Rat Rod Schwinn Cruiser

[Pinci]

Hello all, I'm a new member here on the CABE from SoCal and I thought you Schwinn gurus might like to check out my ride. Now before some of you purists beat me to death because the bike isn't all original, hear me out. I bought the bike when I was 12 years old (17 now) for a couple months worth of chores at a local swap meet. At the time i knew close to 0 about bikes besides how to patch tubes and change tires and was just looking for something to ride to school. I got lucky and the bike ended up being a real Schwinn with a couple cool extra parts. I don't know what I saw in the bike, it was a sort of frankenbike, pieced together from whatever would fit and spray painted a white with green tires. It's been through many variations over the past few years, but I think this is it's final form.

Specs:
1980 Schwinn Cantilever frame
26 x 1.50 Vintage Aluminum Weinmann rims
ThickSlick tires
Bendix single speed hub
Schwinn "sweetheart" skiptooth sprocket
Persons USA seat
Wald USA pedals (reflectors and plastic removed)
Schwinn "Racer" chain guard (man was it a pita to get it to clear the skiptooth sprocket)
Handlebars (I was told these were off of a 50s Schwinn, but I have no idea as they are unmarked. Input welcome!)
All Schwinn hardware and bearings were used (I tried to use strictly quality parts throughout the build, no reproduction parts)

Late 70s Caliente in the backround, picked it up 100% complete and original for $40 (Shimano FF system is interesting)

Sorry about the poor Iphone picture quality.

 

[mbstude]

Welcome to the cabe!

Your bars look a lot like the ones I've seen on some 40s and 50's Schwinn lightweights, though flipped upside down.

 

[Freqman1]

Welcome to the CABE. I don't think any "purists" are going to beat you up over using a '80 Schwinn frame! At 17 you may think this is old--I have Harley T-shirts older than you! As long as you enjoy it that's all that counts. V/r Shawn

 

[OldSkipTooth]

very nice! Stay fun and creative and only you will know your limit!

 

[OldSkipTooth]

If you put a spring saddle on there just for kicks you would have a cool looking "machine age" retro racer!

 

[Jaypem]

Cool bike! And interestingly my current everyday rider is a '72 Heavy Duti that also has a Racer guard.
I guess you could call it a rat rod (bobbed fender ) or a Frankenbike if you'd rather...

 

[Pinci]

Cool bike! And interestingly my current everyday rider is a '72 Heavy Duti that also has a Racer guard.
I guess you could call it a rat rod (bobbed fender ) or a Frankenbike if you'd rather...

View attachment 366185

Sweet bike!

 

[vincev]

Kool bike.The fact that you came to the Cabe shows you are interested in bikes.Eventually you may get the collecting disease.Always remember to choose quality over quantity.Better to have one nice bike than dozen worthless "space takers"

 

[Pinci]

You are definitely correct, there is no substitute for quality. I appreciate craftsmanship and that's what geared me towards Schwinn bicycles rather than your average Wallmart bike built overseas. As far as the collecting disease goes, I think I may already be infected. I recently picked up a few more bikes I may or may not have needed, but oh well