# Odd serial number for a late Paramount Tandem



## Schreck83 (Oct 18, 2021)

I know that Schwinns with fillet brazed frames often have a serial number that predate the apparent model year by a few years.  I suspect I have an extreme example of this.  The serial number GJ805618 points to July 1973 but the bike matches the 1979 Paramount Tandem model T294 in all other aspects. It's Silver Mist with Phil Wood hubs, 15 speed Campy crossover drive and Mathauser brake pads.  The photo below shows the GJ80 more clearly than the 5618, which led me to suspect it was made in 1980, but the Waterford site states that Paramount tandem production had ceased by the end of 1979.

So, do you think this is a frame that was brazed in 1973 and outfitted in 1979?


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## GTs58 (Oct 18, 2021)

I think the frame was built the year the bike was actually built up. The head tubes were made then stamped with a serial number and later used in building a frame. So if anything sat around for years it was just the serial stamped head tube. This was also the case on a lightweight model in the later 70's. Also, the BB shells for the rear crank on the Town & Country Tandems were also made, stamped with the serial number and then used sometime later to build the frames. Hard to date a T&C with just a serial. During the late 40's early 50's Schwinn stamped out a mess of BB shells with the Tandem's T00xxxx numbers and some of those shells ended up on late 40's early 50's Continentals, New Worlds, and Superiors.


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## Schreck83 (Oct 24, 2021)

Pics...










Wheels have 48 spokes on Phil Wood hubs.


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## GTs58 (Oct 24, 2021)

Nice!

Looks kind a like there is a head badge. I know they stamped the build dates on the Tourist Paramounts so maybe the actual build date is stamped on your head badge. It's 4 digits with day and the year. DDDY It may be small and faint so check it real close. That Schwinn decal looks late 70's early 80's to me.


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## Schreck83 (Oct 25, 2021)

You are correct, it is very faint and I missed it until today: 3449, so December 10, 1979!  That would make this one of the last Paramount tandems made.


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## GTs58 (Oct 25, 2021)

Good deal! Schwinn started stamping the build dates on the badges in 1976. I wasn't sure when they started doing that on the Paramounts but it seems to have been at that time from the very few examples I've seen. The only problem with stamping the build date on the head badge is the badge can be removed or replaced.


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