# 46 Dixie Flyer



## the tinker (Jun 26, 2018)

Digging out the Dixie Flyer. It's got some housepaint graphics painted over the original paint. Going to try and remove. May make a "fenderless " rider out of it. It will be the "rider" for the 4th.


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## Scribble (Jun 27, 2018)

could i see a good pic of the badge, i've got a dixie flyer. but have know idea if its a post war or prewar.


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## the tinker (Jun 27, 2018)

I get this bike outside in the daylight today, I will try and post a better photo of the badge. I wanted to get this bike up from the basement yesterday afternoon, but my sump pump went out and my basement is getting wet. I live by a swamp...... After I get the pump replaced ,I'll get the old boy outside and take another photo. The badge is brass. I had a late 50's girls bike that  surprisingly had the older Huffman rack on it, that they used during the late forties and early 50's transition to the cheaper "Huffy" versions. This bike had the same style nameplate, but it was cheap aluminum. I don't think it was even riveted on. A neighbor lady gave me that bike for free. It was really nice condition. I brought it to a swap and no one gave it a second look. I wish I would have kept the old style rack that was on it for this one, as I sold the bike to a fellow for 20 bucks to be used as part of a sign.


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## tripple3 (Jun 27, 2018)

Scribble said:


> could i see a good pic of the badge, i've got a dixie flyer. but have know idea if its a post war or prewar.



Here's mine.
The seat post clamp is a good tell for pre/post war
back of fork crown should have a date stamp too.


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## the tinker (Jun 27, 2018)

Here's the old boy.. Let's hope it is a 46 as I was told.  These were the types of bikes I started out with as a kid. I enjoy them,. We rode them hard and had fun! There is no evidence of this bike ever having a tank.


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## Scribble (Jun 28, 2018)

tripple3 said:


> Here's mine.
> The seat post clamp is a good tell for pre/post war
> back of fork crown should have a date stamp too.
> View attachment 830115




Here's a link to my Flyer gallery, it would be pretty funny if she ended up being a post war.
https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/prewar-long-tank-huffman-dixie-flyer.119506/



the tinker said:


> View attachment 830383 Here's the old boy.. Let's hope it is a 46 as I was told.  These were the types of bikes I started out with as a kid. I enjoy them,. We rode them hard and had fun! There is no evidence of this bike ever having a tank. View attachment 830384 View attachment 830385




Love the Huffman such nice bikes, yours will clean up beautifully.


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## tripple3 (Jun 28, 2018)

Scribble said:


> Here's a link to my Flyer gallery, it would be pretty funny if she ended up being a post war.



Yours has the same seat post clamp that @the tinker 's does = post war
Here's a pic of my 41 sold awhile back. It's hard to see; the frame is shaped away at the top and the bolt goes through that.
I dig your red Dixie Flyer and think these frames look great without the tank too Dave.


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## the tinker (Jun 28, 2018)

Thank you Mark for the seat clamp I.D. Little things that can help nail down the year a bike was built.  I have owned 4 Huffman built bikes from the 40's, always good to learn something that I didn't know. Got the bike on the stand tonight. Going to break it down and grease everything up and see if some of this housepaint that's on it will come off.


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## Ridemore (Jun 30, 2018)

pre war....


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## Jay81 (Jun 30, 2018)

@the tinker I don't mean to hijack your thread, but thought this was worth showing. Although mine is a Dayton badge, it's essentially the same bike.
I don't know if mine's an oddball or what, it has the post war style seat clamp. But what's throwing me off is I've never seen any post war bike with a long tank.
I did look at the link posted by @Scribble and his has the same tank, but it's not original to the bike. @Ridemore also has the same tank, on a prewar bike. 
I'm wondering if anybody has seen a post war, original paint bike, with an original paint long tank? 
Is it possible they switched to the seat clamp just prior to WWII?


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## the tinker (Jun 30, 2018)

Jay81 said:


> @the tinker I don't mean to hijack your thread, but thought this was worth showing. Although mine is a Dayton badge, it's essentially the same bike.
> I don't know if mine's an oddball or what, it has the post war style seat clamp. But what's throwing me off is I've never seen any post war bike with a long tank.
> I did look at the link posted by @Scribble and his has the same tank, but it's not original to the bike. @Ridemore also has the same tank, on a prewar bike.
> I'm wondering if anybody has seen a post war, original paint bike, with an original paint long tank?
> ...



Awesome bike Jay. Were you going to try Oxalic acid on that one? That's a rider as is. I like it! If you don't get any answers to your post, I recall what the late John Polizzi  once told me. Just before the war in 41 Schwinn used up frames they still had that were made in 1934. He said after the war, everybody did the same thing. Manufacturers and the people that ran the assembly plants were't like the tax write-off, litigation minded people of today. We were fresh out of the depression. If it was scrap, it went to the war effort. If it could be used in the production line, it was put to use. It has to be remembered there was a shortage of bicycles and parts after the war.  Your bike may be one of these. 
Whatever it is, it's a nice one.


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## Jay81 (Jun 30, 2018)

Thank you. So you think it may be a post war frame, and they used a leftover prewar tank on it? I've heard of bike companies doing stuff like that but never owned one myself. (maybe I do now)
I did take it all apart, OA bath and also some 0000 steel wool with wd40 for the stubborn stuff. I took your advice and didn't leave it in the OA too long, but I may not have made it strong enough. I serviced the bearings and hubs, and today I installed a set of black chain treads from John. It's pretty much done now and back together, just waiting on grips and I have the pedals soaking in Evaporust. I'll take some "after" pictures once it's all done and post them in the thread I started for the bike.


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