Palladini

Hubs

In November 1940, a Luftwaffe plane dropped its bombs on a bike shop in south London. The owner of the shop, George Palmer, his son and some friends went to the bombedout building the next day. One of the components that survived the explosion was a set of Palladini hubs.

Around 1950, Mike Barry Sr. saw a different set of Palladini hubs in a London shop. “I just wanted those hubs so much,” he said. “I couldn’t afford them. They were really exotic. They still are, but also in those days.” After that, Barry couldn’t remember ever seeing another set.

The hubs have a skewer that, like any skewer, allows you to remove the rear wheel. The Italian hubs, however, are designed so that the cogs and chain remain in place. They make for a cleaner tire repair.

In about 1954, John Palmer was working i n his grandfather’s bike shop, which had recovered since the war. He was rummaging around when he found a wicker basket from a butcher’s bike containing parts salvaged from the original shop. Palmer took some of the components including the Palladini hubs.

The hubs made it into Palmer’s toolbox and followed him to Canada in 1968. In 1969, he met up Barry. They had raced together in England. They then started building Mariposa bikes in Canada and become good friends. “He was my best man, and I was his best man,” Barry said.

Throughout the years, work took Palmer to England again, the U.S., the Netherlands and back to Canada. The whole time, he kept the hubs, which he considered a sort of talisman that connected him to his cycling roots. Around 2006, Palmer knew what he should do with the hubs. “He knew that I really liked them,” Barry said, “so he said, ‘Look, I’d rather you had them. You’ll probably do something with them whereas they’ll just sit in my toolbox for the rest of my days.’” In 2010, the Palladini hubs got a proper home. Barry finished a bike restoration he dubbed the Tornado Project that has the hubs and other vintage parts.– Matthewpioro