# Pre War Fleet Wing Identification Help-Serial Number



## mysticwriter (Apr 26, 2015)

Need assistance identifying CWC Pre War Fleet Wing? Here is what I know:Morrow Rear Hub dated 1939 (I1). Has a brass Fleet Wing head badge but having issues finding any serial number information, photos attached. Any thoughts?


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## bikewhorder (Apr 26, 2015)

Is that a 26" tire size?  I'm not sure I've ever seen a frame like that,


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## pedal_junky (Apr 26, 2015)

Down tube,  chain and seat stays look earlier, but the spacing on the double bars? Bikewhorder, could be 24" maybe? And no CWC stamp that I can see. What do you think Jason? Jeff? CWCman?


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## mysticwriter (Apr 26, 2015)

Thanks for the quick responses! The rain stopped and the sun finally returned to the Ohio Valley this morning, I found the serial number-D42028, may be easier to track down now. Not sure if this is going to become a summer project, just looking for the history! It does have 26" tires.


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## pedal_junky (Apr 26, 2015)

That serial puts it late 1938 production. Cool bike, have fun with it.


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## ratina (Apr 26, 2015)

Cool bike! If you decide to sell it, let me know.


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## Wayne Adam (Apr 26, 2015)

*Fleet Wing*

Nice find. Below are some pictures of my 1940 Fleet Wing. Mine still has the straight down tube. 
The space between your two top tubes seems to narrow to accept a tank, but I'm no CWC expert.
 Good luck with it!............Wayne


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## pedal_junky (Apr 26, 2015)

Nice bike Wayne, thanks for the reference. You're right about the top tubes, kind of unusual.


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## Jeff54 (Apr 26, 2015)

mysticwriter said:


> Thanks for the quick responses! The rain stopped and the sun finally returned to the Ohio Valley this morning, I found the serial number-D42028, may be easier to track down now. Not sure if this is going to become a summer project, just looking for the history! It does have 26" tires.




Yeah the drop stand ears and straight or fat drop bars are a pre-war giveaway.. And now I'm curious, I've a little pre-war  26 Western Flyer girly with odd numbers on it like that, and looks like the same fork set up too. But it's without a set of serial numbers so, where'd you find the numbers at? Can you post a photo that indicates the locations of all the numbers on it?


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## mysticwriter (Apr 26, 2015)

Added pics of the serial number found on the BB.

Thanks for the replies!


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## Jeff54 (Apr 26, 2015)

mysticwriter said:


> Added pics of the serial number found on the BB.
> 
> Thanks for the replies!




OK thanks, for the moment I had a delusion that you found the serial numbers on one of the other upper or side areas. 

My western flyer must be one of the unique, but is no different than any other 39-40-ish girl CWC bike, without a serial number set because; it's a 1 of a kind prototype, special limited edition, personally marked by Einstein himself while visiting the factory on April 1st. And the numbers on it are  a code containing the secrets to the universe, which you've got to have a Dick Tracy decoder to solve, that's so rare I'll need to donate it to a museum for a ka-zillion  dollar donation tax write off. .


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## CWCMAN (Apr 28, 2015)

I know I'm late to the party. I just saw this post.

I agree that the "D" serial dates it to 38 but I too am confused with that frame style.


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## jpromo (Apr 28, 2015)

CWCMAN said:


> I know I'm late to the party. I just saw this post.
> 
> I agree that the "D" serial dates it to 38 but I too am confused with that frame style.




I think we figured it out in another thread about this bike. cds2323 suggested it could be a short 17" frame double bar roadster. The '39 catalog mentions it, but only pictures a 19" frame with the typical parallel bars. The curvature of the bars is the same, but imagine a shorter seat mast, and the top bar slung down to meet the shorter mast, keeping the middle bar in position. The top of the seat mast is even below the peak of the fender, so I'm expecting if we got a measurement from center of the BB, to the top of the seat mast, it's about 17". It would explain why it looks a lot like a juvenile bike, with the unique proportions.

The serial suggests a very late '38 build, so I'd say it was definitely a '39 model sold in '39.


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## THEGOLDENGREEK (Apr 28, 2015)

Very cool bike but ive never seen the that style frame it almost looks like a roadster but not. Either way very cool bike!


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## cds2323 (Apr 28, 2015)

There was another Roadmaster DBR on here with the short seat although it was a 1936. On that bike the two upper bars remained parallel. I know that in 36 the upper bars on the bikes were closer together. By 39 the parallel bars were farther apart and could accommodate  a tank. 

I've not seen this frame before either. Not sure why the bars didn't remain parallel. Maybe since the bottom bar was lower by 39 it didn't look right. Or maybe it was done to mirror their more top of the line frame ( although that frame has a different rear triangle with curved stays). You can see the frames in the 39 catalog posted at Nostalgic.net.


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## cds2323 (Apr 28, 2015)

I also noticed that like the 36 double bar with the shorter seat mast, this bike also has a shorter head tube. On both bikes this brings the upper bars closer together. Still not sure why they didn't keep the bars parallel. 
Makes for a unique and cool frame.


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