# 1962 Schwinn Racer With Front Wheel Generator----How Rare?



## Goldenrod (Dec 15, 2019)

Number--J255479 or 1962. Rear brake has 62 also.
While I was in the third grade (my birthday-- March, 1953), I was sent out in the hallway for talking. I got caught out there in my Cub Scout uniform by the superintendent.  Most of the teachers were relatives of mine or my parents friends.  I peed in my pants.  Mr Neehas didn't notice and brought me into the classroom.  Everyone laughed and then I sat down.  Holly Hearth turned around and said, "They shouldn't have done that to you."  I was in love. She took that risk (of talking) to make me feel better. 
















I started teaching school sixteen years later, I met the superintendent when he observed me for my certification.  He asked if I was the Spangler who wet my Cub uniform.  He was sorry during all those years and apologized but it was a lesson that made me a more compassionate teacher.  Holly was smart, talented and cute but her kind nature caused her to have many bad breaks with needy men and she died five years ago.  She was the best in our class for 12 years and then as an adult.
I bought this bike for the generator and I have never seen one since.   Is it rare?


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## frankster41 (Dec 15, 2019)

Is there a name on the generator?


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## 1motime (Dec 15, 2019)

Goldenrod said:


> Number--J255479 puts in March of 1953. Rear brake has 53 also.
> While I was in the third grade (my birthday-- March, 1953), I was sent out in the hallway for talking. I got caught out there in my Cub Scout uniform by the superintendent.  Most of the teachers were relatives of mine or my parents friends.  I peed in my pants.  Mr Neehas didn't notice and brought me into the classroom.  Everyone laughed and then I sat down.  Holly Hearth turned around and said, "They shouldn't have done that to you."  I was in love. She took that risk (of talking) to make me feel better. View attachment 1110509
> 
> View attachment 1110508
> ...



You have a beautiful Schwinn.  The generator is a unique part.  Thanks for sharing.  Happy Holidays!


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## rollfaster (Dec 15, 2019)

@GTs58 @Eric Amlie @SirMike1983


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## gkeep (Dec 15, 2019)

Beautiful bike, great find! Everyone seems to have at least one seminal story of elementary school disaster and humiliation and like you mine was in 3rd grade. Poured my heart out to a girl in a letter and left it at her desk. She turned it into the teacher who held it up and asked who had written it. My mom was an elementary school teacher in another district but well known to all my teachers. I held up my hand, it had my name on it after all. (we also wore our Cubscout uniforms to school, and on picture day) This was about 1966, the girls name was Susan and about 15 years ago I became friends with a guy who makes his living as a professional magician, ventriloquist, juggling pirate called Captain Jack Spareribs. He and I were chatting at a gig we were appearing at and talking about our childhoods in Silicon Valley. Turned out his wife was Susans younger sister Lisa. I told him the story of the love letter and we laughed. He told me his story of proposing in the park at the school. Life long friend, and Ace is the best magician and ventriloquist I've ever seen live and up close.


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## GTs58 (Dec 15, 2019)

frankster41 said:


> Is there a name on the generator?




*Sturmey Archer*

*Dynohub*

The GH6 version produced a rated output of 6 V, 0.33 A (2 W) from a 20-pole ring magnet with a stator having a continuous winding. Original headlamp bulbs are 6 V, 0.25 A (1.5 W) (e.g., CRY5) and a rear bulb of 6 V 0.04A (0.24W) (e.g., CRY8). This is different from a modern standard bicycle dynamo, though replacements can still be obtained.[6] Common substitutions are the modern standard 2.4 W headlamp bulb and a tail lamp bulb of 0.6 W. One rider reports much more light with a 6.3 V, 0.25 A (1.6 W) type 40 bulb.[7] LED conversions are possible and will output a much brighter light than incandescent or halogen bulbs, though the LED alternatives require the fitting of a voltage regulator and will strobe 10 times per wheel revolution if not fitted with a capacitor or rectifier to smooth the AC current output from the Dynohub.

Rated output was reached at around 20 km/h (12 mph), a rotational speed of approximately 60 rpm. The name dynamo implies DC output, but as usual with bicycle dynamos (known as _generators_ in North America), output was in fact alternating current.

Dynohubs were offered as front hubs and as rear geared hubs. The *AG* was an AW three-speed rear hub with inbuilt dynamo, while the FG was a dynamo similarly combined with an FW four-speed. An SG 'Super-Wide' three-speed Dynohub was planned between 1954 and 1960, but never produced. An FG hub can be converted to have 5 gears using the same methods of modification as would be used for an FW to enable individually selectable sun gears.

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Now for the good/bad news with an update, and would like to hear a cool story from from this time!   

The serial has six digits, not five, so this Racer is a 1962 model. The serial number was stamped on *09/25/1962------------------ J254828 ------------------- J257647*

I wouldn't call a Dynohub rare, but not many Schwinns were optioned with this extra cost accessory. The generator light kits with the frame or fork mounted genny was the norm.


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## rennfaron (Dec 15, 2019)

GTs58 said:


> Now for the good/bad news with an update, and would like to hear a cool story from from this time!
> 
> The serial has six digits, not five, so this Racer is a 1962 model. The serial number was stamped on *09/25/1962------------------ J254828 ------------------- J257647*
> 
> I wouldn't call a Dynohub rare, but not many Schwinns were optioned with this extra cost accessory. The generator light kits with the frame or fork mounted genny was the norm.



Thanks Gary, you saved me a couple steps. Definitely not a '53. I thought we debunked that in the last post about this bike. The racer didn't even exist in '53. The saddle style, the decal lettering style, the fork style, the rims, the grips are all early 60s.

I think someone swapped some older parts on the bike. That miller headlight is a 50s headlight.

Still a nice condition bike, although nothing about the bike is rare, not even the condition, they pop up all the time. I have a '60, 23" model just like it.


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## Eric Amlie (Dec 15, 2019)

Now that's a classic looking Schwinn to my eyes(I'm partial to the "Lightweights").
Years ago I saw a pic on another forum of a Paramount done up with this paint & decal scheme. It was beautiful IMO. It had the chromed head lugs, fork ends, and stay ends of course. Unfortunately I didn't save the photo. I'd like to do one of those myself some day.


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## Goldenrod (Dec 15, 2019)

Thanks a lot mates.  The stamp was weak and I am a sloppy reader.


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## Goldenrod (Dec 15, 2019)

frankster41 said:


> Is there a name on the generator?



No but Sturmey.


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## rennfaron (Dec 16, 2019)

Goldenrod said:


> Thanks a lot mates.  The stamp was weak and I am a sloppy reader.



No problem. It is a nice bike, hopefully you hold onto it for a while. I don't know if you are a purist or not, but it would be easy to get it back to original condition. It looks like only the hubs need to be swapped out.


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## rennfaron (Dec 16, 2019)

I'm going to hijack the thread for just a second, to comment on the headlights and dynohub design... I haven't ever seen any literature on best practices for wire placement / routing from the generators to the lights. I have seen many different ways of doing this and some look better than others but all still seem like their trying the best they can and don't really look all that great. I try my best to route them to give steering allowance, but also tighten them on there so they don't hang loose. A couple of clear, tiny zip ties usually helps with the job, but that would be a modern approach to addressing this issue (see attached image of a red traveler I overhauled. I like to twist them around some existing cables and keep them taut with the zip ties). Maybe they didn't care about the bike being tidy back in the day? I would have at least thought Miller and Schwinn would have teamed up to create some bespoke brackets to help keep it all looking nice and routed to complement any of the cables already on the bike. The worst of them is the dynohubs... I have a '55 bike with dynohub with original wires and they look like old school speaker wire or lamp cord, not even like they belong on a bike. And they have to be routed all over the bike and just look terrible. I am sure you could get some much nicer looking wire these days, but still doesn't explain how out of place the kit looks. I think the lights and generators add something extra to the overall appearance of the bike, but the wires...are really sloppy...


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## SirMike1983 (Dec 16, 2019)

The English did have clamps and strips for retaining electrical wire. The clamps came in different shapes, depending on the tube you were fastening the wire to. The round clamps were for frame tubes and seat stays, oblong-clamps for forks. The electrical retaining clamps are identified by having flat, protruding area specifcally for the two-wire, flat electrical cord. They came in both plated and painted varieties. Another offering for a more budget-oriented person was the metal strip with pull-buckle. These were all-purpose and very basic.


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## rennfaron (Dec 16, 2019)

Thanks Mike - do you have a pic of these more custom ones? The ones for the forks sound nice. I have a bunch of the metal strip with pull-buckle.


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## Oilit (Dec 16, 2019)

In the first picture, I think I see "56" on the back of that Dynohub, so it's older than the bike. Travelers had these as an option, so someone may have swapped it out.


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## ricobike (Dec 18, 2019)

Oilit said:


> In the first picture, I think I see "56" on the back of that Dynohub, so it's older than the bike. Travelers had these as an option, so someone may have swapped it out.



I counted the spokes, 32.  The front wheel is most likely from a Raleigh, but definitely not a Schwinn wheel.  The english rims of that era look similar to S5's so it's easy to get them confused.


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## SirMike1983 (Dec 19, 2019)

ricobike said:


> I counted the spokes, 32.  The front wheel is most likely from a Raleigh, but definitely not a Schwinn wheel.  The english rims of that era look similar to S5's so it's easy to get them confused.




This is a good catch - those do look like 1950s Raleigh Westrick pattern rims. The Raleigh Westrick rim of that era can be identified by it's shape, with the bump in the center of the profile, the tire size of 590mm bead seat, and the fact that the bump in the center has a dull grey color to it rather than knurling or shiny chrome. It could well be these are Raleigh wheels swapped onto the Schwinn, at least the pictures look like it.

An example of the clamps are below. They came in various shapes to fit to the fork, frame tubs, stays, etc.


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## rennfaron (Dec 19, 2019)

SirMike1983 said:


> An example of the clamps are below. They came in various shapes to fit to the fork, frame tubs, stays, etc.



Thanks. And I assume that these were all added on at each dealer location, so the layout and wiring were attached per how they thought best? Like I said, I haven't come across anything showing the wires in promotional material or dealer material that would suggest some type of standard install. I guess it is just a consequence of having the lighting kit which requires many additional wires and clamps. The clamps would at least hold the lines taut.


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## Sven (Dec 19, 2019)

Seasons Greetings, Ray. That is a beautiful bike


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