This quite rare 1985 Detel Marathon 6000 is my primary rig. Jon refers to it as a “hooligan bike.”
I'm not exactly sure what that means, but it seems to fit. Built with Ishiwata 022 tubing, it is light,
relatively stiff, and the short wheelbase for such a large frame makes it very responsive.
The 27” dark anodized Matrix aero rims are rather rare as well--it is not easy to track down a pair
of vintage anodized 27” aeros these days. The drive train consists of a 42t chainring and a flip-flop
hub with a 17t freewheel flipped and a 16t fixed cog flopped. I get a lot of comments about this bike,
the majority of which are to the effect of “What in the hell is a Detel?” As such, I will list what
little I have learned about this oddball marquee since becoming the owner of this uncommon (but
unfortunately not particularly valuable) frame.
* The Detel Bicycle Company was based in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
* Founded sometime in the mid ‘80s, they went out of business about seven months after production began when their primary investor flaked out.
* After the company crapped it, what little stock they had accumulated was primarily distributed to car dealerships, furniture stores, etc. They were then given away in promotional deals (“Buy a bedroom set, get a free bike!”).
* Only two models were made, the higher-end Marathon (Ishiwata 022) and the more standard Legend (Ishiwata 024). There was also a numeric designation (either 6000 or 4000) added to the model name to indicate the grade of the componentry.
Much of this information was provided by Ian Hillerud of Eau Claire, WI, who owns a virtually mint Legend 6000
(shown below). If you know anything else about the Detel brand, or can correct any of the information listed above,
feel free to email me at burd@grinderbikes.com.
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