# New Member With A J.c. Higgins



## Mountaineer (Aug 14, 2016)

Hello,

My wife found a vintage 26" ladies' J.C. Higgins bicycle and immediately fell in love with it. I'm a relative newcomer to the world of vintage bikes, but I have experience with restoration of other vintage techology. The bike appears to be mostly original to my untrained eye and seems to be a decent survivor. The only problem areas I see are a significantly rusted rear fender and a piece missing from one of the handlebar grips. The tires are Sears Allstate and I think they may be original. They still hold air, have good tread, and are not cracked. I'm thinking this bike didn't see a lot of use. The bike seems to be in good mechanical condition as well. 

I'm thinking this bike was one step down from the Color Flow bikes that I've seen a lot of photos of. Underneath the pedals, there is "MOS R" and a model and serial number. Based on the limited research I've done online, I believe MOS R indicates the bike was built in '52, but it would be great if someone could confirm this. I've only been able to find pictures of a couple of this model, so I suspect it may not have been a big seller. 

Does anyone have any recommendations for the rust on the rear fender? I'd like to try to make it look a little better, but if all else fails, I suppose I could try to track down another fender. It's hard to see in the picture, but there's what looks like the remains of an old Pinkerton's decal in the rusted area. Also, is there a source out there for handlebar grips in this style? How can I best preserve the original paint?

My wife is eager to get out and start riding this. Hopefully I can find a bike and join her. I'd like to find a men's bike of the '40s/early '50s era with a tank that doesn't break the bank. Easier said than done, I know.

I'm trying to post pictures below. Any advice or comments will be greatly appreciated!


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## Euphman06 (Aug 14, 2016)

Did this bike come out of PA by chance? It's a cool bike for sure. As far as rust... WD40 and steel wool scrub, or try some Evaporust 
on it.


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## tech549 (Aug 14, 2016)

yes wd-40 and 000 steel wool,your proberbly real close on the year,but there are some jc Higgins guys here that could pinpoint it for you.as for mens tank bikes there is not a shortage here you can go to the for sale thread you could proberbly find something there.welcome to the cabe.


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## Mountaineer (Aug 14, 2016)

Thanks for the welcome! Yes, the bike came out of PA. My wife had been eyeing it on CL for a couple of weeks. I have to admit, it's an interesting color combo, but she likes it. 

Good to hear that men's tank bikes turn up often on here. I've been looking for a couple of months and the only things that have turned up in this area have been basket cases that the sellers have wanted top dollar for. Also, it seems like a lot of people in MD call a 1990s bike "antique" or "vintage".

I'll try the WD-40 and #000 steel wool on the rust. I've used it with some success on a vintage tractor in the past.


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## Euphman06 (Aug 15, 2016)

It's a cool bike, I even thought about picking it up myself. I'm about an hour north of where you got that from. I would get that fender cleaned up as best as possible and just hit the whole bike with a nice car wax. I wouldn't look at replacing parts personally.


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## Mountaineer (Aug 15, 2016)

Yeah, the idea of replacing the fender would be an absolute if all else fails option and even then it would probably take me a year or more to find one. Hopefully it should clean up well enough, but there are a couple of spots that feel a little thin. It hasn't rusted completely through though, which is good.


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## Floyd (Aug 15, 2016)

That is an awesome color scheme! You can't go wrong with an old Murray built Higgy!!


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## Boris (Aug 16, 2016)

This is my absolute favorite JC Higgins color scheme. Got one of these myself, just missing the headlight and tank. Someday.


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## Freqman1 (Aug 17, 2016)

Here's one on Ebay now. V/r Shawn
http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-5...0001&campid=5335809022&icep_item=282138499705


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## vincev (Aug 17, 2016)

Dave Marko said:


> This is my absolute favorite JC Higgins color scheme. .





*Bet you say that to all the J.C.Higgins.*


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## Boris (Aug 17, 2016)

Freqman1 said:


> Here's one on Ebay now. V/r Shawn
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-195...499705?hash=item41b0c3da79:g:rBoAAOSwGXtXhEBW
> 
> View attachment 350848




Thanks for posting this Shawn. The one on ebay is Monark built. The one posted by Mountaineer is Murray built. Columbia also had one in this style. I'm unaware of any other manufacturer that might have produced this model.


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## Mountaineer (Aug 18, 2016)

Interesting that three different suppliers for Sears produced the same model. Does anyone know if this model had a name? I've got several old Sears catalogs around, but none from '52.


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## Freqman1 (Aug 18, 2016)

I can look in the Elgin/Higgins book but I doubt it had a name e.g. Hollywood but more than likely was just referred to as a girls standard tank model or something similar. V/r Shawn


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## Boris (Aug 29, 2016)

This is one that falls outside of the realm of the three previous manufacturers that I mentioned. Wald sprocket? Seat stay/seat post connector? Unusual truss rod mounting, kinda bulbous tank. Anyone know for sure who built this bike? Shelby maybe????


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## Adamtinkerer (Sep 3, 2016)

MOS-R is indeed 1952.


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## bike123.com (Jan 26, 2017)

Hello
Not sure where this note will wind up but I have never posted and just joined CABE yesterday
hopefully you can help direct me
I'm trying to date a J.C. Higgins three speed
I know it's a Steyr, about 1960
Mens,serial number on BB
124559
I have a few thousand bikes and two shops
Thanks
Larry



Mountaineer said:


> Hello,
> 
> My wife found a vintage 26" ladies' J.C. Higgins bicycle and immediately fell in love with it. I'm a relative newcomer to the world of vintage bikes, but I have experience with restoration of other vintage techology. The bike appears to be mostly original to my untrained eye and seems to be a decent survivor. The only problem areas I see are a significantly rusted rear fender and a piece missing from one of the handlebar grips. The tires are Sears Allstate and I think they may be original. They still hold air, have good tread, and are not cracked. I'm thinking this bike didn't see a lot of use. The bike seems to be in good mechanical condition as well.
> 
> ...


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## Freqman1 (Jan 26, 2017)

bike123.com said:


> Hello
> Not sure where this note will wind up but I have never posted and just joined CABE yesterday
> hopefully you can help direct me
> I'm trying to date a J.C. Higgins three speed
> ...




Larry you would probably be better off starting your own thread under the appropriate heading e.g. vintage lightweight bicycles to get a better response. Also, unlike autos, the serial # on a bike often times means nothing so a pic is usually required to accurately identify the bike. V/r Shawn


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## bike123.com (Jan 26, 2017)

Freqman1 said:


> Larry you would probably be better off starting your own thread under the appropriate heading e.g. vintage lightweight bicycles to get a better response. Also, unlike autos, the serial # on a bike often times means nothing so a pic is usually required to accurately identify the bike. V/r Shawn



Thanks Shawn
as soon as I figure out how to start the thread (though i think there are Higgins dating threads abounding) or add to an appropriate one I';ll do that and post pictures
Regards
Larry


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