# 1935 Mens Wards Hawthorne - (the 77 year old one-owner bike project)



## M38A1 (Apr 9, 2012)

I've got this going over at ratrod as well and figured you might find this project interesting.  I certainly will be leaning on everyone in the refurbish process!


Well, I suppose it's time to give this bike a new lease on life and I will chronicle that here as well as lean on everyone for guidance and support.  I'm new to the old bicycles but somehow have managed to hang on to a few with more than passing sentimental value.  I'll use this thread for posting of pictures, asking questions and really looking for help.

Background:
My Dad was born in 1925 in the red dirt of Oklahoma.  Life was not easy back then, and anything "new" was hard to come by.  Yet on his 10th birthday, 1935, his parents asked him to pick out his 10th birthday present - a brand new bicycle from the Montgomery Wards catalog.  He picked out the bike you see below and specifically wanted the model with the "Longhorn Handlebars".  That was a kid's dream to have a new bicycle and he said he rode it a million miles or more.  At some point, he passed the bike to his younger brother who rode it some more.  When his younger brother outgrew it, the bike was relegated "to the barn" where it's been all these years making several moves over the years, but always staying in the family.

Dad is certain his brother replaced the seat at some point and he thinks the pedals were changed.  Dad also said it's also missing the headlight and battery box so in addition to sourcing a seat, I'll try to find those items as well.  The paint was bright red with black and white highlights and the wheels were "shiny" as he called it.  He's not sure if they were chromed, but they were chrome/shiny colored.  He also said there was no chainguard when new and from what I gather, it's missing the swing type kickstand and possibly a rear rack.  There was no frame tank as he has mentioned.  He recalls the handlebars being shiny as well, possibly chromed.  I can't tell, but I think they were in fact chrome.

Dad's now 87 so I need to get cracking on this.  



Here she is, my dad's 1935 Wards Hawthorne as it sits now.






































.


----------



## M38A1 (Apr 9, 2012)

So after talking with Dad, he has an idea I'm 'working' on his old bike with all the questions I'm asking.... So much for a surprise in the end.

I think I'll try to break this down in logical chunks first, then attack each one in order. Does that sound about right?

I've sort of penciled in the following:
1. Research
2. Parts Acquisition
3. Teardown
4. Body/Paint
5. Assembly

Under Research and through discussions with Dad, I've determined the following:
1. The bike was bright red with highlights of black and white
2. The tires were blackwalls, not red and in 26x2.125
3. The grips were black (currently two brands installed, one on each side)
5. The wheelset was bright 'shiny', but he's not sure if it was painted chrome or actually chromed
6. The handlebars were a specific 'option' or model preference called "Longhorn" and they too were shiny like chrome or painted chrome color
7. The battery tube was round and held a single or double D-Cell.
8. It's a single-speed with coaster brake (New Departure Model D)


Questions open at the moment include: (Bold asking Dad again...)
1. What color and type was the seat? - BLACK SEAT, 2 SPRINGS AT REAR, NOT SURE ABOUT A FRONT LOOP
2. Was a rear rack present and what did it look like? YES, SIMPLE STAMPED MODEL?
3. Was there a kickstand and if so, what type? YES, MOUNTED TO REAR AXLE, SIMPLE BOX SWUNG BACKWARD AND UP
4. What was the headlight and battery tube like?
5. What actually were the wheels, painted bright silver or chrome? HE DOESN'T RECALL OTHER THAN BRIGHT
6. What actually were the handlebars, painted bright silver or chrome?
7. What there a paint code for the red back then or does anyone know a close red match of that era? RED MATCHING MY CAMELBACK BOTTLE COLOR
8. The front fork support rods, were they chromed or painted 'shiny'? CHROMED
9. Were the fender support stays painted? NO, THEY WERE CHROMED OR SHINY.


----------



## M38A1 (Apr 9, 2012)

The tires are old and beyond service life.  Yet is there any way to determine the age of them by markings or date codes?  That would be sort of fun to know what's coming off of it.

The front is marked:
Goodyear All Weather
Airwheel G3
168375
26x2.125 Made In USA
Keep Inflated 22-35psi
NB and three circles with a cross and dots














The front tire looks exactly like the same tread pattern on two replacement tires I recently purchased from memory-lane.




The rear is marked:
Allstate Safety Tread SR
197504
26x2.125 Made in USA
Keep Inflated 22-35psi
NB and three circles with a cross and dots


----------



## M38A1 (Apr 9, 2012)

OK, first hicup in tearing it down.  I got the handlebars off and the top head-tube capture nut off as well.  But there's a serrated ring next in line and I can't tell if that's threaded on to hold the steering tube in place or if it's a press or some other attachment.  I'm thinking if I get that off, then the fork assembly should drop out the bottom, right?  That will then allow me to attach the fork brace back on.  

Which is my second question.  Does the fork brace plate go between the fender and the headset?  (excuse me if I'm using the wrong terms and let me know what they're called..)

Here's the serrated ring I'm trying to remove.





And here's the fork brace bracket. Where does it go back to?





.


----------



## rustyspoke66 (Apr 9, 2012)

Here is a original paint Hawthorne that I had a while back. If you need pics of any other part just ask. I would leave the headbadge alone aside from a gentle clean and polish. I'm sure some one on the cabe has one with original red paint.


----------



## Ozark Flyer (Apr 9, 2012)

Sent you a PM


----------



## rustyspoke66 (Apr 9, 2012)

The fender stays should be cad plated which is a dull silver finish. Here is a picture of the same bike with more bells and whistles.


----------



## M38A1 (Apr 9, 2012)

OK, this "THANKS" has to go out to rustyspoke66 already....  I sent the pic link from above to Dad and this was his response.  I do believe we are on the right track here and I'm stoked about this project!


Bingo you hit the jackpot! Slight differences include:
Mine did not have a chain guard, horn, tank between bars, short handle bars. or bright finish on fenders.
This image shows the correct seat, luggage rack, light with battery in case, rear stand, straight tube frame.
This is a really close match. Note the rims and spokes are bright, but do not look chrome plated.
This answers the question that the front fork rod bracket attaches to the under side of the stem and not between the 3 plates.
You have done a really great job tracking this down. Very close match. Keep me posted.
Dad




Does anyone have a project plan on how you go about doing something like this?  I have sooooo many questions, like do you respoke the wheels? Do you cad plate in one big batch the chainrings, crank, handlebar, stem etc?  Is soda/bead blasting preferred then powder coat?  Can powdercoating be added to by hand for the detail work of the diamond paint?  When do you do the fender body work?  My head hurts already....  I just don't know where to begin or the sequence to effectively accomplish this.


.


----------



## rustyspoke66 (Apr 9, 2012)

M38A1 said:


> OK, this "THANKS" has to go out to rustyspoke66 already....  I sent the pic link from above to Dad and this was his response.  I do believe we are on the right track here and I'm stoked about this project!
> 
> 
> Bingo you hit the jackpot! Slight differences include:
> ...



The rims would be chrome and the spokes would be cad plated. I would just replace the spokes with some NOS spokes. If you need I could hook you up with spokes. As far as chrome plating goes the plating on bikes of this era was not so good, they usually applied the chrome directly to the part instead of the current method which is a triple plate process. Triple plating is much more durable and nicer looking. There might be a chance that some of the chrome has survived under the tires. If there is no chrome there will be paint. One more note it looks like the rear fender spacers are missing. I believe we have a cabe member that has reproduced them.


----------



## M38A1 (Apr 9, 2012)

WooHoo!

I've got both spacers.  One is currently mounted on the lower point and the upper one is in a zip-lock baggie!


----------



## rustyspoke66 (Apr 9, 2012)

Nice, now some chrome, paint, some elbow grease and you will have it.


----------



## M38A1 (Apr 9, 2012)

Does anyone know what this model might have been named? Was it in fact the "Hawthorne"?



.


----------



## rustyspoke66 (Apr 9, 2012)

Hope this helps. It is a one year only headbadge.


----------



## Larmo63 (Apr 10, 2012)

The top fork nut has a washer, then the bearing top race will unthread. It should come

off by hand. This will be a fun project as there are many nice people here who will help 

you! Good going, and good luck too!


----------



## videoranger (Apr 10, 2012)

I would recommend using single stage enamel with a gloss hardener rather than powder coat. The enamel paint will more closely resemble the original finish. The old chrome contained more nickle and appears "softer" like silver than new hard chrome which is very high gloss like on faucets etc. When you are all done I think it's more desirable to have a bike that looks "as purchased new" rather than redone to current standards.


----------



## Balloontyre (Apr 21, 2012)

*date codes*



M38A1 said:


> The tires are old and beyond service life.  Yet is there any way to determine the age of them by markings or date codes?  That would be sort of fun to know what's coming off of it.
> 
> The front is marked:
> Goodyear All Weather
> ...




Looks like all state tire is prewar first quarter '32, G3 if its prewar?? Would be first quarter '39


----------



## Larmo63 (Apr 21, 2012)

The bars on the bike look like "longhorn" bars. Look for seats on eBay or ask here in "For Sale/Trade" section.

Good thing you don't have to worry about a tank or chainguard. There are some stenciling kits on eBay too that

may work for the front spears if you are going to tackle the painting yourself. I wouldn't do powder coating either

on your frame.


----------



## M38A1 (Apr 30, 2012)

What's interesting is, based on the catalog picture, the bike is a Double Bar with the Longhorn handlebar set.  And Dad's bike has a front fender that reaches further around in front than the 'bobbed' version in the catalog.  Hmmmm.....

The catalog DID however give me the names of all the items, so that's a great starting point for me too!

Thanks!


----------



## M38A1 (Mar 5, 2015)

Well, it's been a few years now since I brought this one up.  Dad will by 90 next week and at this point I think just a new set of rim strips, tubes and tires is all the old bike is going to get.  Kind of interesting that Dad was born in 1925 and got this Hawthorne new in 1935 at the ripe old age of 10.  Then in 1965 on his 40th birthday he bought his 1965 Corvette which he still has, and this weekend is a pretty significant birthday for him (90), the Corvette (50) and the bicycle (80).  Not sure I'm going to have him ride the bicycle though....  lol

Here's a couple 'fun' shots....

1965 new when he was 40




2015 some 50 years later


----------



## rustyspoke66 (Mar 6, 2015)

Great photo's!! Still the same smile 50 years later.


----------



## okozzy (Mar 6, 2015)

Priceless....


----------



## M38A1 (Mar 12, 2015)

Why I wait until the last minute I'll never know...  lol

Got the wheels off this afternoon and the new rim strips on, tubes in and about 90% of the new tires spooned on.  Man, that last bit is TOUGH.  Any suggestions on how to do it safely (for the tubes sake as the rim is, well....  80 years old barn dirt)  I really don't want to take it to a bike shop, but I know they have a metal spoon about 14" long that beats the heck out of the two plastic 4" ones I broke.

Next up was the springer fork assembly sans spring.  Well, that's how I describe it.....  Got that all installed but am waiting on the front wheelset to install before I can get that buttoned up.  

Oiled the chain while I had the rear wheel off, sure seems to move freely which I'm happy about.

The little axle adjustment bolts.....  Both moved freely after some oil soak, but one is bent slightly.  Is there an aftermarket vendor for those?

And the last observation.....  This bike is metric?  I'm fairly good with tools, vehicles and such, but I was dumbfounded when I started to put SAE sockets in places that were just not right.  So I dug out my metrics and everything fit perfectly.  Even the acorn nuts at the top of the little front wheel springer rods - 8mm X 1.0 as verified at Lowes on their little wall thing you test threads on.  Both sides matched, go easily so I tried an 8mm X 1 standard nut.  Yep.  perfect.  Where were these made?  Asia or Europe?  And in 1935 no less.

Another amazing thing I "THINK" I was looking at was the rim strips.  Leather?  VERY thick dried leather strip is about the best I can describe it.  And WARDS tubes came out of both wheels.

So...
1) Is there an easy way to spoon these tires on or should I just break down and get the 14" spooner to have in my tools and do it myself?
2) Were the original rim strips leather as I suspect?
3) Does anyone supply the 8mm X 1.0 acorn nuts that go on the headset springer rod tops?
4) Does anyone supply the chain tension adjustment screws?
5) Are these indeed metric bikes or am I on crack?

I'm digging the idea of just getting it rolling for Dad's 90th birthday party Saturday.  I'm guessing a bunch of folks are going to ride it.

Oh, last question - where is an appropriate source for a seat?  I'd like to probably swap the one on it out for a more correct one.

Thanks!


----------



## M38A1 (Mar 13, 2015)

Whew....  Got it rolling with new rim strips, tubes and tires.  AND.... it stops!

Had a difficult time seating the new tires using all my tricks, so I wound up learning a new hack.  I took a pair of my channel locks and used them 'backwards', ie: grabbed the jaw part and used the tip of the handle which is curved just like a tire spoon.  Worked like a charm.

Got the front-end figured out and put together.  Just missing that silly little acorn nut on top.  But for the party tomorrow I think it will be just fine.

After the party, I want to take it back apart and re-grease the hubs/BB and get that really smooth, then locate the few missing parts and get it back together with a more appropriate seat.

So I still need a source for the acorn nut, a seat and the little chain tensioner screws at the back of the frame that tag the axle.  Anyone have leads?

Here it is for the bikes 80th birthday party (Dad's 90th) tomorrow.


----------



## M38A1 (Mar 19, 2015)

....and I think Dad was quite surprised to see his old childhood bicycle!

Here he is at his 90th birthday party with it.  Pretty cool to see him with his bike he got new at the age of 10.  He got a bit teary-eyed when my mom (78 years old) rode it.  They've been married for 57 years now.  Really trying to enjoy my time with him while I still have it and this is just one more of those 'cool' things in life.





...and to not forget where he started, here he is less than a year old (1925/1926) and on wheels!





.


----------



## robertc (Apr 3, 2015)

This has been an awesome story. The photo of your dad standing with his bike is priceless. This is what collecting is all about, history. Tell him Happy Birthday.


----------



## Chadillac (Aug 10, 2022)

Wow, this was a great read, story, and pictures. I’m currently restoring the same exact bike which is why I came across this. I love this hobby.


----------

