# Any Sting-Ray collectors here from the 'first wave' of boomer restorations 1990s?



## butnut (Jun 1, 2020)

Being a 9 year old kid in '64, I was there, when the most beautiful kids bike rolled out. Made a lasting impression even though a new Sting Ray was too much money...especially since I had a twin...TWO bikes?! Nope. I had a pseudo Sears Spyder with Schwinn goodies later. I did find a Sting Ray frame under the house of the man who taught me upholstery around late 70s. Sat in my garage until the 90s. Picked up the first issue of Lowrider Bike magazine and bam, the fire was lit. I had a frame, and ideas to create my own lowrider. But I needed parts. My twin in Oregon had starting collecting Campus Green Sting Rays in every model, and one mint disc Apple. I think he told me about Sting Ray City, a small booklet with bike stories and classifieds...yes, snail mail, hand written parts lists and real photographs. Pre internet and eBay. Pete at Hyperformace StingRays was my main source for paint, seat kits and decls. Paid by postal money order...no PayPal either. My every first restoration, a '70 3speed, got in Liz Frieds Sting Ray book! I've always restored stuff, and I really got into the bikes. NOS parts were still plentiful and reasonable. I sold the Blue 3 speed and brought in the Yellow 3 speed, painted it, seat kit, decals and NOS parts. With shipping to Hawaii, it was about $300 per bike. My labor to paint, buy parts, put on seat kits and assemble really added up to a labor of love as I sold freshly restored bikes for around $700. The Lowrider crowd also brought out the OG guys, well parents really, who wanted original restorations. i probably did over 20 full restorations and a lot of frame only repaints and seat kits. Had a lot of fun, made a lot of friends and connections on the mainland and here. Got lot of rare parts from the Eki Cyclery, the Schwinn dealer here since 1911. Turned out to be a small side biz, and I was always painting or building bikes every weekend. Sold most of my show bikes, all my frames and parts by early 2000. And like my old guitars and amps...wish I kept 'em. Now I'm retired, wanna get my hands dirty again...working on a early BMX Sting Ray. So glad I found this site, got a few parts from the nice members here. Figured I can't be the only guy who started back then...


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## Rollo (Jun 1, 2020)

... Same time frame for me as you for restoring the Stingrays that I always lusted over as a kid in the 60's ... You could still find good Stingrays for reasonable money back in the late 90's ... Pete was a great source for paint and seats back in the day ... Restored dozens of Stingrays and Krates to show quality including new chrome plating ... I like you was selling them for less that a thousand ... although a couple of the Krates fetchedt 2k apiece ... One of my first ones was a '67 Deluxe 3 speed that I found for $150 bucks ... Sam from Chicago drove over 500 miles round trip to buy it from me after I posted it for sale on my local CL ...


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## jammer (Jun 1, 2020)

I started collecting in about '97, when stingrays could still be found at garage sales. I remember buying boys bikes at garage sales and passing on slik chiks for $30 with really nice seats. Lots of NOS parts on ebay, good times, I only restored one than mostly started collecting nice originals.


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## jammer (Jun 1, 2020)

I still have a couple of the Stingray City papers packed away somewhere.


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## butnut (Jun 1, 2020)

Me too! I have a lot of old letters with parts lists and photographs too...the good old days.


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## butnut (Jun 1, 2020)

Rollo said:


> ... Same time frame for me as you for restoring the Stingrays that I always lusted over as a kid in the 60's ... You could still find good Stingrays for reasonable money back in the late 90's ... Pete was a great source for paint and seats back in the day ... Restored dozens of Stingrays and Krates to show quality including new chrome plating ... I like you was selling them for less that a thousand ... although a couple of the Krates fetchedt 2k apiece ... One of my first ones was a '67 Deluxe 3 speed that I found for $150 bucks ... Sam from Chicago drove over 500 miles round trip to buy it from me after I posted it for sale on my local CL ...
> 
> View attachment 1204190



Kool! Yeah, I was the chrome guy too. Guess we did it for love! I remember prices exploded once crazy money was being thrown around on eBay.


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## mrg (Jun 1, 2020)

Same time frame for me, 1st used lime 63/4 when I was 9 in 65 and in the late 80's picked up a og 65 lime 2spd that I still have but never wanted a restored one, too many nice originals!, here's me on my 63/4 in 65 and the 65 I picked up 30 yrs ago & my og 64 replacement I picked up a few yrs ago. the 64 Violet SD just how I picked it up in the early 90's.


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## keithsbikes (Jun 2, 2020)

I was 13 when the first Sting-Rays came to the neighborhood in 1963, but I’d recently received a new Varsity which was also somewhat cutting edge then In Bountiful, Utah. When I got into old bikes 1992, I subscribed to Sting-Ray City News, but drifted into mostly ballooners until now. This week I was hot on an early Deluxe on eBay and prepared to pay up, but the sold price was surprisingly above what I expected. So now I am again in the market for an original paint Solo Polo era bike.


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## butnut (Jun 3, 2020)

keithsbikes said:


> I was 13 when the first Sting-Rays came to the neighborhood in 1963, but I’d recently received a new Varsity which was also somewhat cutting edge then In Bountiful, Utah. When I got into old bikes 1992, I subscribed to Sting-Ray City News, but drifted into mostly ballooners until now. This week I was hot on an early Deluxe on eBay and prepared to pay up, but the sold price was surprisingly above what I expected. So now I am again in the market for an original paint Solo Polo era bike.



Kool! My buddy Stu, did those funny cartoons in SRCN! Yeah, a lot of Sting Rays were traded in for he big boy Varsitys!


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## mrg (Jun 3, 2020)

I started Jr. High 68/9 right when the Krates came out and kinda wanted a Orange but as soon as I got to school ( riding my Lime SR ) everybody had or wanted a Schwinn Varsity/Continental so I ended up with another used Schwinn, a blue 62 Continental my parents bought ( for bday or Xmas or something) from my sisters boyfriend ( now brother in law ) for $25-50 and that got me thru a couple of yrs till motorcycles then cars! sold it back to him in the 90's and it's still hanging in his garage!


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## schwinnbikebobb (Jun 4, 2020)

Yep   Got started doing my 68 Rams Horn that I got on birthday 68.   I didn't know anything about date codes or anything else.   Back then you just had to find someone who had some stuff and he might know someone who had something and on it went.  No internet, no cell phones, just networking.  My go to guy was Andy Getz in Akron/Canton. Pete was also a big player.  Then like others subscribed to StingRay City News and that opened up some other avenues.


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## stingrayjoe (Jun 5, 2020)

It was pretty exciting to receive the SRCN in the U.S. Mail. Send photos and correspond all via the U.S. mail and over the telephone. Pete A. and Jim R. were certainly pioneers. There is a guy out here on the East Coast named Tim H. who started collecting SRs in the late 70's. He amassed some collection by the 1990s!


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## butnut (Jun 6, 2020)

Kool to see other guys who rode that first wave with Sting Ray City News! They did a run of T-shirts too. I was so happy with my shirt, wore it all the time. I was well into painting over a dozen frames, and one weekend I was really excited as it would be my first Campus Green. Now Pete didn't have this color yet. But my friend Jay, who just happens to be co-owner of the oldest Schwinn dealer here (since 1911) had a bunch of Schwinn spray paints...in Campus Green! He had his Fastback he wanted repainted. But they were all dead cans, no pressure. I told him no prob, I'm sure the lacquer is fine. Flip the rattle can over, pop a hole on the bottom with an old beer can opener, and pour it into my spray gun...it's reduced and ready to spray. I go to pop open the 2nd can, and it had a little pressure left in it...POP! Green paint everywhere...and on my favorite SRCN T-shirt! I was so bummed! The paint was perfect...but yeah, ruined my shirt. I only painted with old coveralls after that.


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## butnut (Jun 6, 2020)

stingrayjoe said:


> It was pretty exciting to receive the SRCN in the U.S. Mail. Send photos and correspond all via the U.S. mail and over the telephone. Pete A. and Jim R. were certainly pioneers. There is a guy out here on the East Coast named Tim H. who started collecting SRs in the late 70's. He amassed some collection by the 1990s!
> 
> View attachment 1205721
> 
> ...



I don't ever recall seeing a lowrider on SRCN! Very kool! Kinda my style with the low bars...dig it! I know I have a box of them somewhere.


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## butnut (Jun 6, 2020)

schwinnbikebobb said:


> Yep   Got started doing my 68 Rams Horn that I got on birthday 68.   I didn't know anything about date codes or anything else.   Back then you just had to find someone who had some stuff and he might know someone who had something and on it went.  No internet, no cell phones, just networking.  My go to guy was Andy Getz in Akron/Canton. Pete was also a big player.  Then like others subscribed to StingRay City News and that opened up some other avenues.
> 
> View attachment 1205262
> 
> View attachment 1205266



I remember Andy, and Pete of course. Another name popped into my head...Scott Brown. There's more, I just gotta find my stash of SRCN and all the letters and photos i kept. Thanks for sharing.


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## stingrayjoe (Jun 6, 2020)

Scott and I did many deals, may he RIP.


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## Pedals Past (Jun 6, 2020)

I was none when the sting ray came out. My dad owned a used car lot. We washed cars and delivered papers and mowed lawns in the neighborhood. My dad haf bought me a schwinn spitfire when i was eight. Well that was a cool bike i couldnt ride it. I was really small for my age and couldnt touch the ground on the 26” bike. I had a hardvtire sidewalk bike i learned to ride on and would ride it with my friends that were 2/3 years older. Kids laughed at me i had to fight, we had a boxing ring in the backyard set up. Well there waa a dice and card room downtown, the lawyers and judges contractors and car salesmen hung out there. The barber was next door so i knew everyones wifes cars and the streets were all one way on purpose so that to drive by to get your okd man out if Gambling Janes joint you had to go around town and over the only bridge on river to get there. They would pay us to point and race two blocks when their old lady had to stop at light before the bridge to tell them to dive in the back so they didnt get caught. That was 50 cents to two dollars depending on if they were winning or not. So i went to Blackstocks and bought a Columbia Playboy because we spent money on surplus army gear and baseball equipment. I later bought a 64 super deluxe which I still have. I rode it in the 12 mile saturday bike races against raleighs and varsity bike riders. I got my first multi speed varsity around 1966 a used 1960’s eight speed.  I gave my spitfire to my cousin. 

I started collecting balloon bikes in the early 90’s i could never find a eight speed varsity until four years ago i got a beautiful restored one from Scott. Now i have had 2- 37 RMS’s 8 bluebirds 7 dayton streamlines and over 15 airflows ...... i have a beautiful bike display trailer again after closing my bike museum and selling most everything ..... I have a beautiful 67 gold fairlady a 66/67 Rams Horn a orange krate  kickback 71 orange disc manta but in my top ten bikes in my trailer with 66 21 window bus are my 37 rms 36 comander 36 indian 38 airflows 54 phantom (that came out schwinn family garage) are my 8 soeed varsity and fully dressed 64-1/2 super deluxe 



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## Vintage Rat Rods USA (Nov 13, 2020)

My Baby


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## Vintage Rat Rods USA (Nov 13, 2020)

My baby also


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## Vintage Rat Rods USA (Nov 13, 2020)

Another one


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## Vintage Rat Rods USA (Nov 13, 2020)

My last one looking to buy more ASAP $ cash


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## coasterbrakejunkie1969 (Nov 14, 2020)

The fork set on country time looks like 90's ? Love the bikes , these are mine


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## Beach Bum III (Jan 10, 2021)

Aloha from Kaua’i ! Cool story. You are a pioneer!  I was born in ‘68 in Montana. I’m from that generation of kids who stripped down and destroyed every Stingray in sight!  I’m sorry!  I blame the movie On Any Sunday. As soon as that became a T.V. re-run,  it lit the fire in so many kids to hit the dirt and get rad.  I started racing BMX in Spokane Washington in ‘74/‘75 when lots of early Schwinn stuff was still around . I had a Yamaha, but when it got ripped off, I went back to another Schwinn which actually rode much better. They were 10 bucks a frame, all day back then. Later I got into road and track racing. After I crashed and broke my neck, I started riding pre War Schwinn cruisers, which I still have.  So now I’m 52 and I REALLY want a Stingray again. As you know, shipping is a real drag, cost wise to Hawaii. Local stuff is rare. I’m looking for a beater for me and a super beater frame to build with a friend who wants to build a circa ‘74 era, banana seat BMX bike with a raised bottom bracket like Russ Ozawa (sp?) was doing in the 70’s. I volunteered to do the fab work. Let me know if you see anything turn up over on Oahu. Thanks for sharing your story. Keep on riding. Chee whoooo!


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## Vintage Rat Rods USA (Jan 10, 2021)

50$ but I’ll have to put a different pair of handlebars on it


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## Vintage Rat Rods USA (Jan 10, 2021)

I was born 1976  have a few made in 1976 I’m keeping


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## Vintage Rat Rods USA (Jan 10, 2021)

Sunday fun Day


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## Beach Bum III (Jan 10, 2021)

Vintage Rat Rods USA said:


> Sunday fun Day
> Awooo! Yeah. Ride ‘em!


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## PlasticNerd (Jan 10, 2021)

Me in 1968 on my first stingray I got for Christmas of 1966


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## Beach Bum III (Jan 11, 2021)

PlasticNerd said:


> So cool! Hey man, it’s Small Craft Hawaii here.


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