# J.C. Higgins Flightliner Project



## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 22, 2020)

First ever restoration project. I believe all parts are original. Except the tank, that I bought separate. I’m excited to take this journey and can’t wait to get working on this. Any restoration tips are welcomed!


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## Rivnut (Aug 23, 2020)

Invest in a kiddie pool, some oxalic acid, and search for some article on rust removal.  You'll be pleasantly surprised at what you'll have afterwards.  These older JC Higgins middleweight bikes are great riders.  Post the numbers on the left rear dropout and someone will tell you the year.

Ed


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## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 25, 2020)

Thank you for the oxalic acid recommendation. I will be trying that on the chrome parts. I just placed my amazon order and will probably work on it this weekend. 

I was thinking of having the frame, fork, tank and rack sandblasted and powder coated. I got a quote for $240 for all parts. Don't know if that is a reasonable price or is that too steep? I was thinking of doing anodized red, similar to the picture below, with the tank as a matte white.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 25, 2020)

Also, i looked for the serial numbers on the dropout and i was not able to find them. If they are not there is there anywhere else they might be? I looked everywhere but i could not honestly see anything anywhere on the bike.


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## Rivnut (Aug 26, 2020)

Could be on the bottom bracket. The bottom of where the crank goes through the frame.

Here's the serial number on my 59 JC Higgins Flightliner.  The MOD502 identifies it as a Sears product.  The 4690 is the model.   The rest is the unique serial number.


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## piercer_99 (Aug 26, 2020)

5M3D1N4 said:


> Also, i looked for the serial numbers on the dropout and i was not able to find them. If they are not there is there anywhere else they might be? I looked everywhere but i could not honestly see anything anywhere on the bike.



you are talking about a resto-mod as opposed to a restoration.

With that in mind, they are fun to do, however one rarely is able to recoup the money invested in the project by selling the bicycle.

Have fun with it, whatever way you decide to go.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 26, 2020)

Rivnut said:


> Could be on the bottom bracket. The bottom of where the crank goes through the frame.
> 
> Here's the serial number on my 59 JC Higgins Flightliner.  The MOD502 identifies it as a Sears product.  The 4690 is the model.   The rest is the unique serial number.
> 
> View attachment 1255425





Thank you I found it!  Had so much grime I overlooked it. The photo is hard to tell but it says

M00 502
46060
93218

Correct me if i'm wrong but i think I know the 502 is for Sears and the 46060 is the catalog # and 93218  is the identification #. Is there any way to determine the actual year with this information?








piercer_99 said:


> you are talking about a resto-mod as opposed to a restoration.
> 
> With that in mind, they are fun to do, however one rarely is able to recoup the money invested in the project by selling the bicycle.
> 
> Have fun with it, whatever way you decide to go.




Yeah, doing my calculations i'm going to be spending over $500 easily  I think the hardest thing to find would be the rear taillight. I don't plan on selling the bike since this is one I really wanted and I came across this deal on OfferUp, Picked this one up and 2 other bikes for $100


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## piercer_99 (Aug 26, 2020)

I put in well over 600 on my 63 Murray resto mod, with parts and labor.  Sold it for a bit less. 

It was fun though.


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## Rivnut (Aug 26, 2020)

You look through the book that has the accumulation of Sears catalogs and find the catalog number that coincides with the model number on the bottom bracket.  A Flightliner should be fairly simple. They started in 58 or 59 and shortly there after the numbers were moved to the left rear drop out.  The 4606 is the only number you'll find in the catalog.


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## AndyA (Aug 26, 2020)

Dear 5M3D1N4 (is that a robot from one of the Star Wars movies?
Here's the relevant page from 1960 Sears catalog cut. The subject bike (4606) is a "Deluxe Flightliner."  I am the proud owner of a 1960 "Equipped Flightliner," which was a cheaper model with a plain fork and painted fenders (see photo below). What Piercer was referring to as "rest-mod" is, I think, the concept that restoration is the process of returning the bike to as near as new condition as practical. Once you do something different than original, e.g., powder coating, it is no longer restoration, even if the modification could be considered an improvement. So once you go down that road, all bets are off and you can make any modification you want -- paint it different colors, add or remove parts, etc. It may be very cool, but it will never be a restored bike.
Have fun!


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## Rivnut (Aug 26, 2020)

I have a 59 Fligtliner outfitted just like yours (except a missing tank.) When you get ready to disassemble the springer let me know and I'll give you some details as to how it comes apart. It appears to me that there's a lot of surface rust but that should come off easily. Keep us updated a you progress. In case you haven't noticed, your bike is missing the taillight. There's a picture and a description on the catalog page posted above.


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## piercer_99 (Aug 30, 2020)

back to touching on the 'resto-mod'  restoration with modifications, not truly a restoration and nowhere near a concours restoration.

I did this bicycle about 5 years ago (or more), while not a flightliner, it was a Murray built bicycle. As for this bike, there was not much original paint to save, so I went to town on it. Also it had been run over, I had to straighten the frame from 5" of bend - front to back. In retrospect it would have been far better to invest the money in something already in good shape that I could have ridden. However, at that time I was recovering from surgery and it gave me something to do with my time and energy.

Powder on the frame, fork, tank and rack, all original chrome, a lot of aluminum foil, water and blood went into that. It was a learning experience.

Have fun with your bike.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 30, 2020)

AndyA said:


> Dear 5M3D1N4 (is that a robot from one of the Star Wars movies?
> Here's the relevant page from 1960 Sears catalog cut. The subject bike (4606) is a "Deluxe Flightliner."  I am the proud owner of a 1960 "Equipped Flightliner," which was a cheaper model with a plain fork and painted fenders (see photo below). What Piercer was referring to as "rest-mod" is, I think, the concept that restoration is the process of returning the bike to as near as new condition as practical. Once you do something different than original, e.g., powder coating, it is no longer restoration, even if the modification could be considered an improvement. So once you go down that road, all bets are off and you can make any modification you want -- paint it different colors, add or remove parts, etc. It may be very cool, but it will never be a restored bike.
> Have fun!
> 
> ...



I have no idea how you guys get these catalogs but i'm loving all the support here. Thank you!
Mine is definitely going to be a resto-mod. I love the patina and the vintage look on bikes but with this Flightliner, i wanted to look fresh off the shelf with a few updated modifications. 



Rivnut said:


> I have a 59 Fligtliner outfitted just like yours (except a missing tank.) When you get ready to disassemble the springer let me know and I'll give you some details as to how it comes apart. It appears to me that there's a lot of surface rust but that should come off easily. Keep us updated a you progress. In case you haven't noticed, your bike is missing the taillight. There's a picture and a description on the catalog page posted above.




I need help with the springer please. I could not figure out how to dissemble it


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## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 30, 2020)

piercer_99 said:


> back to touching on the 'resto-mod'  restoration with modifications, not truly a restoration and nowhere near a concours restoration.
> 
> I did this bicycle about 5 years ago (or more), while not a flightliner, it was a Murray built bicycle. As for this bike, there was not much original paint to save, so I went to town on it. Also it had been run over, I had to straighten the frame from 5" of bend - front to back. In retrospect it would have been far better to invest the money in something already in good shape that I could have ridden. However, at that time I was recovering from surgery and it gave me something to do with my time and energy.
> 
> ...



 OMG thats an amazing resto-mod. That is inspiring. The chrome looks flawless.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 30, 2020)

An updates. Bike has been disassembled and currently in an oxalic acid bath. Was not able to disassemble the springer. Have no idea how it comes off. There is so much rust so hope this bath helps. I know im going to be scrubbing for hours.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 30, 2020)

As for the rear taillight. I know they are extremely hard to find. Especially the twin taillight. But it looks to me that the tail light lenses are the same as the Delta Hi-Fin Twin Tail lights? Was thinking of possibly picking one of those up and 3D print the housing.


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## Rivnut (Aug 30, 2020)

If you'll go back and re-read post #11, I told you that if you needed help getting the springer apart that I could help you.  If you still want to take it apart, let me know.
Ed


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## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 30, 2020)

Rivnut said:


> If you'll go back and re-read post #11, I told you that if you needed help getting the springer apart that I could help you.  If you still want to take it apart, let me know.
> Ed




Please help!!!  
This is as far as i got...


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## Rivnut (Aug 30, 2020)

5M3D1N4 said:


> I need help with the springer please. I could not figure out how to dissemble it



It's pretty easy.  You have to pry one of the caps off of the bar that runs through the spring. You will probably ruin it, but  it's easily replaceable. The replacement part is called a star lock axle cap. You'll need ones for a 1/2" axle.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Aug 30, 2020)

Rivnut said:


> It's pretty easy.  You have to pry one of the caps off of the bar that runs through the spring. You will probably ruin it, but  it's easily replaceable. The replacement part is called a star lock axle cap. You'll need ones for a 1/2" axle.
> 
> View attachment 1257741



Thank you! Going to try this right now.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Oct 5, 2020)

Just an update. Haven’t really been putting too much time into this resto-mod but finally had this past weekend free to make small progress. 

Designed the taillight housing in SolidWorks and 3D printed it. The lenses came off a Delta Hi-Fin Twin Taillight. This was supposed to be the prototype but I think the dimensions are spot on. Might just change the bolts in the bottom to something a little more flush, add some bondo, sand and paint to get a cleaner look. Waiting on the lights to come in to wire it all up. Pretty excited for this. 

















Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## 5M3D1N4 (Oct 5, 2020)

Actually, lights came in today. Did a quick wire up. Running the lights using a power bank.


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## Rivnut (Oct 6, 2020)

@5M3D1N4 How far did you get with disassembly/reassembly of the springer fork onto Flightliner?


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## 5M3D1N4 (Oct 6, 2020)

Rivnut said:


> @5M3D1N4 How far did you get with disassembly/reassembly of the springer fork onto Flightliner?




Not far at all. It’s still disassembled. We are remodeling the house and my workspace is being used up as storage for now so haven’t had time to clean up and work on the bike. Decided to at least put some time into it and work on the taillight housing instead. Should hopefully have time in the next few weeks to make more progress. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Rivnut (Oct 6, 2020)

5M3D1N4 said:


> Not far at all. It’s still disassembled. We are remodeling the house and my workspace is being used up as storage for now so haven’t had time to clean up and work on the bike. Decided to at least put some time into it and work on the taillight housing instead. Should hopefully have time in the next few weeks to make more progress.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



I'm in the same church, just sitting in a different pew.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Jan 21, 2021)

Its been over two months since I've worked on this project. Had some free time these past few days to do some work. 

Stripped the paint to bare metal and now on to applying some lightweight body filler to some deep scratches on the frame and topping it off with some self etching primer.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Jan 25, 2021)




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## 5M3D1N4 (Jan 25, 2021)

Still have a lot of sanding to do but I'm excited how the chrome on the lens trim came out. Need to find some domed lenses. If anyone has any suggestions please let me know. I was thinking possibly a watch lens, but I think that will interfere with the bulb.


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## dasberger (Jan 26, 2021)

5M3D1N4 said:


> Still have a lot of sanding to do but I'm excited how the chrome on the lens trim came out. Need to find some domed lenses. If anyone has any suggestions please let me know. I was thinking possibly a watch lens, but I think that will interfere with the bulb.
> 
> View attachment 1345762View attachment 1345763



Try @shawnatvintagespokes for repop lens


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## 5M3D1N4 (Jan 26, 2021)

dasberger said:


> Try @shawnatvintagespokes for repop lens




Thank you! I will keep this in mind but last night I purchased these Convex glass lenses which should hopefully barely fit. If not then I will definitely be reaching out. 
Convex Glass Lens 40mm


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## 5M3D1N4 (Feb 3, 2021)

Self Etch primer applied and ready for paint...


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## bthoff (Feb 26, 2021)

I am working on my first Flightliner right now too. An antique store was using it as a chandelier. Before/after an initial wash.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Mar 1, 2021)

bthoff said:


> I am working on my first Flightliner right now too. An antique store was using it as a chandelier. Before/after an initial wash.
> 
> View attachment 1364441
> 
> View attachment 1364442



 Thats going to be a nice project. Looks like its in very good condition. Good luck with the restore 

 I also have a girls Flightliner I haven't touched but will be working on after I finish this project.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Mar 5, 2021)

The Resto-Mod is coming along nicely. This was my first time ever spray gun painting and I made a few errors along the way but was able to correct them. Also, had a local shop do some chrome work on some parts and I think they came out amazing. 










I know this isn’t anywhere close to the original color but I love it


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## Sven (Mar 6, 2021)

5M3D1N4 said:


> The Resto-Mod is coming along nicely. This was my first time ever spray gun painting and I made a few errors along the way but was able to correct them. Also, had a local shop do some chrome work on some parts and I think they came out amazing.
> 
> View attachment 1368174
> View attachment 1368175
> ...







That color is brilliant, as well as the chrome parts.


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## Rivnut (Mar 6, 2021)

@5M3D1N4 What is the name of that color? Does it match an automotive color or is it a custom mix? Looks great. Can't wait to see it all together.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Mar 6, 2021)

Sven said:


> View attachment 1368184
> That color is brilliant, as well as the chrome parts.



Thank you!



Rivnut said:


> @5M3D1N4 What is the name of that color? Does it match an automotive color or is it a custom mix? Looks great. Can't wait to see it all together.




Thank you! 
It’s a Candy Red. I got it from this site...

Candy Red

I found a 1 pint kit with everything you need, including a 2k clear, on Amazon...

Amazon Kit


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## Barfbucket (Mar 6, 2021)

5M3D1N4 said:


> Thank you for the oxalic acid recommendation. I will be trying that on the chrome parts. I just placed my amazon order and will probably work on it this weekend.
> 
> I was thinking of having the frame, fork, tank and rack sandblasted and powder coated. I got a quote for $240 for all parts. Don't know if that is a reasonable price or is that too steep? I was thinking of doing anodized red, similar to the picture below, with the tank as a matte white.
> 
> View attachment 1255118



Sandblasting and powder coating a frame and fork is $100 here. They do good work, the motorcyclests use them and they are picky. $250 is still a lot cheaper than paint.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Mar 6, 2021)

Barfbucket said:


> Sandblasting and powder coating a frame and fork is $100 here. They do good work, the motorcyclests use them and they are picky. $250 is still a lot cheaper than paint.



I wanted to get the whole bike done, including the tank and rear rack but the cheapest powder coat quote I got was about $250. The Amazon paint kit was a good deal for $100. I’ve already spent more than what the bike is worth lol


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## Barfbucket (Mar 6, 2021)

5M3D1N4 said:


> I wanted to get the whole bike done, including the tank and rear rack but the cheapest powder coat quote I got was about $250. The Amazon paint kit was a good deal for $100. I’ve already spent more than what the bike is worth lol



We all do that. Car guys spend more on a paint job than the car is worth. One of my bike buddies got a nice probably 60s Paramount and wanted to make it nicer. He sent the frame and fork away to one of the Schwinn heirs who still had the original paint and decals. This was probably ten or fifteen years ago. After he got it back the rest of the bike, that he used to think was nice, looked shabby. He got NOS rims, seat and other original stuff. He buffed up all the alloy with very fine polishing compound. Talk about a project that got out of hand. $6000 total investment so it sits on display on his shop wall. My Gloria track bike project that I posted a few days ago here got out of hand too. Rebuilding of the frame and a track alignment by a pro, plating, sourcing vintage track bike parts all came to $4000. I don’t think I could get that for the bike. The big reason I did that was because old track bikes are rare and large framed ones very rare. I wanted the large frame.


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## Mad Mike (Mar 6, 2021)

LQQKING Great! If you don't mind sharing- what was the chrome bill? I have a similar pile I want to do, and I know locations vary.....
Just trying to avoid sticker shock, and a long drive.....
Thanks-M


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## Yates/ vintage (Mar 6, 2021)

5M3D1N4 said:


> First ever restoration project. I believe all parts are original. Except the tank, that I bought separate. I’m excited to take this journey and can’t wait to get working on this. Any restoration tips are welcomed!
> 
> View attachment 1252907
> View attachment 1252908
> ...



Nice bike !! I have a 64 I just redid .rusty mess .typical for NY . Only advice I have is vinager and foi for chrome . Works great . handlebars whatever.


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## Rivnut (Mar 6, 2021)

5M3D1N4 said:


> I’ve already spent more than what the bike is worth lol



Welcome to the club. Find me one guy who doesn’t.   One reason I spread out my purchases and don’t save receipts.  I know that I’m only fooling myself but it’s better than being fooled by someone else.  Just make sure that you get the mail and check the front porch for packages before your better half does.


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## Barfbucket (Mar 6, 2021)

Rivnut said:


> Welcome to the club. Find me one guy who doesn’t.   One reason I spread out my purchases and don’t save receipts.  I know that I’m only fooling myself but it’s better than being fooled by someone else.  Just make sure that you get the mail and check the front porch for packages before your better half does.



It’s still cheaper than golf and you have something to look at after spending all that brdad.


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## 5M3D1N4 (Mar 8, 2021)

Mad Mike said:


> LQQKING Great! If you don't mind sharing- what was the chrome bill? I have a similar pile I want to do, and I know locations vary.....
> Just trying to avoid sticker shock, and a long drive.....
> Thanks-M



The bill was $235. Don't know if that is reasonable. I just went to this shop because it was local and even tho they only had about 3 yelp reviews, their worked looked good. I don't regret it.

Pacific Polishing


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## Pondo (May 14, 2021)

piercer_99 said:


> back to touching on the 'resto-mod'  restoration with modifications, not truly a restoration and nowhere near a concours restoration.
> 
> I did this bicycle about 5 years ago (or more), while not a flightliner, it was a Murray built bicycle. As for this bike, there was not much original paint to save, so I went to town on it. Also it had been run over, I had to straighten the frame from 5" of bend - front to back. In retrospect it would have been far better to invest the money in something already in good shape that I could have ridden. However, at that time I was recovering from surgery and it gave me something to do with my time and energy.
> 
> ...



piercer_99 your bike cam out beautifully! Very nicely done!​


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## Pondo (May 14, 2021)

This is coming along very nicely, 5M3D1N4.  I really like the colors you chose and the new chrome looks terrific.  I really like the style of these flightliners.  If I ever find a good deal on one locally I'll pick it up and see what I can come up with for a build.  Nice work!


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