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Looking for more info on a possible Elgin bicycle

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This is the patent # on the kickstand. I don't know if it's the same age as the bike, but the wheel hubs at least seem to be close to the same age as the frame.

Hi, @Bike from the Dead

The patent for the stand dates from late 1934, so it should be at least contemporary with the other datable items you are finding on the bike.

Best Regards,

Adrian



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Hi @Bike from the Dead

Berry Cohen is the inventor in this case, and it is (technically) the first side stand on the market. Mr. Cohen did defend it against later patents , and you can read a bit about it here:


I do a little bit of patent searching for my work, so I have a good idea of which stones to look under. (-:

This site is a bit clunky, but my preferred one, and excellent when you get used to it: Otherwise, you can type the patent number into Google, but it's not as accurate.


Have fun (-:

Best Regards,

Adrian
 
Hi @Bike from the Dead

Berry Cohen is the inventor in this case, and it is (technically) the first side stand on the market. Mr. Cohen did defend it against later patents , and you can read a bit about it here:


I do a little bit of patent searching for my work, so I have a good idea of which stones to look under. (-:

This site is a bit clunky, but my preferred one, and excellent when you get used to it: Otherwise, you can type the patent number into Google, but it's not as accurate.


Have fun (-:

Best Regards,

Adrian
Dang, you know your kickstands and patents! It's always fun getting to learn something new in this hobby. I never would have guessed this was among the earliest side stands out there, so it's cool that I got to learn a little bicycle history! Thanks for sharing!
 
Found the markings on the rear hub. Looks like my bike (or at least the hubs) were manufactured in the 1st quarter of 1938. According to one of the guys on RRB, the frame I have should be a 1938 model, so I'm willing to believe that at least the hubs (if not the complete wheels) are original to the frame.
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I picked up a Elgin rear coaster hub and will have to dig it out to see the date on mine.. Might try to build a bike around that hub.. Good to know you figured out the bikes year.. RideOnn.. Razin..
 
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Okay, this took longer than I meant for it to, but here are some additional photos to help identify the "Elgin."

I take it these are those Alemite fittings I keep hearing about?
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I tried sanding off more of the paint under the bottom bracket to see if any other numbers or letters would show, but nothing else revealed itself.
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Some close-ups of the rear hub.
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Also, just to put it out there, as I was replacing the tubes and tires so I could get this bike rolling, I made a few discoveries.

First, the inside of both the rims are clean! Whether these are the original hoops or not, like the rest of the bike, they're nearly rust-free! Shiny, even!
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Next, I found this inside the back tire. It even still holds air! (I took it out and replaced it with a new tube, both to be safe and to preserve the original tube.)
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Before I replaced the tires, I just wanted to see what they'd look like inflated. The rear tire is actually in really good shape, almost like new! It's still grippy, it has now cracks that I could find, it's still got the mold lines on the middle of the tread! The front tire is not in as good of shape as the rear tire, but it'd look alright on a display bike, I think.
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Hey Austin, Here's a thought on those dots on the bottom bracket. Their are nine dots and five dots which could mean this frame was made in May of 39.. Just a mental note.. Hope this helps..
 
Hey Austin, Here's a thought on those dots on the bottom bracket. Their are nine dots and five dots which could mean this frame was made in May of 39.. Just a mental note.. Hope this helps..
Not a bad idea. I just figured they were machine marks left over from the stamping process, like something clamping down on the frame so it could be stamped properly. I like your idea, though!
 
Nice! Is that the period your Elgin was manufactured? According to one of the guys on ratrodbikes.com, mine appears to be a '38-'39. That also just so happens to be the date of manufacture on the rear hub, according to @J-wagon's earlier post. So I'm willing to bet mine is either a '38 or '39 model based on what I know so far.

That would definitely make sense for the date on the seat post. My guess was that was the day the fire museum acquired the bike, but I'm not ruling anything out until I ask someone from the museum itself.

I knew the fenders, guard and pedals were all wrong, and I figured that the seat and handlebars might not be original either, but I'm a little surprised by the truss rods. How are those wrong; just not the correct parts, or are they assembled incorrectly?

Thanks! They do look great as board track racers, as yours clearly shows. I know mine would look good as one; I've seen a lot of other folks build similar bikes that way, but that's part of the problem; just about every prewar Elgin/Murray I've seen that's similar to mine seems to have been converted into a board track racer. That just makes me want to go a completely different direction with mine! I've mocked up a few parts on this bike already, but nothing's really clicking just yet. I'd have to sketch up some ideas both on paper and in Photoshop before I make any decisions.

I actually got my Elgin rolling under its own power yesterday, and looking like a board track racer too! I had to tweak the master link on the chain so it'd actually lock together this time, but I was able to use the original skiptooth chain on this bike. Granted, it'd need to be cleaned and lubed again to be at its best, but none of the links are locked up at least. I just took it for a very short ride around my neighborhood, just to assess everything. The biggest issues the bike has right now is that the coaster brake needs a rebuild, and I can't get the handlebars clamped tight enough to prevent them from rotating down with any reasonable pressure applied to them. Seat's not too comfy either, but it's tolerable at least. I left the chain guard and fenders off, both because they weren't original to the bike, and because I just wanted to see how the bike would look without them. The tires are just some freebies I got from a friend, and the tubes were just ones I salvaged from some parts bikes. Not very elegant, but functional.
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I do believe the bike is a 39. To be honest the closer I look it could be just the bracket is upside down, arch in rods also seems smaller looking as well. Being a Murray, a couple different styles were used, one style being the one piece truss rods with plate, similar to what the Higgins used. What's on yours, they also used a similar style. Either way, congrats, great project to have some fun with.

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