# 1937 Glidacycle!



## Dan the bike man (Apr 30, 2016)

Today I bought what's likely the rarest bike I'll ever own. A 1937 Glidacycle! From reading old threads here on the CABE it seems in 2004 only 4-5 were known. Today maybe 10? Who knows. It's rough, wrong rear fender, blah blah blah. But it RIDES!!! It's the ultimate rat rod!! I think it's just the Koolest bike ever! Hard to ride at first, but after a minute, I was going fast! No breaks though


----------



## Dan the bike man (Apr 30, 2016)




----------



## Awhipple (Apr 30, 2016)

That's super cool!


----------



## BASHER76 (Apr 30, 2016)

HAHA you just bought that from my buddy Jay Carrothers in Marine City right? Nice score! I take it you are close to there, I'm in St.Clair, Michigan. If you're close we should get together for a ride sometime.


----------



## Dan the bike man (Apr 30, 2016)

Yep! Jay is a great guy! I buy a lot from him. I'm in Utica .


----------



## BASHER76 (Apr 30, 2016)

I buy a lot from him too, that's where I got my 1951 Columbia 5 Star. I also sell him a lot. I don't know if he had the clear coated Hawthorne by the door still but that was my bike that I bought at Memory Lane Classics. I traded him that one for my 1941 Hawthorne.


----------



## Dan the bike man (Apr 30, 2016)

He does have it. I got dibs once he builds his next bike.


----------



## Freqman1 (Apr 30, 2016)

Bob Strucel has already restored one of those--it won Classic Bike of the Year, Best Restored, last year at Ann Arbor. Its a different kind of animal that's for sure. Congrats. V/r Shawn


----------



## Dan the bike man (Apr 30, 2016)

Thank you. Yes I saw that one on this site and in person. It turned out great! As for mine , I'm just going to ride it and enjoy it.


----------



## Jay81 (Apr 30, 2016)

Brakes? You don't need no stinkin brakes!


----------



## Dan the bike man (Apr 30, 2016)

LOL wait til you ride it, brother!


----------



## rustjunkie (Apr 30, 2016)

is the lever supposed to be hooked to the front brake (WD)?


----------



## rustjunkie (Apr 30, 2016)

Oh I see now...neat!!


----------



## Junkhunter (Apr 30, 2016)

Those things are really cool, and quite ingenious. Get the cables for the slides connected. it'll go faster!


----------



## redline1968 (Apr 30, 2016)

They are weird super heavy but cool


----------



## Dan the bike man (May 1, 2016)

Do you own that one redline 1968?


----------



## redline1968 (May 1, 2016)

Yep all mine could use a new paint job Storage wear. A Strange bike.


----------



## Dan the bike man (May 1, 2016)

I found these online... Ad is 1942


----------



## redline1968 (May 2, 2016)

Nice that light on the fender is much better looking than mine.. Hummmm good idea.


----------



## Andrew Gorman (May 2, 2016)

It looks a lot like Alfred Jarays' J-Rad:
http://www.futurebike.ch/page.asp?dh=2089
Recumbents are cool.


----------



## Dan the bike man (May 2, 2016)

Cool


----------



## fordmike65 (May 2, 2016)

Andrew Gorman said:


> It looks a lot like Alfred Jarays' J-Rad:
> http://www.futurebike.ch/page.asp?dh=2089
> Recumbents are cool.


----------



## Dan the bike man (May 2, 2016)

Does anyone have original ads for Glidacycle? I'd like to see them, please.


----------



## redline1968 (May 2, 2016)

An old issue of classic bike has a 3 page article on the glidacycle vol 2 # 6. Oh wait to you try to change  the rear tire on your bike.  it is a one heck of a pain  in the a-- :0


----------



## Dan the bike man (May 3, 2016)

I asked my brother to order that issue from Scott on eBay. The man I got the bike from changed the tires and tubes. Sometimes it's better to buy from the people who resell bikes!  I don't mind paying a little more for their work then I know the bike is good to go.


----------



## kzoflyer (May 4, 2016)

Never seen one of these. It looks like it would be an interesting ride.


----------



## Dan the bike man (May 5, 2016)

kzoflyer said:


> Never seen one of these. It looks like it would be an interesting ride.




It was odd at first since I'm used to my feet pedaling around a sprocket, rather than back and forth. But I got used to it pretty quick. I went about 4 miles on it Sunday!


----------



## Evans200 (May 6, 2016)

Dan the bike man said:


> It was odd at first since I'm used to my feet pedaling around a sprocket, rather than back and forth. But I got used to it pretty quick. I went about 4 miles on it Sunday!



Dan, you bringing it to the car show in Utica next month?


----------



## Dan the bike man (May 6, 2016)

Evans200 said:


> Dan, you bringing it to the car show in Utica next month?




No since Tom has his rules about bring in bikes , I'm only bringing 2 bikes 1896 and 1948 Schwinn with Packard badge


----------



## bikeyard (May 7, 2016)

Photos


----------



## bikeyard (May 7, 2016)

bikeyard said:


> Photos
> 
> View attachment 314372
> 
> ...





Its in California now


----------



## Dan the bike man (May 8, 2016)

bikeyard said:


> Its in California now




If it's ever for sale let me know. I want another.


----------



## Sped Man (Jul 28, 2016)

NIce bike Dan! Can't wait to get mine.


----------



## Sped Man (Jul 28, 2016)

Some info on the Glidacycle:


Bicycle USA - 1990
The 1937 Glidacycle
by T. A. Gordon. 

The 1937 Glidacycle, manufactured in New Orleans, Louisiana, was advertised as the first basic improvement in bicycles in over half a century. The company claimed that the most salient mechanical development of the GLIDACYCLE was the unique patented DUAL DRIVE, "the heart of the machine" — a chain on both sides. 

The gear is obtained by pulling with each stroke two 44-inch chains around the 16-tooth drive sprockets. This advances the Glidacycle 17 feet 9 inches per complete stroke — about the same as the average bicycle. The difference is that on the DUAL DRIVE, the radii of the sprockets are the effective crank arms, and since they are always at right angles to the thrust (or chain rods), the rider's pedal effort is transmitted continuously to the drive wheel regardless of the pedal position. Consequently, there is no "dead space." With the old style crank drive, a different torque is obtained for every degree of the throw of the crank. This is what causes trouble starting unless the pedal is cocked injusttheright position. 

The DUAL DRIVE is always ready to go, regardless of the position of the pedals. The manufacturer claimed that the DUAL DRIVE was over 91% efficient, compared to an average of 61 % for the bicycle crank. 
It was stated that the comparatively short chains and the large drive sprockets suffered less vertical whip and would last twice as long as the chain on an ordinary bicycle, because the power alternates from one side to the other, each chain working only half the time. 
The gear shift or "stroke varying mechanism" utilizes the law of the lever instead of complicated gears or "trick jumping chains" (also known as the derailleur). The more forward the shift position, the longer the stroke and the greater the power. The rear position raises the pedal for a shorter stroke which produces greater speed. 
The unique Trott Plates allow the chains to pass outside the rear structure of the frame. The rear wheel can be removed by loosening the hub nuts, running the chain off the rear sprockets, and lifting out the wheel. 
This makes the chain easy to replace; you don't need to take off the rear wheel! The company claimed this maneuver could be completed by their mechanics in less than ten seconds. The Glidacycle was equipped with a very simple overriding clutch, consisting of four rollers and four springs. This was said to provide a virtually trouble-free brake assembly. The low-slung design of the Glidacycle results in a vehicle which is approximately 10" shorter in height than today's models. Its total length is 80"; its wheel base is 55". (Today's 10-speed is approximately 65" in length.) The low center of gravity and the longer wheel base reduced the tendency to spin when the brakes were applied. The kick stand, fitted with a coil spring, automatically snapped into the up position as the cycle moved forward in taking off. 
The Glidacycle places the rider in an auto-like position with legs in front of the drive mechanism. The company stated that, after lengthy study of flexor and extensor muscles, it found that this position offered optimum efficiency and minimum fatigue and that it also eliminated the need for trouser clips. 
The seat is oversized, triple padded, and leather covered, and it sports a backrest. The position of the rider of this machine was that of someone engaged not in an athletic pursuit but rather in a comfortable commute. Lavish use of chrome on the Texas steer horn handlebars and mud guards, along with white sidewall balloon tires (24" x 2.125"), made it a vehicle that would stand out in traffic.

The 1937 Glidacycle is from the Schwinn History Center in Chicago, Illinois. T. A. Gordon is the managing editor of Antique/Classic Bicycle News. A current issue of this bicycle collector's newsletter may be obtained by sending two dollars to Antique/Classic Bicycle News, P.O. Box 1049, Ann Arbor,MI48106.


----------



## Dan the bike man (Jul 29, 2016)

I get the most compliments from non-collectors and collectors alike on my Glidacycle - way more than other bikes. And no one asks if it's a Schwinn!!


----------



## Sped Man (Jul 29, 2016)

I plan on telling everyone that mine is a modified Schwinn just to see the expression on their faces.


----------



## Dan the bike man (Jul 29, 2016)

LOL  yeah but a schwinn badge on it!


----------



## Sped Man (Jul 29, 2016)

Dan the bike man said:


> LOL  yeah but a schwinn badge on it!



Hey that isn't a bad idea. Maybe an excelsior head badge.


----------



## Shawn Michael (Jul 29, 2016)

I hope it rides nice, because they shure are ugly.


----------



## Sped Man (Jul 31, 2016)

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. That explains my next door neighbor's wife  She is as fat as a pregnant cow. He looked like a young Robert Redford. Now after 20 years of marriage he looks more like Abe Vigoda.


----------



## Evans200 (Jul 31, 2016)

Sped Man said:


> Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. That explains my next door neighbor's wife  She is as fat as a pregnant cow. He looked like a young Robert Redford. Now after 20 years of marriage he looks more like Abe Vigoda.



Poor old Abe Vigoda, can't buy a break!


----------



## Evans200 (Jul 31, 2016)

Sped Man said:


> Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. That explains my next door neighbor's wife  She is as fat as a pregnant cow. He looked like a young Robert Redford. Now after 20 years of marriage he looks more like Abe Vigoda.[/QUOTE



They are fun to ride. Dan let me ride his last month. A little scary til you get the hang of it.


----------



## bikeyard (Aug 1, 2016)

Literature I had with the Glidacycle.


----------

