Lets see your Balloon Tire Bikes

[KilroyCD]

Nicely done Kilroy. But I have a question- I have a post-war Roadmaster very similar to that, but the sprocket (every-other link variety) is kind of rusty. I noticed you swapped the old one out on yours- Do they make a replacement or would I have to change mine as well?

Jay, I swapped that one out because of economics - which was dictated by the buyer's budget. I also swapped the rims as they were cheaper to buy new than to rebuild. With the new rims came a new coaster brake with 1/2" pitch tooth spacing on the sprocket (as opposed to the inch-pitch or "skip-tooth" type originally on the bike).
How rusty is yours? You might be able to get the rust off with steel wool, a whire wheel or a Scotchbrite wheel. If you have access to one, a Scotchbrite wheel can really polish up a rusted piece nicely. So can 000 steel wool and a lot of elbow grease.
The best thing to do to maintain the collector value is unfortunately the most expensive option - rechroming the piece.

 

[KilroyCD]

Missed it by that much...

JedburghOSS told me about an auction out his way that featured a few old bicycles. I had a living history event I was attending that day, so I would not have been able to make the trip to WV to bid on any of the bikes. Boy, do I regret not making that trip. There was a nice late 1930s Murray-built Eglin in original paint that I was told only went for $85. Here are some photos Tim (JedburghOSS) took of the bike:

Aside from replacement tires that are the wrong size, everything else looks right with the bike. Whoever got that bike got a great deal.
However, the living history event I attended allowed me to take my '41 Columbia Superb (reissue) out for a rare airing. Here it is on display at the Railroad Museum of PA:

 

[Atomic Glee]

I'm still on my beloved, classic European city bike-inspired Breezer Uptown on the right, and now Stephanie has gotten herself a bike - a Haro Maude cruiser, shown on the left, customized with a front basket, bell, bottle holder, front brake, and LED head & tail lights. Now we can ride together and spend most of our time not needing a car at all anymore.

 

[KilroyCD]

The Haro has an interesting mix of modern and classic design elements to it. I especially like the curved fender braces that are reminiscent of those used on a number of Shelby bikes, most notably the prewar "Air Flo" series. One thing I can't really figure out by looking at the photos is the colour of both rims. Are both rims pink, or just the rear rim?

 

[KilroyCD]

Another project

A friend of mine asked me if I had any vintage womens bike projects available, and if so, would I be interested in restoring one to sell to them. Yes was the answer to both parts of that enquiry.
He's looking for a classic ballooner for his wife to use at living history events. I sent them some photos of two project bikes, and they chose this Huffman:

They'd like it restored in red with light grey trim. It looks like I have some work ahead of me this winter. I'll post photos of the progress periodically.

 

[Decodence]

After some blood, sweat and tears (well, no tears actually), here's the finished product. The Roadmaster has been rebuilt to represent an early war military bike.

Is that a correct bottom bracket/crankset?

 

[KilroyCD]

Is that a correct bottom bracket/crankset?

That is the correct and original bottom bracket and crank for that model of Roadmaster bicycle. I did however, exchange the original chain ring for a new Wald chain ring because of the change from a one inch pitch chain to a half-inch pitch. This was done purely as a cost savings measure for the bike's buyer.

 

[anabolina]

I've kept my eye out for a true vintage balloon tire on Craigslist since the beginning of January, but none have come up in my price range and the more I thought about it, the more I did not want coaster brakes, so I went to the Bike Shops and tried the Schwinn Alloy Seven. Very Lightweight cruiser style with balloon tires a hand brake, and 7 gears. Unfortunately, all they had was the blue and dark blue one and if I'm going to spend more than $300 on a bike, I want to like to look at it. Then I find out that the Alloy Seven is last year's model and they are completely sold out of the green and white version. Anyway, so that's what brought me to the Walmart version.

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=5585805

I do like it. The moment I was carrying it up to my apartment, my weird neighbors comments that they liked it and felt it had a very 50s vibe. I't not as comfortable as the Alloy Seven, but that could be because I still haven't adjusted the seat. It's still a fun ride though and I've ridden it enough that I haven't had to fill my gas tank since the Monday before last.

 

[KilroyCD]

Anabolina, that's a nice looking bike. I looked up information on the Schwinn Alloy Seven, and the photos I found all showed bikes that were without fenders. Ostensibly, this is to keep weight down, but I feel it takes away from the vintage style.
It appears as though the Alloy Seven is no longer being made, but the Classic Seven Deluxe is a nice looking ride. It's fairly expensive too, at $699.00 MSRP.

 

[The Shirt]

Kilroy-
You are so in the know so I thought I would ask. Do you know of a place that I could order a red/white vintage schwinn seat? I'm fine with with a reproduction or an original but have had very little luck on ebay. I've been looking for months now. Maybe with the summer there might be a chance a swap meet but my seat currently it atrocious!

 

[KilroyCD]

Kilroy-
You are so in the know so I thought I would ask. Do you know of a place that I could order a red/white vintage schwinn seat? I'm fine with with a reproduction or an original but have had very little luck on ebay. I've been looking for months now. Maybe with the summer there might be a chance a swap meet but my seat currently it atrocious!

I think your best bet would be to contact Memory Lane Classics. They do have a website ( http://www.memorylane-classics.com ), but it only contains a fraction of what is in their catalog. Their phone number is: (419) 832-3040.
Otherwise, keep checking eBay, and broaden your search. I'm assuming you might be searching under Schwinn seat or Schwinn saddle, but Mesinger made those seats for Schwinn, so you should also search under Mesinger seat and Mesinger saddle.

 

[CopperNY]

my recreational ride, a Giant Simple Single. one speed, coaster brake:

and the wife's Electra Amsterdam:

both "neo-retro" i know, but there's a '46 Western Flyer in my garage, in parts, waiting for tires and a nice day to be reborn.

 

[anabolina]

my recreational ride, a Giant Simple Single. one speed, coaster brake:

and the wife's Electra Amsterdam:

both "neo-retro" i know, but there's a '46 Western Flyer in my garage, in parts, waiting for tires and a nice day to be reborn.

Ooh, they're lovely. Good luck getting the Western Flyer together.

I thought about one the the Schwiin Classics, but they all have coaster brakes and I tired out several Treks and Schwins with the coasters and I can definitely say they aren't for me. I like having the option to rest my legs while going downhill.

 

[Lily Powers]

How I love the old cruiser bicycles! I enjoy seeing those bikes as much as guys love looking at cars. My Raleigh cruiser is a step-thru and is easily rideable in a skirt or dress, but I'd love to find a wire skirt guard (no luck on memorylane-classics) for it. Even without one, it's the most fun in the world to hop on that bike and take off from work for lunch on it.

 

[CopperNY]

right there with you. i prefer bikes to cars. i'll take an ugly car, as long as it's reliable, but a bike has to have 'style'.

i don't even mind the calls of "Hey, Pee Wee Herman! nice bike!"

this typically being from riders of mountain bikes in the $5K+ range that are curiously devoid of the slightest sign of dirt, on a flat/paved trail...

 

[CopperNY]

I thought about one the the Schwiin Classics, but they all have coaster brakes and I tired out several Treks and Schwins with the coasters and I can definitely say they aren't for me. I like having the option to rest my legs while going downhill.

if you find a bike you really like, any decent shop should be able to put in a freewheel and fit a handbrake.

 

[der schneider]

I'll have to post pics of my daisey and my krout bike.

 

[Lily Powers]

I thought about one the the Schwiin Classics, but they all have coaster brakes and I tired out several Treks and Schwins with the coasters and I can definitely say they aren't for me. I like having the option to rest my legs while going downhill.

I am a bit unskilled with the coaster brakes myself and prefer handbrakes over over coaster brakes (and embarrassing tumbles on the sidewalk). I gave my boyfriend a newer Classic Schwinn with a tank. It's gorgeous. I tried to get handbrakes on it, but to so would have altered the look of the bike, due to the size of the tires and the fenders. I opted to keep the coaster brakes rather than lose the look, and so far he hasn't had any accidents.

 

[Lily Powers]

right there with you. i prefer bikes to cars. i'll take an ugly car, as long as it's reliable, but a bike has to have 'style'.

i don't even mind the calls of "Hey, Pee Wee Herman! nice bike!"

this typically being from riders of mountain bikes in the $5K+ range that are curiously devoid of the slightest sign of dirt, on a flat/paved trail...

Ah, my usual remarks are, "Hey, Dorothy! Where's Toto?" Typically from the folks who are going no further than the elevator to the building cafeteria.

 

[KilroyCD]

I've been cheating lately...

I haven't been doing a lot of pedalling, so I haven't been getting as much exercise. I've been tinkering with, adding stuff to and riding my Whizzer Motorbike lately. I figure this is the penultimate configuration, as I intend to change from the center stand to a rear drop stand sometime soon. Otherwise, everything else is as I want it. Rather '50s retro, eh?