# ca. 1915 Great Western built Mead 'Pathfinder' Motorbike



## Jesse McCauley (Oct 25, 2021)

Ca. 1915+/- Great Western built Mead badged “Pathfinder”
An excellent survivor machine highly reminiscent of it’s motorcycle counterpart in the catalog.
I haven't found a 15' catalog that shows the Pathfinder but by 20' when the Pathfinder shows up in a few catalogs it has adopted many later traits. I would love to see any images you fine sleuths dig up! 
The closest I've found is the attached 1915 advert for another GW built Mead, the Ranger Superbe Motorcycle Model, but there are a couple discrepancies between mine and this model. 

Original matched rims sport the same sexy maroon & black with gold bar outlined paint as the fenders. The maroon and flowing black pin stripes are strong throughout the frame but like a well-aged burgundy, difficult to show but intoxicating in person.

I’m not generally a fender man given I’m working primarily with racing machines of the 1890’s but these fenders speak to me.
Dual factory braces that run well outside the wheel well of the fender all intact.

The tiller bar stance, those motorcycle style pedals and longspring with the welded truss rod forks combined with the fenders really drives this one home for me as a proper "motorbike" from the period. 

As a Great Western built machine it’s no surprise to find a fine half inch pitch Fauber crank hanger, at this point I love to see an early machine with original 1/2” pitch drive.
Sadly the badge is basically electro printed on brass and has not held up well enough to photograph well either but you will just have to visit the shop to appreciate it.

Gear rundown: 
-Troxel “Tip Top” long spring saddle with tool kit
-Standard Co. pedals
-Atherton coaster brake hub
-Bull dog grips
-Goodyear Blue Streak tires


----------



## cr250mark (Oct 25, 2021)

Jesse 
This one is making my heart thump. 
Kick Butt Patina , maroon and Black
Was always a good combo


----------



## Cooper S. (Oct 25, 2021)

Damn, makes me want to build another mead motorcycle bike to cruise over by their old offices


----------



## dfa242 (Oct 25, 2021)

Yup - and that's how you spell t-i-r-e-s!


----------



## stezell (Oct 25, 2021)

Killing it as usual young man!


----------



## Kato (Oct 25, 2021)

Unbelievable killer bike..........history.
That's one you dream about finding !!!


----------



## oldmtrcyc (Oct 30, 2021)

Awesome bike, Jesse!


----------



## josehuerta (Oct 30, 2021)

My guess is early 1917, seams to be the first year for the Pathfinder Motorbike. Pictures from the 1917 catalog show the bike with flat fender braces which became the norm by 1918 for Mead but yours still has the earlier style rod braces.


----------



## oldmtrcyc (Nov 1, 2021)

I have the mead catalogs from 1913, 15, 16, 18, 21, 22, and 25.  I don't see this model in the 1916 or earlier.  My 1918 catalog shows exactly like Josehuerta's 1917 catalog.  Red w/ black trim. 

Worth noting in the 1918 catalog, the artist's renditions of the Rangers (top of the line) showed the rod style fender braces, while the Pathfinders showed the flat braces.  I could see Mead using whatever they had handy.  In fact, you could order the European style md guards, shown with round braces, in 1918.  So my hunch is that Jesse's killer bike is 1916-1920, but some gaps still need filled in.  I have several rangers from the late teens, early 20s.  Time to dig deeper!


----------



## Archie Sturmer (Nov 1, 2021)

Wonder about the different manufacturers of Mead bicycles, and the dates of each.
I believe that GWM had a patent on a stamped seat post from 1916.

The *pathfinder* of the catalog looks to have an Emblem chain ring sprocket; Sears Elgin like, (but not)


----------



## SKPC (Nov 1, 2021)

Jesses' Great Western made motorbike (omg!) matches none of the advertising images nor would you expect it to. Nor does the advertising shown mention the actual makers.   This era of jobbers, suppliers and actual manufacturers of frames/forks and parts was apparently changing constantly, so GWM, Emblem, Mead, Columbia, Westfield, Davis & others manufacturing the frames and forgings/castings & stampings seem to have been involved in some way.  True it is that so much information is missing.  Would love to see mention of _makers_ in the old ads..


----------



## razinhellcustomz (Jul 5, 2022)

Cooper S. said:


> Damn, makes me want to build another mead motorcycle bike to cruise over by their old offices



So these 


Cooper S. said:


> Damn, makes me want to build another mead motorcycle bike to cruise over by their old offices



So these bikes were made in Milwaukee then or not? Cool.looking bikes... RideOn...


----------



## SKPC (Jul 6, 2022)

Late teens the war was on and again, it has been mentioned before that many different makers supplied frames, forks, wheels and other key parts then pieced together by the Retailers like Mead. We know not much was standardized.  Ads were missing many details and not always accurate.   Jessies' bike has the characteristic *Great Western* frame/fork & 1/2" pitch Fauber ring and crankset that looks early Mead "style"




This* GW *bike is Very different from the maker of the Mead Pathfinder below with Davis, GW, Emblem and/or Consolodated features. 




Archie Sturmer said:


> Wonder about the different manufacturers of Mead bicycles, and the dates of each.
> I believe that GWM had a patent on a stamped seat post from 1916.
> 
> The *pathfinder* of the catalog looks to have an Emblem chain ring sprocket; Sears Elgin like, (but not)



Yes AS, the Sprocket Compilation https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/sprocket-compilation-pic-heavy.41683/page-20
mentions the Elgin-looking(but not Elgin) ring seen on the 1919 _*pathfinder*_ on pg.1., post #8 here.  It came on a Shelby Frame Builders 23-25 bike with an _incorrect_ crank..(unfortunately)  Perhaps Emblem/Miami related and often mentioned elsewhere.


----------



## Cooper S. (Jul 9, 2022)

razinhellcustomz said:


> So these
> 
> So these bikes were made in Milwaukee then or not? Cool.looking bikes... RideOn...



No? I live in Chicago


----------



## whisper2scream (Oct 4, 2022)

Jesse McCauley said:


> Ca. 1915+/- Great Western built Mead badged “Pathfinder”
> An excellent survivor machine highly reminiscent of it’s motorcycle counterpart in the catalog.
> I haven't found a 15' catalog that shows the Pathfinder but by 20' when the Pathfinder shows up in a few catalogs it has adopted many later traits. I would love to see any images you fine sleuths dig up!
> The closest I've found is the attached 1915 advert for another GW built Mead, the Ranger Superbe Motorcycle Model, but there are a couple discrepancies between mine and this model.
> ...



Gorgeous bike.  Absolutely splendid.  Can you say more about the 1/2" pitch Fauber crank hanger?  I've recently acquired a Mean Ranger that appears to be Great Western built and it has a Fauber crank.  Just trying to land on a birthdate for the bike.  Others have suggested '15-'17.


----------

