# A Newbie here with an Oldie (Shapleigh)



## elwood (Aug 25, 2019)

Hello... I'm new... here's how I got here... was given this bike years ago.. a friend was help cleaning up some family farm property.. They had thrown this into a rented dumpster
over the weekend... He, knowing I love old stuff, told me about a bike with a tank and I told him I would take it if they hadn't hauled it off yet.. well he dug it out and brought it to
me and I put it in my shed... Now I collect mainly vintage soda machines, coolers anything soda fountain related of the 1940s and 50s and thought a bike would look awesome displayed with them... just think of all the kids riding their bikes to the local gas station or general store to get a soda...

Anyway I know nothing about bikes so I started looking on the web for parts and history of this bike... how old is this? And a link brought me here...  The bikes are amazing on this site... As I was waiting to get approved to join I've look through so many post... the finds, the restorations, One member cleaning a bike up for a 90 year old uncle (I want that bike...
it came out beautiful)... the "rattle can" restoration thread was one of my favorites to look through...

So anyway here I am, and here's this bike... not the best of shape , has been repainted... lost of dents on the back fender and the bike support/stand (which I thought was original) is now probably just some metal someone made to help hold the bike up. I know it's old but how old? How can I find out? is there a date or number painted or stamped on this somewhere?
I don't want to junk this I want to try and see what can be done to the paint... see if I can wet sand down to original as so much has flaked off... looks to have been a darker red/maroon... the chrome on the handle bars had peeled off..  so I may just steel wool that and clear coat... but what about hand grips? Anyone here know what originals may have looked like.. Are there after market grips that are close and the seat... again any repops?  Chain guard - did it have one? the back fender reflector anything out there? Want to try and do a "Rustoration" rat rod it.. but would like to find a new seat close to the look of this one, chain guard if it had one, proper stand for it, etc.  I'm on eBay all the time for soda machines and coolers and when I type in "vintage bike" 1000s of parts come up!!... I don't know what I'm doing or looking for any help would be greatly appreciated... Now there are killer, KILLER bikes on this site..this one I have may not be worthy here...It may not be worth fixing up... but I just didn't want to see it junked. and want to fix it up some and ride it. I'm in Missouri and will be looking for a bike club maybe to join. 
I go to Chicago Coin-Op show every year in November with my wife to hunt soda machines and coolers... and there have been some bikes show up... I think bikes are now on my list as well.. would love to find a couple more.
I'm an old guy (50+) had a killer Schwinn bike from the early 70s as a kid wish I still had it, had the banana seat and tall handle bars was a 2 tone purple and red-ish color very 70s was awesome.
road it everywhere. I promise to be a good member here... only positive post and as I try to do something with this bike I will report in with pictures and give credit to those who help me along this new
interest and great hobby... So glad  I found this site.


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## Freqman1 (Aug 25, 2019)

It’s a Westfield built bike. The serial number should be under the crank. Looks late ‘30s/early ‘40s. V/r Shawn


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## Allrounderco (Aug 25, 2019)

Nice bike and story! Welcome.


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## gkeep (Aug 25, 2019)

Welcome! Great bike, save and story. Check out the threads on removing paint and saving original paint. You've got a great start and if it was me I'd keep that home fabricated stand, it has character, patina and is part of the bikes history. You've come to the right place for both help, information and the parts to complete the project. Best of luck, find that serial number.


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## BrandonB (Aug 25, 2019)

Yup, I too came here late last year looking for information on an old bike I came across.  The talent and knowledge that this place posses is totally amazing.  Going through threads on people asking for info on bikes that they have found and the comments on details to identify the year of production that I wouldn't even think of noticing.  I had asked for the age of the bike I had and after posting the serial number, I got the info I was looking for within 5 minutes.  Great place to come.  I enjoy myself just window shopping of all the cool bikes that are for sell here and admire the character and the quality of the older bikes, much like the older cars.


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## CURTIS L LINDGREN (Aug 25, 2019)

Welcome  !    Thanks for sharing the story.   You Came to the right place.   Get Used to the site, and in no time you'll get the parts................and answers you need.     Cool Bike !        I don't see anything wrong with your seat...................


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## piercer_99 (Aug 25, 2019)

welcome, they sure have some great garbage in your neck of the woods.



although it looks like that dropstand weighs as much as the bike.


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## elwood (Aug 26, 2019)

Thank you all for the welcome.. Here is the serial number from the crank (Thanks Freqman1 for letting me know where it was)
The paint is really bad.. I tried some fine steel wool, oven cleaner (have had good results with that on soda coolers) but not here and the back fender is really dented up
We've had a lot of rain last night and today but once it clears I may try and get into the tank.... also does the headlight open? It has a cracked front plastic lens will need to find a replacement for it and a back reflector


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## elwood (Aug 26, 2019)

While I'm posting images will go ahead and post this other bike I bought at auction a couple years back... nobody was interested in it so I got it for $1.. It seemed so straight had
to get it. I don't think it's super old (maybe 1960s?)  Thinks its been repainted...no real dents anywhere would the handle bars been white like this?... Would it have had a tank and
chain guard? I like the little jewel reflector on the back... Badge is a little scuffed up...  Here on the site the "Show me your rattle can paint job" thread is so cool I may have to repaint this one...  I'll post the serial number also so someone can give me an idea of how old it is.


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## Freqman1 (Aug 26, 2019)

Going off the top of my head I want to say the "F" serial on your Westfield (Shapleigh) bike makes it 1941. The other bike appears to be a prewar Huffman of about the same age. Check the back of the fork crown for either two or three numbers. Check this link to understand better what I'm talking about. https://vintageamericanbicycles.com/index.php/serial-number-lists/   V/r Shawn


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## Greeced lightning (Aug 26, 2019)

Nice bikes, the Westfield has a lot going for it, for what you are looking to do with it. A matching chain guard, a rack & in my humble opinion, upgraded seat would make it a great display piece. Not sure if they are original, but definitely period, are torpedo or coke bottle grips w/ reflectors. Have fun w/ it & welcome to the cabe


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## elwood (Aug 26, 2019)

Ok... wow.. these are not like collecting soda machines at all... Ha... numbers and letters... a Shapleigh is a Westfield, a Western Flyer is a Huffman ... Is this like a Buick or Pontiac is a GM product, Mustang is a Ford?
Thanks Greeced for the info on grips will be looking for some.
On the Western Flyer... what is this number? I will go out and check for more numbers on the fork.


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## Freqman1 (Aug 26, 2019)

That is the serial number. Unfortunately some manufacturer's serial numbers aren't an exact science. Your automotive analogy is correct. Shapleigh and Western Flyer are brands. Unlike auto manufacturers, bicycle brands can be found on multiple makers bikes. Shapleigh was a hardware store who bought bikes from several  manufacturers and put their badge on them. Western Flyer badges are found on Huffmans, Shelby, and Cleveland Welding to name a few. Check this link for more info  https://vintageamericanbicycles.com/index.php/company-histories/  V/r Shawn


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## elwood (Aug 26, 2019)

Thanks Freqman1... I  went out and found these numbers.. you can see a "40" real well... the other number before is up a little higher could be a 5 or 7? paint is so thick there...
but 40 is the year? Dang thought for sure it was a 60s bike... this is older than the Shapleigh? looks newer... See I really do know nothing about bikes.
Is this a "No Frills" version since there is no tank or chain guard... or.. maybe they didn't have tanks for this model, or it was removed? This bike is pretty straight just some bends along the edges of the fender that would be easy to fix... Will have to search out what this may have looked like... white handle bars maybe just painted also though there is no paint on the grips...


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## piercer_99 (Aug 26, 2019)

Your Huffman built Western Flyer is cool, and much older than the 1960s.

Western Flyer sold a lot of bikes, never built one though.  Mainly Huffman (the Huffy) or Murray.

Shapleigh did the same thing, as did Sears, Coast to Coast, Otasco, many of the auto and hardware stores.


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## Freqman1 (Aug 26, 2019)

Looks like July 1940 to me. I’ll see if I can dig up an image. V/r Shawn


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## Mercian (Aug 27, 2019)

Hi, Elwood,

the Shapleigh (made by Westfield) F203285 was one of the last bicycles produced by them in December 1941 (Shawn was right) (serials finished at F213132 that year). 
I imagine the talk on the line as it was assembled was of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
If you look above the serial number, you should find a second number, probably starting H with one or two numbers following it. This is the code for when the frame was made before assembly. If you can find it, we can date it to the exact month.

As Shawn also said, the Western Flyer (made by Huffman), the numbers 740 on the fork date it to July 1940. Below is a picture of another Huffman fork with that unusual 7 stamped on it for comparison.

https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/1...rame-fork.142358/#lg=attachment897371&slide=0 

Best Regards,

Adrian


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## elwood (Sep 5, 2019)

Hi Mercian... Here is that number you were talking about... H11 ... So November of 1941? you can see it was a dark maroon color... a lot of paint is gone but gonna mess with this bike through the winter.. fenders are pretty dented up.. noticed different threads on "Fender Rolling"... anyone recommend anyone that is still doing rolling? this bike has the high spot seem along the middle of the fenders if that makes a difference in rolling them.


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## catfish (Sep 5, 2019)

Welcome!


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## Mercian (Sep 5, 2019)

Hi Elwood,

thanks for looking, it's surprising how many people say they will, and you never hear from them again.

Yes, the frame was made November 1941, and used very shortly afterwards to build the bike. I think that frames were made in batches of a particular style (ie, once the tooling is set up, it's as easy to make 100 as it is to make 10). This means that during sales slumps, or with less popular models, there sometimes can be many months between the frame date and the date it was assembled.

Here, it was probably being built for the Christmas rush, also, I understand that there was beginning to be a patriotic drive to save fuel by using bikes even before the US entered the war.

I look forward to seeing the finished result.

Best Regards,

Adrian


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