# My ongoing Higgins Color Flow clean up.



## Crazy8

Looking for advice on cleaning this tank.  I've already taken the bottom chrome pieces off and they are currently in a low mixture of oxalic acid.  Checking every couple hours and removing lose rust as it goes, and they are looking good.  My main question is the tank.  It has some rust spots on it, and it looks like it has little spider cracks in the paint.  How should I go about cleaning it up without damaging the paint?  Not having any luck getting the jewel reflectors off, so if I dip it in Oxalic Acid and do 15 minute cleanings, will that hurt the jewels?  That's if, Oxalic Acid is the right way to go in cleaning this tank.


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## HIGGINSFOREVER

You dip that tank and you will destroy the decals.Looks like a good soap and water then a little car polish will work on the tank.Also i would not take a chance dipping the jewels


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## jpromo

HIGGINSFOREVER said:


> You dip that tank and you will destroy the decals.Looks like a good soap and water then a little car polish will work on the tank.Also i would not take a chance dipping the jewels




I wouldn't dip this either. Rust isn't the end of the world; it won't get any worse if you don't keep it outside for a winter and it gives character. I use Meguiars Color-X restorer for paint. It's a very light cut but it brings back the luster and color.

Here's my tank in its finished state.


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## Crazy8

HIGGINSFOREVER said:


> You dip that tank and you will destroy the decals.Looks like a good soap and water then a little car polish will work on the tank.Also i would not take a chance dipping the jewels





Thanks for the info.  Will do.


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## Crazy8

jpromo said:


> I wouldn't dip this either. Rust isn't the end of the world; it won't get any worse if you don't keep it outside for a winter and it gives character. I use Meguiars Color-X restorer for paint. It's a very light cut but it brings back the luster and color.
> 
> Here's my tank in its finished state.





Nice.  Exact same bike as mine (minus the fenders and rear carrier.)

The painted parts of my bike are so nice and clean, but the chrome is really bad.


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## Crazy8

*What am I doing wrong?*

Seems like every time I mess with chrome, I fail.  Is this common when dealing with O'Acid?  Or is this just as good as it gets?  

12 hour dip, checking every 2 - 3 hours.


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## jpromo

It has done its job to perfection and the rust has all been removed. What's left is just chrome peppering and that is an irremediable fact of life. Mine look the same.


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## Fltwd57

HIGGINSFOREVER said:


> You dip that tank and you will destroy the decals.Looks like a good soap and water then a little car polish will work on the tank.Also i would not take a chance dipping the jewels




The original "J.C. Higgins" scripts are not decals, they are silk-screened onto the tank, but carefully cleaning around them is still advisable. 

As Gene said, soap, water and a good polish will do wonders on the paint and a careful polish by hand will work on the jewels as well. Try some diluted Simple Green in the soap/water mix for a little extra cleaning power.


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## Crazy8

Awesome.  Thanks for the help everyone.  I'll keep posting photos as I go.  The bee hive is currently soaking, but it was pretty bad, so I'm not expecting a great outcome.


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## jpromo

Crazy8 said:


> Awesome.  Thanks for the help everyone.  I'll keep posting photos as I go.  The bee hive is currently soaking, but it was pretty bad, so I'm not expecting a great outcome.




It's got great potential. Original paint fenders and racks turn up from time to time. I saw that the seat underneath that cover is original too. You've already got the hard (and expensive) part to acquire in the tank. If the paint comes out nicely, one thing to consider is some chrome upgrading. Not to rechrome, but to buy original parts in better shape. Then sell what you have for a few bucks and voila.


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## Crazy8

Someone I know locally is looking into chrome plating for me.  I got this bike really cheap, so if the plating is under $150, I'm getting it done.  I cleaned the top bar on the frame and it looks new.  However, the hand painted lines have faded a bit.  

The beehive is done.  As suspected, not a great outcome, but the rust is gone.

Time to dip the handlebars, neck, and truss parts.  Rest of the bike can be seen here:
http://thecabe.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?54695-Nice-Higgins-Color-Flow-pick-up







BEFORE


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## Jennifer Parker

The meguiar's ultimate compound works well with smoothing the spidered pain without lifting the paint off. Using it on my 50's higgins right now.


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## jpromo

In my humble opinion, I'd resist the temptation to rechrome everything. Personally, seeing fresh chrome on a patina bicycle makes me think of dub rims on a Monte. :o


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## Crazy8

Been working on the springer truss parts and the handebar/neck stuff.  Handlebars and trusses are almost done, some of the other stuff came out really nice, neck, not so much.


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## jpromo

Crazy8 said:


> Been working on the springer truss parts and the handebar/neck stuff.  Handlebars and trusses are almost done, some of the other stuff came out really nice, neck, not so much.




Gooseneck is common; I have one but the chrome is no better.

This bike definitely warrants to be put back straight. At least to get the fenders and rack. The light is a thorn in all of our sides. I've ultimately assembled one for mine after finding the halves separate. Nice pair of fenders on ebay right now.. too bad the seller has priced them at about 3 times what they're worth. Oh well.. they turn up. Good luck!


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## rollfaster

*I agree*



jpromo said:


> In my humble opinion, I'd resist the temptation to rechrome everything. Personally, seeing fresh chrome on a patina bicycle makes me think of dub rims on a Monte. :o




That is a great way to put it.well said.rob.


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## Crazy8

Yeah, I saw those fenders and giggled a bit.  

After thinking about it, I agree with your opinion on chrome plating.

So far, I need to upgrade:
Handlebars
Gooseneck
Crank Arm (chrome is peeling off all over it.)
BeeHive

Good thing is 3 of the 4 are not too expensive.  Don't know how much the beehive will be by itself.

I finished the springer truss arms and handlebars last night.  Handlebars are as toasty as the gooseneck.  Springer truss arms came out nice.
I have a really bad right shoulder and it's kind of beat from scrubbing all day yesterday, but I'm gonna keep going.  Hoping the wheels come out nice.  Hoping to finish it all up during this snow storm.

View attachment 140303


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## jpromo

Oh, I forgot to mention; the rims are not chrome plated, but zinc. Any oxalic acid bath will remove the zinc plating. They're almost impossible to clean rust without destroying the finish, essentially leaving them bare metal. Your rims don't look as bad as mine did though.


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## Crazy8

jpromo said:


> Oh, I forgot to mention; the rims are not chrome plated, but zinc. Any oxalic acid bath will remove the zinc plating. They're almost impossible to clean rust without destroying the finish, essentially leaving them bare metal. Your rims don't look as bad as mine did though.




Ah!  Good thing my shoulder was just too damn soar to work on it.  I wanted to put them in O this morning, but just don't have the strength.

Do you think WD40 or Coke and aluminum foil will be ok?


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## jpromo

Crazy8 said:


> Ah!  Good thing my shoulder was just too damn soar to work on it.  I wanted to put them in O this morning, but just don't have the strength.
> 
> Do you think WD40 or Coke and aluminum foil will be ok?




Remember that you can only get them so nice. If there is rust, that means the material has been compromised and you can only take it back to the extent that it is compromised (like how you beehive is as good as it can get).

Any kind of scrubbing will likely affect it; it's a good finish as far as rust prevention goes, but doesn't have any hardness to stand up to cleaning like chrome does. A light rubbing with WD-40 and fine steel wool would be the safest bet.


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## Crazy8

Will be working on the seat, chainring, pedals, hubs and spokes today.  Crank is too far gone to clean, so if anyone has a correct one, PM me.

Question is, do I drop the seat hardware in O'Acid, or should I do it another way?  And what should I clean the actual seat with?


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## Crazy8

After a couple days of healing my shoulder, I'm finally getting back to the bike.  Everything is taken apart now.

I have need people's opinion on an idea I have for the wheels.  The frame is a 2 tone, as you see in the photos below.  I was going to try and find a set of ballooners that matches one of the two greens on this bike.  Then, since the wheels are zinc plated, I was going to have a friend who works in a paint shop, clean up the zinc plating, primer and paint the hoops the other green that is on the bike.  What do you guys think?

Just washed the frame.  Gonna try to get off as much of the rust as I can before waxing.


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## jpromo

If you dip the seat core in oxy acid, it may just rust right back up because the paint protecting it is gone. The only way to really do anything about that would be to blast and paint the seat frame. I wouldn't even bother unless you're going for a partial restoration. As far as the seat cover goes, I just clean mine with hand cleaner. Wouldn't work for leather seats, but these oil cloth ones take well to it.

It looks like the frame is coming back nice enough to just clean everything else and accept some parts as they are. I wouldn't touch the rims either. Yours are nicer than most and it may end up being too much green. If you really want to do something about them, plating shops will do zinc and I think it should be quite affordable. You can even plate your own parts with an electrolysis kit. I'd personally save the money and focus on the original paint rack and fenders; those are the items that will make the bike. You asked for thoughts and those are mine :o


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## Crazy8

jpromo said:


> If you dip the seat core in oxy acid, it may just rust right back up because the paint protecting it is gone. The only way to really do anything about that would be to blast and paint the seat frame. I wouldn't even bother unless you're going for a partial restoration. As far as the seat cover goes, I just clean mine with hand cleaner. Wouldn't work for leather seats, but these oil cloth ones take well to it.
> 
> It looks like the frame is coming back nice enough to just clean everything else and accept some parts as they are. I wouldn't touch the rims either. Yours are nicer than most and it may end up being too much green. If you really want to do something about them, plating shops will do zinc and I think it should be quite affordable. You can even plate your own parts with an electrolysis kit. I'd personally save the money and focus on the original paint rack and fenders; those are the items that will make the bike. You asked for thoughts and those are mine :o




I didn't do much with the seat.  Cleaned up the springs all nice and shiny.  Cleaned the bottom plate between the hardware and the seat with wd40 and a piece of aluminum foil.  Hardware soaked for a bit, then I hit it with the copper bristle brush.  Was careful cleaning those side pieces so I didn't hurt the cloth, but they didn't come out so good.  Probably going to buy a bench buffer/grinder this weekend to help with polishing parts.

I put the chain in degreaser for 3 hours, cleaned it off, and now it's sitting in vinegar.

Probably gonna pick up some mineral oil to try and remove the rust from the frame.  Then hit it with several coats of wax.

Other than that, I gotta clean the hubs and spokes and buy a set of tires and tubes and I should be good to go.

Already working on buying some replacement parts.


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## Crazy8

Jennifer Parker said:


> The meguiar's ultimate compound works well with smoothing the spidered pain without lifting the paint off. Using it on my 50's higgins right now.




Will this stuff be good for helping get the rust off the frame?  Was also going to pick up some mineral oil.


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## Jennifer Parker

Crazy8 said:


> Will this stuff be good for helping get the rust off the frame?  Was also going to pick up some mineral oil.




With 0000 steel wool, the meguiar's, and patience I did get most of the rust of the bike easily without making the paint in the rust zones worse. WD-40 and the wool work okay, but not great. The compound was better, and not as aggressive as other things.


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## jpromo

Crazy8 said:


> I didn't do much with the seat.  Cleaned up the springs all nice and shiny.  Cleaned the bottom plate between the hardware and the seat with wd40 and a piece of aluminum foil.  Hardware soaked for a bit, then I hit it with the copper bristle brush.  Was careful cleaning those side pieces so I didn't hurt the cloth, but they didn't come out so good.  Probably going to buy a bench buffer/grinder this weekend to help with polishing parts.
> 
> I put the chain in degreaser for 3 hours, cleaned it off, and now it's sitting in vinegar.
> 
> Probably gonna pick up some mineral oil to try and remove the rust from the frame.  Then hit it with several coats of wax.
> 
> Other than that, I gotta clean the hubs and spokes and buy a set of tires and tubes and I should be good to go.
> 
> Already working on buying some replacement parts.




Learning quick I see! All sound like good plans. Looking forward to seeing it all finished.


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## Crazy8

Yesterday, I did a once over with Maguire's Ultimate Compound on the frame.
Today, one coat of Mothers California Gold Brazilian Carnuba.  Gonna let it harden and do another coat tonight, then another coat tomorrow.
In the meantime, I still have to wax the fork, which is next.  And at some point over the next day or two I have to do the wheels, spokes and hubs, and finish cleaning up and waxing the tank and jewels.
Then I gotta go over all the parts again to see if I can improve anything, replace any really bad nuts and bolts, and hopefully, it will be time to put it back together again.


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## HIGGINSFOREVER

Crazy8 said:


> Yesterday, I did a once over with Maguire's Ultimate Compound on the frame.
> Today, one coat of Mothers California Gold Brazilian Carnuba.  Gonna let it harden and do another coat tonight, then another coat tomorrow.
> In the meantime, I still have to wax the fork, which is next.  And at some point over the next day or two I have to do the wheels, spokes and hubs, and finish cleaning up and waxing the tank and jewels.
> Then I gotta go over all the parts again to see if I can improve anything, replace any really bad nuts and bolts, and hopefully, it will be time to put it back together again.
> View attachment 141697View attachment 141699View attachment 141700




Looking good,That higgins badge has to be the best looking badge used on the later balloon tire bikes.


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## Crazy8

Now I'm in a bind.  Spokes are very rusty and I can't remove a lot of them because they are rusted to the nipples.

Any suggestions?


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## Ozark Flyer

Water heater catch pan full of Evaporust.  Pull the axle and emerse the entire wheel.  After rust removal if you need to tighten the spokes you can spray the nipples with penetrating oil once a day for a week.  That should loosen them.  Turn it easy.


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## Crazy8

Ozark Flyer said:


> Water heater catch pan full of Evaporust.  Pull the axle and emerse the entire wheel.  After rust removal if you need to tighten the spokes you can spray the nipples with penetrating oil once a day for a week.  That should loosen them.  Turn it easy.




Will evaporust hurt the zinc plated wheels?


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## Ozark Flyer

ER works only on rust.  If rust has gotten under the zink plating, the plating will lift as the rust is removed.


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## Crazy8

Working on the wheels.  Yeah, they are rusty, but the non rusty parts come out nice.  Took me about an hour to do half the hoop.  80% of the spokes can't be helped, but I'm leaving them on for patina's sake.  They kind of look good if you hit them with polish and a 0000 steel wool.  Fun part is cleaning the hub while it's still on the bike.  Getting between the spokes is a job and a half.

All the jewels and jewel housings are clean.  Gotta work on the tank.

After that, a once over of all the parts to see if I can make them look better than they currently are.  Then I should be able to put it back together again.


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## Jennifer Parker

What do you shine your chrome up with?


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## jpromo

Crazy8 said:


> Getting between the spokes is a job and a half.




Story of my life. It never gets easier either! I'm at the point where it's less irritating to unlace a wheel, clean it, then lace it right back up. Can't exactly be done with stuck spokes though.

To go through a bike like you're doing creates a special bond. Once it's done, you will respect it that much more because of the time and care that went into it.


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## Crazy8

Jennifer Parker said:


> What do you shine your chrome up with?




Hagerty Copper Brass and Metal Polish.


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## Jennifer Parker

Thank you.


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## rollfaster

*Keep going young man, you're almost there*

Great job along the way.rob.


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## Crazy8

jpromo said:


> Story of my life. It never gets easier either! I'm at the point where it's less irritating to unlace a wheel, clean it, then lace it right back up. Can't exactly be done with stuck spokes though.
> 
> To go through a bike like you're doing creates a special bond. Once it's done, you will respect it that much more because of the time and care that went into it.




Yeah, once I'm done, I'll be looking for the fenders and carrier (at reasonable prices).  Will also work on upgrades on the bad parts, which I might be getting a decent bee hive today.

Tomorrow will cut my bicycle hobby time as I'm taking someone's sports card collection and selling them on a commission basis.  About 200,000 cards from the 40s,50s, 60s, and 70s.  After the good ones are graded, probably a few million total value.  Gonna take a year or two to get them graded and sell them all.  But at 20% commission, it's well worth it.

Going to find one person in my area who's willing to take my '48 Monark Super Deluxe ($500), '53 Columbia 3 Star ($400), 100 Anniv Deluxe Cruiser with Nexus 7 Internal($800), and 2004 Deluxe 7 w/Nexus 7 Internal($400), in trade for a really nice March 1972 Orange Krate (if I can find one), which is the bike I had when I was a kid.  After that, all I'll have left is the Color Flow and the Krate.

I also have this coming in...


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## Crazy8

*Steering Tube Bent*

Just a small issue, but any suggestions in straightening this out?


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## Jennifer Parker

Guy I bought a bike off clamped the forks in a vise with a spacer so they wouldn't warp. Then he put a pipe just small enough to go in the tube, and straightened it out that way.


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## Crazy8

*I've lost a nut!*

I lost one of the machine screw hex nuts for the rocker axles on my Higgins Color Flow.  I know I took 4 off, I know where I put them, but for whatever reason, I currently only have 3 of them.  I've spent the last 2 hours combing everywhere in my basement.  I didn't put it on the wrong part because the only part I've put back on the bike so far is the crank and chainring.  I've checked pockets, sweatshirts, everywhere.  I went to the hardware store and they said, "good luck finding that one".  Need help!  If you have one, please help me out.


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## Crazy8

*Getting there!*

I have a few hardware pieces soaking.

Still have to do the back wheel and tank.  Hoping to get everything done this weekend.


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## Ozark Flyer

In the last shot it looks like one of my neighbors watching me thinking "there's that crazy guy next door taking pictures of old bicycles again".

The project is looking really good!  Did you find the nut?


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## Crazy8

Ozark Flyer said:


> In the last shot it looks like one of my neighbors watching me thinking "there's that crazy guy next door taking pictures of old bicycles again".




That's my wife, and the funny thing is, she almost thinking the exact thing you said.

"There's my husband wasting his time on that damn bike again!"


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## twomorestrokes

Interesting that I ran across this thread, as I am the new owner of this Color Flow. I found this while searching for fenders and a rack. I just happened to catch Jon at the right time over at RRB while wanting to start a CF project. I was intrigued at the "before" photo and was looking forward to bringing it back to life. Oh well, looks like he's been doing the cleanup right. I'm a big fan of OA on chrome. Bike has the perfect amount of patina for my taste. I'm anxiously waiting for the bike to arrive and will post pics of the reassembly while searching for the missing fenders and rack.


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## Crazy8




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## twomorestrokes

Crazy8 said:


>




Hahahaha! Sorry Jon. But glad to see you picked up on that cherry Delta light. I was watching that too. Up till now all I've built and collected are Schwinns, but I've been after a CF since the first time I saw one. Now I've got to unload a couple bikes to recoup and try to get the missing parts for this bike.


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## HIGGINSFOREVER

Crazy8 said:


> I lost one of the machine screw hex nuts for the rocker axles on my Higgins Color Flow.  I know I took 4 off, I know where I put them, but for whatever reason, I currently only have 3 of them.  I've spent the last 2 hours combing everywhere in my basement.  I didn't put it on the wrong part because the only part I've put back on the bike so far is the crank and chainring.  I've checked pockets, sweatshirts, everywhere.  I went to the hardware store and they said, "good luck finding that one".  Need help!  If you have one, please help me out.
> 
> View attachment 142453View attachment 142454View attachment 142455



I think that's the same as a front axle nut


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## twomorestrokes

Threads are the same but hex size an width is different. 

Got the bike delivered yesterday and mounted some of it on a stand to make plans on proceeding. Jon did a very nice job on cleaning things up with what he had to work with. I'm going to assemble the bike so I can enjoy it and keep my searches going for the missing fenders and rack, and pick up some nicer odds and ends along the way. Trying to decide what to do with the wheels. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

Any tips on close matches for the green and gold paint shades in case I run across fenders in the wrong color?


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## twomorestrokes

Very slow progress, but I DID find a rack for the bike. Assembling pieces as I get them, then I'll decide what to do with it appearance wise. The rack is in the wrong colors and if the fenders I find aren't green then at least some partial repaint is in order.

Escuse the messy shop... been a long winter.


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## twomorestrokes

*I'd like opinions please...*

...on these wheels. Robbed them off a cheap Murray Westport I have hanging around. Chrome drop centers in nice condition. With all of the patina that this bike shows, would I be better off using the original rusty wheels as they are, using these, or lacing these rims and spokes into the original hubs and going that route?


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## Crazy8

twomorestrokes said:


> ...on these wheels. Robbed them off a cheap Murray Westport I have hanging around. Chrome drop centers in nice condition. With all of the patina that this bike shows, would I be better off using the original rusty wheels as they are, using these, or lacing these rims and spokes into the original hubs and going that route?




Good for now wheels!  Just wait, a nice set of Higgins wheels will pop up eventually.


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## twomorestrokes

My fender option fell through. I'm sure many of you were aware of the Color Flow fender auction from lowluxbikes. They were overpriced at 300. After I started a conversation with him expressing interest, he lowered the price to 255. I stayed in contact with him and offered him 200 (against my better judgement) and was declined. Logged onto eBay yesterday to make him the same offer again and saw that he sold them to someone else on Sunday for the same price I had been offering!  Heavy on the "low" in lowluxbikes.


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## rusty frame

*Good work.*

Thanks for all of the posts on your restoration.  Doesn't even look like the same bike.  I've taken some notes that will help me when I get started working on some old beaters that I've been collecting.  Jim   rusty spoke


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## twomorestrokes

*Help with paint color*

I'd like to paint the rack in the correct colors but don't really want to refinish the tank. Anyone have any suggestions on matching the gold? It's really more of a tan. I haven't found anything that comes close.

Or should I just paint the tank and all of the other gold so it matches?


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## twomorestrokes

Picked up a pair of pretty straight fenders at Ann Arbor yesterday. The rear one was bright blue so I covered it with a quick green cover. They're just sitting on there so I can get a preview...


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## Crazy8

That bike looks so good it hurts.


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## bicycle larry

*fenders*

hay way to go nice to see you got the fenders. from bicycle larry


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## twomorestrokes

Thanks guys. Now I've reached a personal dilemma. I sure wish the bike had the original fenders and rack because finding pieces in the same colors is turning out to be nearly impossible. I was preferring an original bike showing the signs of 60 years of use bit ended up with a green bike with bright blue rear fender, rusty silver front fender and an aqua and white rack. After a quick color change on the parts, now the original tank looks out of place? Input?


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## Crazy8

If anything bothered me, it would be the unbalanced look.  The book rack isn't parallel with the bottom line made by the chainguard and fender brace.  The front fender brace to the back fender isn't exactly straight either, but that seems to be normal from photos I've seen.

As far as the new paint with old paint.  Ride it the way it is until some original paints show up at a reasonable price, or do some custom aging.

Really like the pinstriped fender and painted wheels on this one.  Without copying it, how about some tank matching stripes and wheels?


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## twomorestrokes

Agreed. The lines need to be straight. The rear rack is just sitting on the bike so angles Ares correct at this point. I've also seen a lot of these where the front brace angle is not level. I'll have to work on that as it will bother me. Personally I don't care for the colored rims unless they are white so I'm good with the look of the wheels for now. Going to hold off on doing g anything with the tank for awhile but with the original frame paint so shiny and fresh paint on the fenders and rack it really brings attention to it.


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## twomorestrokes

Interesting that you showed yeshoneys CF with the green wheels. There is another bike just like it on eBay this morning. Almost thought it was the same bike but it is not. Were green rims available on these bikes? That's a lot of green for me.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=201082081670&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:US:1123


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## Crazy8

twomorestrokes said:


> Interesting that you showed yeshoneys CF with the green wheels. There is another bike just like it on eBay this morning. Almost thought it was the same bike but it is not. Were green rims available on these bikes? That's a lot of green for me.
> 
> http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=201082081670&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:US:1123




I just picked it out of a group of CF photos on Bing.  Didn't know it was his.   No clue about the wheels, but it seems like a custom job to me.  The wheels are zinc plated, so cleaning is an issue.  Painting them was probably a better alternative than getting them plated again.


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## rollfaster

*Amazing work!*

You've really made this bike look great. Super great.


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## twomorestrokes

*Rear rack fit*

So I got the rear rack bolted on and it still doesn't fit quite horizontal. Did the brackets change at all from '50 to '53? Or is there a difference between girls and boys racks as far as fit? I can always slot out the mounting holes a little but am I missing something?


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## Crazy8

If you look at the other bikes, it looks like the seat post clamp is up higher.  Maybe the original owner needed the seat lower, so he removed the rack and fenders and shaved down the down tube to lower the seat.

Going to need some type of bracket above the seat post clamp.


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## twomorestrokes

The seat post has not been altered, as the end of the tubing still wears the original green paint. However, I think you're onto something Jon. Prior to '53 the seat post clamp was part of the bike frame, whereas the '53 models were changed where the top of the frame tube was slotted and used a separate seat post clamp. I'll bet that the front mounting bracket on the rack was shorter on the '53 models because of the change. I'll figure something out without having to mount the rack above the clamp.

Look closely at the photos below. The first bike is a '53 model and the second bike is a '50 I believe. Looks like the front bracket is longer on the older model doesn't it?


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## Fltwd57

twomorestrokes said:


> ... Did the brackets change at all from '50 to '53?




Yes. You have a '51-'52 rack on a '53 frame.


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## twomorestrokes

Fltwd57 said:


> Yes. You have a '51-'52 rack on a '53 frame.




That's what I figured. This is my first non-Schwinn build so I'm new at the "off brands" LOL. Wish I woulda known about the difference because this rack was NOT cheap. Live and learn.

To me the fun is in the search for parts and the build. However, this is usually more costly than buying someone else's completed bike!


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## twomorestrokes

*Modified rack*

I found the correct rack on eBay but wasn't ready to spend another $110 plus shipping so I went after mine with a cut off wheel and grinder. Better.


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