# Can anyone help me figure out what year this bike is?



## tobytyler (Jan 24, 2011)

Need to find out what year this Roadmaster (SN A05309) is?
Should it have a tank? If so, is it interchangable w/other Bikes?
Does it have any value?


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## BWbiker (Jan 24, 2011)

*Roadmaster I.D.*

Hi Toby. I think Phil is currently in dispose so I will give you what I have learned from him about my prewar "A" ser# Roadmasters. More than likely your bike is a '41. I have one or two in that same ser# range with the same style frame. The drop stand ears verify it as prewar. It is hard to tell if there is an arm for a fork mounted headlight or not. If there is then the torpedo light was an add on. If no arm it would indicate an earlier fork. Please post if there is an arm on the fork or not, a close up photo would be great! Brad


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## tobytyler (Jan 25, 2011)

thanks brad yes there is a arm for the headlight. i wondered why it was there i thought that having two lights would be strange.  why does it have wood pedels? iwould like to add a tank can anyone help? thanks a bunch toby tyler


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## dougfisk (Jan 25, 2011)

tobytyler said:


> ...why does it have wood pedels?





I could be wrong, but I think wood pedals may have been OEM during the war when rubber was rationed.


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## dougfisk (Jan 25, 2011)

I hesitate to answer because I am stealing Dr. Phil's thunder and anything I THINK I know I learned from him.  There is a tank that fits and they call it a "3 Gill" tank.  It probably did not have one originally (based on rear fender).  The rack is probably not original to the bike, as the bike probably did not have one originally (based on rear fender).  Yes it certainly has value: much moreso if it has original paint.  Is any of the paint original??


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## tobytyler (Jan 25, 2011)

somebody did paint over it at one time but i was able to rob it off the original paint came through why is the rear fender a giveaway concerning a tank? thanks guys toby.


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## BWbiker (Jan 25, 2011)

*Prewar Roadmaster details*

Hi again Toby. I know what Doug is saying. The rear fender appears to be original to the bike, it has two stays. Deluxe bikes had only one stay and the rack legs compensated for the missing stays. Second, if the darts on the top tube are original they are in the pattern for a no tank bike. Doug is correct, the three gil tank will fit this frame. Beware, there is a pre and post war version that would fit perfectly but the horn buttons and horns are different. Brad


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## tobytyler (Jan 25, 2011)

thank you both for all the helpful information this is my first vintage bike. i hope to pick-up some more in the future. i think a tank would cool anyone have one for sale?  toby t.


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## BWbiker (Jan 25, 2011)

*Prewar Roadmaster*



tobytyler said:


> thank you both for all the helpful information this is my first vintage bike. i hope to pick-up some more in the future. i think a tank would cool anyone have one for sale?  toby t.



 You are welcome Toby. Tanks are hard earned, put the word out and be patient. 
Brad


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## RMS37 (Feb 1, 2011)

Hi, I’m getting to this discussion late as I have been under the weather for the last month and have only been catching up this last week. You’ve received good information regarding your bike. As noted, there are two pieces of information present that show this bike was originally sold as an un-equipped model. Double rear fender stays show the bike did not originally have a rack (the rack on the bike is an add-on accessory) and the pattern of the paint darts at the front of the frame is the pattern used on tank-less bikes. 

Regarding the serial number, the “A” serial numbers (second prewar “A” series, “A” serial numbers were also used in 1936) shows the bike was produced somewhere between late 1941 and February of 1942. There is no factory information available to show the exact serial numbers that define the end of 1941 and the beginning of 1942 so it is not currently possible to know which side of that line your bike falls on. In spite of that, your bike should be considered a 1942 model as the model year changes generally occurred during the fall so Christmas bikes could be considered “New for the New Year”.

The 1942 line was designed to use less sheet metal due to steel rationing for the war and even the deluxe models were designed to be sold tank-less. Ultimately, the 1942 model year production ended in February due to repurposing the factory toward the war effort.

It is possible that your bike was originally equipped with the wood block pedals but it is more likely that they were replacements, as I don’t believe they were in production until slightly later than the production date of your bicycle. It is also possible that the bike sat unsold for a while at a bike shop and the original pedals and headlight were removed and sold by the shop and then replaced with what is currently on the bike. 

In your original post you also asked about the value of your bike. 

CWC produced variations of the 3-Gill model from 1938 through 1942 and then brought the model back after the war and produced more variations between 1945 and about 1956. These bikes are plentiful in the hobby and were produced in trim levels from very basic to fully equipped. The qualities that add the most to the market value of a 3-gill today are the originality and condition of the bike and the level of equipment the bike was originally produced with. There is also a hobby preference for prewar bikes but that doesn’t always play out in prices realized.

Your bike has condition going for it and equipment level against it. The equipment level is ameliorated to a degree by the fact that it is a 1942 model and would not have been produced as a deluxe equipped model. War era bikes are also a collectible in and of themselves, more so for true military models but many collectors look to have a wartime bike present in their collections. 

Taking all of the above into account I believe your bike is worth somewhere between $200 and $350 as it sits. 

I would be inclined to leave this bike as-is rather than building it to replicate an earlier or more deluxe version of the 3-Gill model. It is an excellent example of a 1942 CWC 3-Gill (probably the best original condition 1942 CWC balloon bike I have recorded to date.) To attempt to make it into something else will decrease the value of the bike in its historic value and any added monetary value will cost more to achieve than it will ultimately add to the finished product. If you are drawn to the style of the CWC 3-Gill and are planning to continue collecting you might start looking for an earlier or later 3-Gill in project condition that could be built accurately into a deluxe equipped tank model for an all out restoration project.


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## tobytyler (Feb 1, 2011)

thank you for the helpful information i live in cleveland a friend of mine knows a gentelman who worked at cwc as a salesman he has a nice collection of bikes. he was telling me about the some of the history i want to find out more i'll talk to him sunday. i like the bike the way it is also i drove all the way to eastern  n.y. to pick it up spent more on gas then i paid for the bike. my girlfriend still jokes about it but i liked the style and it was the color that sold me. i stumbled apond the 1940  colson by pure luck last week. nice bike i now have a tank bike can't wait to work on it i'll post pictures after i clean it up the paint is nice. i hope your feeling better toby t.  ( doug clev oh.)


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## spoker (Mar 3, 2011)

late 50s my dad bought 2 brand new bikes  the military store for 10 bucks a pop army green,wood pedals,very large spokes and handle bars lik on a girls bike.,no idea who made em


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