# 05/10/1962 - Schwinn Traveler - Ladies 19" Frame - 3 Speed - Radiant Red



## rennfaron (Sep 29, 2019)

The project before the 23" black traveler I just posted, was this ladies traveler. It was another ebay purchase and the seller sold it quick on an offer for a good deal. From the photos it looked in good condition, but when I got it it just had a lot more scrapes and paint loss than I saw in the photos. The paint itself was in a great condition and the chrome / SS was also in great condition. It also looked like someone had a lock and chain wrapped around the down tubes, which chewed through a lot of paint down to steel. The decals were in ok shape, but once I started wiping it down they just melted away. It was like they were chalky and once water and a rag hit them, they were done. That was a real bummer since the paint looked so nice. So I removed the decals. Then I went over the paint and touched up everything. The touchup paint I found was almost a near perfect match. Check out the 6th photo to see one of the large touchup areas. I wish I had a before shot of this, but this area was chewed up bad from a chain, down to primer and steel. I laid down primer, then aluminum base, then testors. It blends right in. Then I put the some bones decals back on there (I have NOS decals, but didn't want to use them on this bike...). I left the chain guard decal alone because it was in pretty good shape and also the dealer sticker on there. I did the typical q-tip and toothbrush detailing and this thing pops. I pulled the grips off to put on the black traveler, but have a set on the way. I also have the starburst badge, but just haven't gotten around to mounting it yet. Last thing it would need is the saddle bag, which I have and need to put on there.

Ya, I like travelers...


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## rennfaron (Sep 29, 2019)

As seen on ebay when I purchased it. Polishing the red really, really, really well took decades off the bike.


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## GTs58 (Sep 29, 2019)

Unreal paint transformation! Good thing it's not the same Red paint as the 53-55's, it would be Gold after all that polishing.


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## rennfaron (Sep 29, 2019)

haha. Having another radiant red traveler, I knew from the photos that the red was either in need of a serious polishing or the photos taken didn't accurately represent the red or a combo of both because when radiant red is polished, waxed and in the sunlight it is electric! The price was good so I went for it. As I polished it, the cloth went from white to brown on the first pass. Then from white to a light gray on the second and third pass. Then I started biting into the red, went a slight bit further, stopped and waxed it to lock it in. I didn't know I was going to get into replacing decals, as I usually can save most of them, or getting into heavy touchup of paint. They were all good lessons though and the match to radiant red I found was almost exact and I didn't have to go get any special mix.


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