# Swing Bike



## wave1960

Have a few tweeks to complete it. A garage sale 20.00 find......oh yea, then another few hundred. Thank You to those who helped! Never was a muscle bike guy......a Peapicker restro was all it took I guess. Now a Swing Bike and I guess my first bike, a Monkey Wards Stingray knock off, needs some respect now. It is 43 yrs old.


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## bikecrazy

That has to be a hoot to ride! Looks great!


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## drane1

No such thing as a stingray "knock off", 1962 Huffy made the first production muscle bike, called a "Penguin". Then in 1963 "every" bicycle company made a Muscle Bike including schwinn. 
They all used the same Bars, seat, tires and sissy bar.


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## vincev

Great find for $20.


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## wave1960

drane1, Thank you for the info. Interested to see a Penguin now. Always learning something new. I think for me in 1970, a Krate or Stingray was the ultimate. I got the lower priced version due frugal parents who maybe didn't get how cool that 5 speed stick shift really was.


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## fordmike65

wave1960 said:


> drane1, Thank you for the info. Interested to see a Penguin now. Always learning something new. I think for me in 1970, a Krate or Stingray was the ultimate. I got the lower priced version due frugal parents who maybe didn't get how cool that 5 speed stick shift really was.




http://bikerodnkustom5.homestead.com/brainhistory63_muscle.html


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## Boris

fordmike65 said:


> http://bikerodnkustom5.homestead.com/brainhistory63_muscle.html




Very, very interesting! Thanks for posting this Mike.


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## vincev

I think the name Penguin pretty much doomed the bike.Why would any boy want a Penguin when there are bikes called Sting Rays,etc.


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## Boris

vincev said:


> I think the name Penguin pretty much doomed the bike.Why would any boy want a Penguin when there are bikes called Sting Rays,etc.




Based on the article and interview, it sounds like it was much more than just the name that doomed the Penguin.


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## wave1960

Awesome article!! Thank you


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## vincev

Still a stupid name......This stood out above the others? lol

PM:  The Penguin name came about after choosing the color black for the frame, and using a white polo seat on it. It looked like a Penguin, and everyone agreed. We kicked around many other names, but this one stuck out above all the others.


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## Boris

I agree with you. It is a stupid name. One can only imagine  how much stupider the other names were, if this is the name that rose to the top. Sad story for Peter Mole though. Y'know sonny, it kinda reminds me of ol' Pete Best, who got booted out of the Beatles in favor of Ringo, just before they hit the big time. But I digress.


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## vincev

Dave Marko said:


> I agree with you. It is a stupid name. One can only imagine  how much stupider the other names were, if this is the name that rose to the top. Sad story for Peter Mole though. Y'know sonny, it kinda reminds me of ol' Pete Best, who got booted out of the Beatles in favor of Ringo, just before they hit the big time. But I digress.




Thank you Dave for your opinions.


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## Freqman1

Mike,
   A great article. I, like many others, was the victim of Schwinn's revisionist history concerning the development of the muscle bike. I'm not a big musclebike fan but how cool would it be to have an original Penguin? V/r Shawn


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