1937&1941 hawthorne ?

[george jaime]

picked these up today,both spin and brake,any insight would be helpful,both have head badges,must be hard to find the tanks.might sell,might fix up,i really like the one that i think is a 37.well thanks everyone,i,m older and probably posted wrong,not to good with computers .

 

[Archie Sturmer]

The Wards Hawthorne bicycles look to be a product built by Snyder Mfg., and likely at their acquired Excelsior plant in Michigan City Indiana, (closer to MW Chicago), if the serial stampings have earlier letters of the alphabet.
The taller was their ‘motobike’ the short called ‘sport motobike’.
The bikes may be called streamlined or semi-streamlined; later Snyder would introduce a motobike frame with a curved down tube, for the fully streamlined look, which continued into the middle 1950’s.
The hanging tank which fits between the parallel bars, would be the more difficult to find of the two. Split tanks from Rollfast bikes are less uncommon.

 

[george jaime]

thanls Arch,any recommendation on a tire brand i should get,are duro ok.these bikes are functional if i put on some tires,one has morrow brakes.

 

[SKPC]

GJ. Nice old bikes! Before getting too far ahead of yourself, take the larger bike apart and clean/service the hubs, crankcase and headset. You should even take the wheels to someone who can evaluate the structural integrity of them and ensure they are rideable. As you do this, start looking for tires...

 

[george jaime]

thanks,i,m,pretty excited.whats the chances of finding two at once lol.

 

[george jaime]

serial on the fastback looking one

 

[george jaime]

was wondering best way to save the patina,once i break it down for greaseing.

 

[Balloonoob]

The Wards Hawthorne bicycles look to be a product built by Snyder Mfg., and likely at their acquired Excelsior plant in Michigan City Indiana, (closer to MW Chicago), if the serial stampings have earlier letters of the alphabet.
The taller was their ‘motobike’ the short called ‘sport motobike’.
The bikes may be called streamlined or semi-streamlined; later Snyder would introduce a motobike frame with a curved down tube, for the fully streamlined look, which continued into the middle 1950’s.
The hanging tank which fits between the parallel bars, would be the more difficult to find of the two. Split tanks from Rollfast bikes are less uncommon.

So is this a hanging tank or split tank? I'm guessing hanging. What does a split tank look like?

 

[fordmike65]

was wondering best way to save the patina,once i break it down for greaseing.View attachment 1028381

It looks to have been repainted long ago, so you wouldn't really be preserving any original paint. I usually give my bikes a light cleaning with soap and water, possibly a light coat of wax and that's about it. Then go through the drivetrain and replace/service whatever it needs. New tires and tubes are always a must for me. Good luck with your project.

 

[Archie Sturmer]

any recommendation on a tire brand i should get,are duro ok

Duro tires are economical, and 26" x 2.125" wide best fitting. Some riders of classics sometimes like to add a bit of color to dark bikes via the tires, by deviating from the basic black. There are also economical tires in color combinations, (also by Duro), but that is more a question of style preference. My preference is sometimes to avoid white or cream tires which seem to attract dirt.

I have also found a compromise in black tires with red or blue sidewalls.