for information on many other people and hereby expresses his gratitude. Every effort is made to ensure that the information provided is accurate (completeness is virtually impossible in this field). Further information, suggestions, and corrections are gratefully accepted.
A number of people have contributed to this web site and their help is hereby acknowledged. The text, photos, suggestions, and encouragement they provide enrich this site. My sources, in alphabetical order, include the following: Dale Brown (CR Forum), Mick Butler (Paris Cycles), Marion Curwood (Jack Denny's daughter), Paul Hetchin (Hyman's grandson, Alf's son), Len & Jean Ingram (The Hetchins Register), Ken Janes (former Hetchins employee & lug cutter), Trevor Jarvis (TJ Cycles), Bob Johnson, Roger Lee (Hetchin's former USA distributor, www.WorldClassCycles.com), David Miller (current Hetchins manager), Andrew Moore, Doug Poll (Flying Gate Webmaster), Tom Rawson, Paul Riley (Hetchins frame builder for the past 25+ years), Clive Rodell, Hilary Stone, Donald Thomas (Bob Jackson Cycles), others who wish to remain anonymous, and all those whose beautiful bikes appear here. Thank you all! --the Editor.
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The fine print: This not-for-profit web site is privately maintained by and for Hetchins owners and enthusiasts. Costs of maintaining this web site are met entirely privately, with no contribution from the manufacturer or any advertiser. This web site is beholden to no commercial interest.
Access to this web site is free of charge. This does not mean that the contents are up for grabs! All materials are copyright this web site or the manufacturer, unless otherwise noted. Unauthorized copying, hacking, alteration of content, and denial-of-service attacks are prohibited and prosecutable offenses. The Editor is not responsible for the content of other web sites to which this web site links or which may be linked to this web site.
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The HTML content of this web site is entirely hand coded using an ASCII text editor. There is no Java code at this web site at all, you can safely turn it off in your browser for this web site; there is minimal Java Script (which is not Java). This ensures that all browsers correctly display the content. This web site deposits no cookies on your machine; there is nothing to opt out of. The site will download to iPhones and iPads, but has not been optimized for such small screens or WiFi access. Recommended screen resolution: 1024 x 768 pixels. Broadband is highly recommended (the picture files are big.)
The site comprises nearly 600 html and pdf pages, over 5,000 jpg and gif fotos, and takes up about 3.8GB of server memory. There is too much to see in one visit, so view a small portion and come back. The site has been here since 2001 and it's not going away. The Editor is not responsible for damage which may be caused to your retina by staring at eye-candy too long. Use the web responsibly: spend more time on your bike!
Click here for the rest of the legal stuff.
Contact
For those wishing to submit photos to be published at this web site, please see the Editor's tips on how to photograph a bicycle: click here.
Last but not least deptartment: They do still make them like they used to; see below:
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Above: 2005 special order frame using a lug design from 1948;
modern Record carbon components.
Below: 2008 Magnum Opus to fit vintage Campagnolo Nuovo Record components.
Below is the navigation field. It contains links to the main topics. Links in italic lead to sub-navigation pages. To see a complete list of pages, click the toc (table of contents) link. The gold "H" symbol at the bottom links to the home page. |
