# Just got a 2 Owner Grey Ghost - October 71 frame!



## creebobby (Aug 8, 2022)

I just purchased this survivor Ghost from the daughter of the second owner.

Honestly, I didn’t think I’d ever get a Grey Ghost!

This bike spent all its life in a cul de sac a few miles from where my mom grew up in Lake Highlands.
It’s an October 71 frame!
The bike is all original, and both tires have ‘9 1’ molded into them.
Paint, decals, chainguard screen all show a bike that was loved and ridden and well cared for.

Chrome needs light speckles polished off but is overall very very good.
One of the pedals is missing a reflector - that’s the only thing I see that’s missing.

Honestly, I’m a little in shock!  I feel giddy when I look at it and it’s hard to believe it’s real.


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## THE STIG (Aug 8, 2022)

Ooof


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## schwinnguyinohio (Aug 8, 2022)

Great find !!


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## stoney (Aug 8, 2022)

Great bike. Congrats


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## Mr. Monkeyarms (Aug 8, 2022)




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## DonChristie (Aug 8, 2022)

Congrats on a great score!


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## nick tures (Aug 8, 2022)

wow nice score !!


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## creebobby (Aug 10, 2022)

I got asked via pm how I came to be the buyer.  Thought I’d share the details here, too:

The bike was listed on eBay with a few pics and not much description. And it was listed as pickup only.  1100 starting bid, 1,500 buy it now.

I was at a stoplight, looking at a Stingray frame on ebay and the ghost popped up below in the ‘you might also be interested in this’ section.

I pulled the car over. I looked at the pics and pretty quickly could tell it was real.

The listing was up for maybe a half hour before I ‘bought it now’.

I messaged the seller right away and she messaged me with her phone number. We talked for a while - she knew she sold it for less than its value but mostly wanted it to go to someone who would love it as much as her dad did and who could pick it up in person.
Her dad bought it from a neighbor across the street in the 70s after their kid didn’t want it any more. She said her dad absolutely loved it and always made sure it stayed in working order. Other than having the Ghost he wasn’t a bike guy or collector. His other cool old thing was a really pretty 1920s Victrola. He died seven and a half years ago and she was selling it now because her mom recently moved into assisted living and she’s working to get the house cleared out.

I told her my history with Schwinns and Krates - I had a second hand Lemon Peeler as a kid and a handful of project Stingrays as an adult.
She lives out of state and so I had to wait two weeks until she was at her parents’ house here in Texas.
She said she got lots of messages in the mean time from others wanting to buy it. She was kind enough to honor my purchase and sell it to me.


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## creebobby (Aug 10, 2022)

Can’t wait to get it cleaned, adjusted and ride it.

Does anybody ride their original krates?
I should maybe replace and save the original tires with new rubber if I plan on riding it?


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## Coyote (Aug 10, 2022)

Nice original!
Sounds like you are going to appreciate it just as much as the second owner.
Best of Luck 🍀


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## coasterbrakejunkie1969 (Aug 10, 2022)

creebobby said:


> replace and save the original tires with new rubber if I plan on riding it?



I would , nice bike 


Coyote said:


> Nice original!
> Sounds like you are going to appreciate it just as much as the second owner.
> Best of Luck 🍀


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## schwinnbikebobb (Aug 10, 2022)

Maybe a seat also.


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## nick tures (Aug 10, 2022)

yeah i would, get another pan and send it to joe crawford


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## Gimletbikes (Aug 10, 2022)

Mr. Monkeyarms said:


> View attachment 1677003



Best reaction gif evahhhh


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## Alan Brase (Aug 22, 2022)

Extra points for photo of you doing a wheelie.  A slightly younger friend I mentored 50 years back just posted his wheelie photos on his Stingray on his 68th (?) birthday.


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## Grey Ghost (Oct 23, 2022)

creebobby said:


> Can’t wait to get it cleaned, adjusted and ride it.
> 
> Does anybody ride their original krates?
> I should maybe replace and save the original tires with new rubber if I plan on riding it?



I plan on riding mine when it’s done.
I put some stiffer springs in the shocks and got a longer seatpost to hopefully raise the banana enough to extend my legs to the proper riding position.

Don’t remember Sting-Rays being so small......

I must resist the urge to do a wheelie though since a crash could cost me more in hospital bills than  the nicest original Krate on planet earth.

Never learned how to do good wheelies anyway.
I could ride a unicycle though.

Weird, I know.

I think I have the original front tire on mine.
Took some 404 to it and it seems pretty supple.

My rear orangeline Slik is new, so I’m not worried about it.
I plan on doing so many white, smokey burnouts on my awesome Krate that the rubber probably won’t last longer than your average Dodge Demon rears.

I haven’t had a bike with recommended tire pressure this low, (35psi), in 50 years.
Heck, I haven’t owned a bike that took less than 100psi in over 30 years.

I could inflate these Krate tires with my mouth.

But enough about racing slick, dragster tires.

The Ghost was about the prettiest Krate IMO. Sort of grown up and matured.

Enjoy your new find!


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## Grey Ghost (Oct 25, 2022)

creebobby said:


> Can’t wait to get it cleaned, adjusted and ride it.
> 
> Does anybody ride their original krates?
> I should maybe replace and save the original tires with new rubber if I plan on riding it?



You got me to thinking.

My front tire is an original. It’s in pretty good shape but has a few very small cracks on one sidewall.  I really had to look for them they were so small.
However, I started to wonder about the integrity of the nylon underneath. 

I had taken it off the rim to work on the front brake and noticed that the beads, although still intact, were pretty dry, discolored and a bit crumbly in spots.

I went ahead and bought a NOS Kenda front tire.

I would really hate to have my old tire blow out a sidewall or disintegrate while riding at any speed.

I had replaced my knobby rear with a correct color line Slik so I thought it made sense to install new rubber on both ends.


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## DonChristie (Oct 25, 2022)

A bicycle’s first reason of existence is to be ridden! Ride on!


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