# 1948 gotham huffman



## wayne brown (Dec 12, 2008)

Anyone with pictures,Ads or* any info on the gotham badge would be greatly appreciated. It seems that history is vague about huffman in 1948 and in1949 they sufferd from post war recession. Soon after the name was changed to huffy.So I have many questions. Is the basic bike rare? Is it one of the last Huffman made bikes? Would it be safe to say that with all the accessories that the bike was owned by someone with money during hard times? Would the bike be restored to be put in a museum? This bike is taking on its own life form. If I can hear what it is saying it would be,"Dont play with me, Display me ".


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## 37fleetwood (Dec 13, 2008)

Ok, some information for you.
the Gotham badge, I have no idea who the retailer was who offered it, there may be someone who knows but I don't.
Huffman was one of two manufacturers who were allowed to make bicycles during the war, and were one of the first to get into production after the war. there are a surprising amount of early postwar Huffmans out there. from 1946 to 1947 the frames were very similar to the pre war Huffman bikes. in 1948 Huffman changed frame style to the style you have and it was very popular and there are quite a few still around. if you look in the serial number chart you will find over a half dozen early post war Huffmans there. in 1949 the "Huffy" name was introduced but the corporation's name wasn't changed until 1969. in 1957 Huffy bought the failing Monark Silverking Bicycle company. and during the years just following this, they produced many Huffy's with Monark parts as well as producing Monark badged Huffy's hoping to capitalize on the Monark reputation.
your basic bike is not rare nor would it be very valuable. in fact, to someone who knows nothing about Huffmans, it still would not be considered valuable. the headlight on your bike was introduced with the frame change in 1948 and was made out of plastic and most were lost or damaged. there have been very few that have shown up and even less that have been found with the bike still attached.
the accessories are somewhat valuable by todays standard but at the time were probably not to hard to find or expensive. the tail light was offered as an accessory or could have come off an early '50's Shelby somewhere. the crash rails are interesting but may have started life as something else, or were an inexpensive add-on. the Delta tripple lights were easily damaged because they stuck out so much. with the fender tips, they may be off some other bike that, during the '50's was headed off to trash or they may have been bought as an accessory. anyway, the bike is a neat compilation of now rare parts and accessories.
there are more rare and valuable bikes, and I wouldn't say it is something that should be in a museum, but museums are looking for nice examples of even plain bikes sometimes. I would clean  it up and ride it. be careful with it and don't leave it anywhere it may get stolen or damaged. if you decide to restore it, a decent job should be sufficient, and I have some literature that might help. early post war literature is scarce but I happen to have the 1948 catalog, so you're in luck. ask any questions and I'll do my best to help.
also if you are willing, please post a bunch of detailed photos of your bike to help posterity and others with similar bikes, and we'll also have a better idea of any issues your bike may have.
Scott


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## rjs5700 (Dec 13, 2008)

The chrome rails and fender tips are Whizzer motorbike accessories.


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## Cole Lower (Dec 31, 2008)

how much do you want for that bike


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