# Childhood Schwinn Scrambler - Help Identifying Build



## ballooney (Jan 30, 2021)

I'm trying to nail down my childhood bike in hopes of finding/building another.  I believe this is a 1978 Schwinn Scrambler after a few mods but looking for confirmation (this is the only pic I have of my bike after all mods and a few more pics in mid customization below




At this point, I believe I upgraded the front end to all Redline components (fork, stem, and bars (did redline make bars?)).  Grips??  Bike came equipped with Tuff Wheel II's off the showroom floor.  On the seat mast, I'm a little fuzzy here...looks like I have some sort of bear trap pedals, I remember having a ribbed blue anodized seat post (make??) and seat clamp (make?) and a shotgun seat (hard plastic) (make)?  Any help confirming or correcting my memory would be greatly appreciated including the year of the bike.  I don't believe I ever upgrade the cranks (probably ran out of money).

Here are a few closer pics of the bike with the front end mods but original mid section:







As I mentioned, any help nailing down year and confirming make of components would be greatly appreciated.  I think it would be fun to build this bike once again.
Thanks for looking.


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## GTs58 (Jan 30, 2021)

I'd say it was the Mag Scrambler if the wheels were original. Note the frame seat stays jet out before curving down. I see that you did lots of upgrades!


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## ballooney (Jan 30, 2021)

GTs58 said:


> I'd say it was the Mag Scrambler if the wheels were original. Note the frame seat stays jet out before curving down. I see that you did lots of upgrades!
> 
> View attachment 1347933



1978?


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## GTs58 (Jan 30, 2021)

Yes, 78 catalog. The 79 catalog with that style frame and mags was named the Phantom Scrambler.


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## Beach Bum III (Jan 30, 2021)

Rad ! Nice work. Yeah, looks like a ‘77 or ‘78. I’ve been thinking of building one too. Those frames are so cool. I think the one that came in red was Chromoly and the blue one was not. Some frames seem to have raw looking welds while others are all smoothed out. I believe they were made more like the Super Sport frames. Blazed welded and ground smooth rather than a forged head tube. Watch out for those fluted seat posts. They were known to snap!


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## GTs58 (Jan 30, 2021)

Looking at that catalog page I'm wondering if the other model number BX9-6 for ten buck more just included the tube fork.


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## birdzgarage (Jan 30, 2021)

Yes redline made bars.the fluted seat post was made by many companies.looka like a suntour seat clamp.there were a few companies making those seats.cycle pro and kashimax are a couple unfortunately all that stuff is highly collectable and very expensive these days.the mid to late 70s redline fork,bars and stem and going to set you back over $1000.00 alone for nice examples in blue.


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## bloo (Jan 30, 2021)

Did the Tuff Wheel II even exist yet in 78? I can't remember for sure, but that sounds too early.


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## marching_out (Jan 30, 2021)

This is my 79 Phantom Scrambler.


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## ballooney (Jan 30, 2021)

birdzgarage said:


> Yes redline made bars.the fluted seat post was made by many companies.looka like a suntour seat clamp.there were a few companies making those seats.cycle pro and kashimax are a couple unfortunately all that stuff is highly collectable and very expensive these days.the mid to late 70s redline fork,bars and stem and going to set you back over $1000.00 alone for nice examples in blue.



Okay, good info...thank you.  Yeah, I have been checking out the vintage BMX world lately to see what was going on in that community...all I can say, at least my bike was not a Cook Bros bike so a grand for few redline parts seems cheap in comparison!  ha ha.


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## ballooney (Jan 30, 2021)

bloo said:


> Did the Tuff Wheel II even exist yet in 78? I can't remember for sure, but that sounds too early.



Well, maybe I had Tuff Wheels and not the II's...thought they were II's though.  Anyone know when Tuff Wheel II's came out?


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## ballooney (Jan 30, 2021)

GTs58 said:


> Yes, 78 catalog. The 79 catalog with that style frame and mags was named the Phantom Scrambler.



Yeah, 78 seems right based on memory and finding links to the catalogs seems to confirm 78.  Thank you.


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## bloo (Jan 30, 2021)

ballooney said:


> Well, maybe I had Tuff Wheels and not the II's...thought they were II's though.  Anyone know when Tuff Wheel II's came out?




The ones in your pictures are indeed Tuff Wheel II's. The ones on the scrambler and phantom above look to be Tuff I's.

Back in the late 70s, probably about 78, a friend of mine had "Tuff Wheels", (which were Tuff I's). A bearing race cracked in the coaster hub on the back one, causing it to eat a lot of bearings. Since the plastic was molded around the coaster hub, there was no way to replace it.

He ran some alloy rims for a little while, then in a year or 2 got more Tuff Wheels. They were Tuff Wheel II. I remember seeing them in the bike shop before he bought them and noted that the hubs were mounted on metal spiders, and that the plastic was no longer molded around the hubs. There was airspace. In my opinion it was a huge improvement. I don't remember if they were intended to be servicable, but if not, you would at least have some prayer of being able to get a broken hub out of the wheel if you wanted to try.

I don't recall ever seeing any Tuff Wheel II's back around 78, only "Tuff Wheels" which were the Tuff Wheel I without the metal spiders, and there were a lot of those around. I was also hoping someone would remember for sure when the Tuff Wheel II came out.


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## macr0w (Jan 31, 2021)

Here's some good info on Tuff Wheels.
Skyway Tuff Wheels
I'm lookin for a Mag Scrambler just like yours.


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## GTs58 (Jan 31, 2021)

bloo said:


> The ones in your pictures are indeed Tuff Wheel II's. The ones on the scrambler and phantom above look to be Tuff I's.
> 
> Back in the late 70s, probably about 78, a friend of mine had "Tuff Wheels", (which were Tuff I's). A bearing race cracked in the coaster hub on the back one, causing it to eat a lot of bearings. Since the plastic was molded around the coaster hub, there was no way to replace it.
> 
> ...





Looks like the II's were used in 79 if this piece is original.  https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/1979-schwinn-mag-scrambler.167311/#post-1255571


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## Astroyama (Feb 1, 2021)

I'm currently working on a Schwinn BMX bike that I rode as a kid, and the frame is stamped G1081 (Giant-October-1981).  But the model & chrome frame option isn't in the 1981-82 Schwinn Catalog and seems to be a transition bike between years of production...81-82
Whereas the chrome frame has double "Tear-Drop" gussets exactly like the 1982 Predator when it was introduced.  
However, my 81 frame has a kickstand tube welded on it, resembling a Scrambler.  Not certain though, the welded kickstand screams loudly....Scrambler! 
Also, I have never witness a Predator frame with a welded kickstand tube before.  

I vaguely can't remember the decals when I was taking them off as a kid.
My brother who was a bicycle mechanic at the time acquired the bike from a traveling Schwinn sales rep, and then he gave it to me for a Christmas present...Wow!  Anyway, seems like it may have been used as a traveling sales rep bike for pre-ordering status not shown in any catalog.   A "Giant" Special...hey everybody look at my welds now...Nice!

In your opinion, what frame model do you think this is...Scrambler or Predator?

Thank Yo~


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## Norrin (Feb 8, 2021)

It's a Predator Cromo, Schwinn only made them for a couple of years and they are a full chromoly frame and the gusset has a full weld around it unlike the regular Predator.  It was in the catalogs for 1981 and 1982.  The Cromo was my first real BMX bike back in the day and I've built several since I sold that one.  I'm always on the lookout for one of those, they're amazing and I love 'em.


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