# Shelby Flyer Restoration Thread



## Momo

Hi guys, 

I've been lurking on The CABE for a few months now, and this will be post number one for me. 

I've been wanting a classic balloon tire bike for years... but many other hobbies and projects took priority. 

Now that my kids are big enough for regular family bike rides, I decided it was time to jump in to this hobby!

After a couple months scouring the web for bikes, I found this *Shelby Flyer* and dragged it home:





*
Dating the Bike*

I have my own ideas about the year of manufacture, but the SN does not decode like the conventional wisdom says it should:





Shelby supposedly used a letter prefix to indicate the year on all pre-war bikes, and post-war bikes got stamped with the last two numbers corresponding to year- example "45" or "49" then serial number. So I guess this could be a 1950 and the 5 didn't take.  Or is it a 1940? Just a guess but probably the bike was assembled here at Shelby's Los Angeles assembly plant. Maybe the LA plant used a different numbering scheme?

*The Bells & Whistles*

It's pretty basic, the only "fancy" accessory being an EA torpedo light. As you can see it has no tank and I doubt it ever did because there are no wear marks on the tubes hinting at one. I would install a tank if I could find a good one.

*Where I'm at*

The bike is totally disassembled, photographed and extensive notes were taken. Darts and pins measured, placement noted, and stencils made.

Minor sheetmetal truing underway.

Almost all plated parts are out for replating. I still need to take the head badge to the plater, and the cad-plated parts are going to different shop.
*
So here are my questions:*

1. What year do you think the bike is, and any idea what model? Not a lot of Shelby information can be found on the web. Other clues: The rear hub is a ND Model D. The front hub is a Bendix and is stamped 36-13 (36= number of spokes, but what's the 13 for?) And it is not a skip tooth as you can see.

2. Cad plating: Looks like the Torrington spokes, fender braces, fender fasteners, seat post bolt/nut, chain guard brackets, and brake bar bracket were all Cad. Is this correct? I particularly want to avoid replacing spokes so hopefully I can find a plater who will do the spokes properly (and not lose any)! 

*Sizing Up the Condition*

The bike is pretty complete... bars, pedals, seat post and seat (a Persons) are not the original items but are nice just the same. Rust and dings are minimal. Biggest problem is a couple of very small tube dings. I will probably have a body shop spot weld some pins on it and pull them, then fill as needed.

*
To Paint or not to Paint?*
I wanted to preserve the original paint if I could, but after some earnest effort to do so, it was clear that the factory finish was just too far gone for my taste. It was the right decision, because I found some of the original finish, perfectly preserved. What I found confirmed that this bike deserved a full restoration, as you will see in my next post.


----------



## okozzy

*Welcome to the CABE...*

Congrats on your first project bike, enjoy the journey!


----------



## jpromo

Thoughts: Definitely closer to 1950 than 1940. 48-50 would be my guess, but I'm not a Shelby guy.

I've never heard of anybody getting the spokes replated but I could be wrong! Some shops still sell cad plated spokes. I'd go that route or buy NOS.

If you've already invested in chroming the parts, then fresh paint is the only way to avoid having the bright chrome look way out of place.

The 13 on the Bendix hub denotes the spoke gauge--13 gauge standard size.

Not sure about the chainring; it's a Wald which is generally sold aftermarket.. though it could have been offered original for low-model bikes.

Welcome and enjoy!


----------



## HIGGINSFOREVER

Welcome to the cabe.Good start for a nice restoration.I do believe there is a tank and rear carrier available for that model.


----------



## dougfisk

Momo said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> 
> I have my own ideas about the year of manufacture, but the SN does not decode like the conventional wisdom says it should:
> 
> View attachment 134798
> 
> Shelby supposedly used a letter prefix to indicate the year on all pre-war bikes, and post-war bikes got stamped with the last two numbers corresponding to year- example "45" or "49" then serial number.




If you learned a prewar dating de-code key, please share it? 

A bendix hub is always post-war.

Re: the chainring - Shelby did use a lot of generic Wald parts, especiallly toward the end it seems.  This chainring is not uncommon at all, even in contemporaneous illustrations.

What does the brake arm look like, how is the rear hub plated, cad or chrome?


----------



## Momo

*Date Codes for Shelbys*

Thanks for the greetings and words of support, guys.

Doug, what I know about dating Shelbys is only what Larry at Memory Lane has told me. According to him, in a 1997 interview, a former Shelby employee explained that bikes were coded in the following way:

Prefix _Letter_, then frame number- 1933 to 1947
Prefix _number_, then frame number- 1947 on

V- 1933
W-1934
X- 1935
Y- 1936
A- 1937
B- 1938
C- 1939
D- 1940
E- 1941
F- 1942
G- 1945
H- 1946
K- 1947
L- 1948
49-1949
50-1950
51-1951
52-1952
53-1953

Whether this holds any water will depend on all my fellow Shelby caretakers out there... hopefully they will chime in on this thread. I know another forum member tried to start a Shelby registry on the CABE but the thread didn't get any momentum. I think there's probably a lot of truth to the notion that many ballooner enthusiasts are not really using the internet so information is not shared except by word of mouth. 

Also, you also asked about the brake arm.  It's New Departure:


----------



## Freqman1

I don't believe that chart "holds water". All of my '38/9 bikes start with either an "R" or "T". Also I'm not sure where you got info that Shelbys were manufactured in Los Angeles? Shelby's for most of their life were made in Shelby, OH and only at the end of production moved to Cleveland, OH (after AMF bought them). V/r Shawn


----------



## dougfisk

Based on looking at pics, I'd say your bike could be as late as '53.  The chain guard, rim style, brake arm style, and apparent cad plating suggest the same.


----------



## izee2

I would agree that it is from 53' There is a pic of that same style bike in John Polizzi's Shelby book. It List it as a 53' Model SX-20 Strat-O-line. No tank or rack shown on that model.


----------



## dougfisk

I think you scored well in the Shelby parts mash-up or grab-bag...  That frame and fenders, light and reflector combo makes for a very handsome bicycle.


----------



## dougfisk

Freqman1 said:


> I don't believe that chart "holds water". All of my '38/9 bikes start with either an "R" or "T"....  V/r Shawn




It's not working for me either.  I haven't written all mine down yet... but a few that I think are 36 and 37 are marked with, M,N, and P.


----------



## Tin machine

*awesome  bike*

what a great bike to start out with buddy , its alot of rewarding fun !!! enjoy the ride we will be watching !!


----------



## cds2323

Freqman1 said:


> I don't believe that chart "holds water". All of my '38/9 bikes start with either an "R" or "T". Also I'm not sure where you got info that Shelbys were manufactured in Los Angeles? Shelby's for most of their life were made in Shelby, OH and only at the end of production moved to Cleveland, OH (after AMF bought them). V/r Shawn




Shelby didn't manufacture bikes in Los Angeles, but Shelby did have a Western Office and Assembly plant located at 935 Wall St. Los Angeles. This is noted at the bottom of many of their ads in the thirties. Not sure that it was used after WW2. From what I've read, frames and parts were shipped west where they were assembled and painted for west coast distribution. 

The serial number list doesn't match some of my bikes either. Two from 1940 start with V and a 39 with P. I'll have to check others when I can get to them.


----------



## Momo

Thanks again for all the great input, guys. I love lots of old stuff... bikes, cars, tools, etc. But these things aren't nearly as interesting without knowing the history behind it all.

Shelby did indeed have two facilities on the West Coast: one in Los Angeles and one in Oregon. The "Western Office and Assembly Plant" was at one time located at 1011 1/2 Los Angeles Street (Downtown LA), just a couple blocks from the Wall St. address that cds2323 mentioned. Here's an ad that shows the address:








According to Classic Bike Magazine, Vol. 1 No. 5 Oct/Sept 1995:

*"The Shelby Cycle Company also had a factory in California and a small one in Oregon. Frames and parts were shipped there via boat as opposed to train. This saved up to one-third of shipping costs. These satellite factories would then paint and assemble the components for West Coast distribution".*

This makes me wonder if the serial numbers were also stamped at these locations rather than in Ohio. The serial number "coding" Larry gave me originally came from a Shelby employee named Ken Swank, who did marketing, publicity and quality control. He worked for Shelby from 1935 to 1953. I would therefore expect this information to be fairly reliable, but clearly there's more to the story.


----------



## Freqman1

That's interesting, I never caught that before regarding the western assy plant. This is the beauty of the CABE. I tend to think that the serials were stamped when the frames were made but thats a SWAG on my part. The reason I think this is-- I think it was generally a part of the manufacturing process and Shelby would have accountability from the get go of frames-- but again pure conjecture on my part. I would love to see a serial # chart for Shelby but the one you provided just doesn't seem to match up. I know there was at least one guy here collecting numbers but he never released any of his findings-that I know of. Good luck with your project. V/r Shawn


----------



## Terry66

I have a Shelby project and the frame isn't stamped but has a plate under the crank housing. Code is "53". Did some frames get stamped and others a plate in the same year? My frame has a taller more round tank than this would take


----------



## Freqman1

Terry66 said:


> I have a Shelby project and the frame isn't stamped but has a plate under the crank housing. Code is "53". Did some frames get stamped and others a plate in the same year? My frame has a taller more round tank than this would take




I've only seen the plates on post war bikes but someone else may have better info. V/r Shawn


----------



## Momo

Freqman1 said:


> That's interesting, I never caught that before regarding the western assy plant. This is the beauty of the CABE. I tend to think that the serials were stamped when the frames were made but thats a SWAG on my part. The reason I think this is-- I think it was generally a part of the manufacturing process and Shelby would have accountability from the get go of frames-- but again pure conjecture on my part.





Shawn, I would tend to agree with you... that would be typical for most manufacturing. I was just throwing out ideas but certainly there are many here who are more in the know than I am. What we really need to see is original Shelby documents.


----------



## Freqman1

Original documents would be great but my guess is they are lost to time. I would assume AMF took ownership of whatever Shelby records existed at the time. I would like to think these were preserved somewhere but my guess is AMF probably purged these when the Shelby line became defunct. I tried at one time to locate some original records and contacted Kim Heuberger who at one time had a museum devoted to Shelbys (in Shelby, OH of course!). He couldn't help me and the only other person that may have any substantial documentation is, unfortunately, Leon Dixon. I would love to at least have an idea of the serial number chart. I know RMS37 (Phil) was collecting #s at one time but I don't believe he ever published anything regarding these. V/r Shawn


----------



## Momo

The project goes on. Of course, this thread is behind my progress, and hopefully it will keep me motivated.

The teardown went smoothly until I tried to remove the stem and fork. Seized solid. Struck the bolt with a hammer to break the bond, but no use.
It might have been the first time it had been apart since it was built, who knows. 

I did the typical thing I do with old car projects: PB Blaster, then heat with a torch, then more PB Blaster, etc. No effect. Next I plugged the hole in 
the bottom of the fork, filled the fork tube with Blaster, and let it soak for a week. Still, nothing would budge. Next I filled it with a CLR type product 
to dissolve any rust. Still no effect. 

If I couldn't get this apart, the project couldn't move on. If I damaged anything, it would mean more work. But it had to come apart.

Okay, time to get serious. I made a jig, mounted on the biggest object I could... a truck frame that is for another restoration project. With the fork 
supported and wedged securely, I heated the stem again, hit it with more Blaster, and used a cheater bar stuck through the handlebar knuckle. I must 
have put 200 lb ft of torque on it. 

On the second try, it budged... then gradually, the stem twisted out.  That was major progress!

I was then able to get all the parts to the plating shop. I moved on to more disassembly and documenting the exact paint scheme. 

Here's a detail I noticed... the dart on the left fork is off center... I'll replicate this on the new paint job:





Here's the bare frame (well, almost- the head badge still needed to come off





Removing the head badge was a delicate process. I wanted to avoid enlarging the holes as well as any damage to the badge from the drill bit skipping. 
I just took it slowly and carefully, increasing the bit size until the rivets gave it up. 





And finally, I removed the Stimsonite No. 15 reflector and housing from the rear fender. I was hoping I would find some good paint under it and I was not 
disappointed!





So the paint was not orange and red... it is bright red with maroon (or dark red if you like) darts and white pins. Really sharp! 
I took the fender to my auto paint supplier and they matched it really well. I can't wait to shoot it!


----------



## Momo

Stripping as much paint as possible prior to media blasting.







Frame pics


----------



## Momo

Some parts laid out... Does anyone have a Stimsonite No. 15 lens that they want to part with? Mine is cracked.







EA Laboratories torpedo light is in good shape. I'll soak it in CLR to clean the guts out.







ND Model D Sprocket






Hub innards. I love the simplicity of the design.










Both hub shells polished up nicely.


----------



## Momo

Did some metal work on the fenders today. Just about eliminated most of the dents. Some areas may need the slightest skim coat of filler, but I'm trying to avoid it entirely if I can. 

I'm glad these are not peaked fenders... that would complicate the repair. 

I'll shoot them with primer tomorrow to find the high and low spots, work the metal some more, then media blast again.


----------



## Momo

Laid down the paint stripper on the frame yesterday... blasted the frame today.


----------

