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That's really great and perfectly rideable as it is. Nice Lytaloy headset and Hiduminium brakes. That catalogue that I have really casts doubt about what I thought a period Hobbs should be about though. If it were mine, I'd maybe find some Chater Lea or BSA cranks, a slightly older saddle and some black bartape but it's really lovely. I'd certainly love to have it in my collection so dibs if you ever decide to sell. Bet it rides really well too.
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@RgrahamH
A few months ago I bought a 1947 Hobbs of Barbican Superbe on ebay to build up with age appropriate parts. It seems to have some good original parts on it already (Reynolds R5 seat post, Brooks B17 saddle, Hiduminium brake calipers and levers and a Lytaloy headset.
Some of the other parts are more suspect. The rims are Weinmann Alesa I think, the front hub is Atom and the rear Sturmey Archer AW is dated 1949 (although the frame has a derailleur shifter braze-on boss fitted). The rear wheel is also wrapped and soldered which is the sign of a quality wheel. The Crankset is unmarked, as are the stem and the handlebars, although these look very old. The pedals are Phillips Credalux quills and the BB axle is drilled but the cups don't have any markings on.
A Hobbs document that @7ven posted recently details the spec for a Superbe of this era and some items match, however others appear to be much cheaper specced items. As @7ven's document states how difficult supplies were in 1947, I've been wondering if some of the items I was going to replace might actually be original and fitted purely due to the shortages at the time. The ones I'm think about are the stem and handlebars, the pedals (and possibly the crankset) and the rear wheel.
I would be interested in peoples thoughts. I've included some pictures.
Thanks.
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