1948 Girls Gene Autry

[SherryAnn]

Hey,
I am new to this and am in possesion of a girls 1948 Gene Autry with the horse head. It's in pretty good shape. Some surface rust on the handle bars and some rust around chain area. My dad bought it back in the 70's. The guy I spoke with on bike icons said he had never seen one like it. They had a 1950. In the pics it looked to be in about the same condition as mine. They had sold theirs for 2200. Can anyone tell me if this bike relly that rare? Also someone said the carrier on the back is not original. I don't know. It was on there when my dad bought it. The tires still hold air The kick stands works perfectly. I have really enjoyed reading the threads on here. I have learned more from this site than a weeks worth of phone calls and searching I did before finding it. It is addictive.
TY
SherryAnn

 

[Adamtinkerer]

Welcome to the forum, Sherry Ann! That's quite a find there, I had to look in "The Monark Book" to find out anything about it. Therre's an original ad in there that reads:"For riding, roping, or just plain romping-these gene Autry Westerners are the bicycle news of the year. Designed according to my specifications, they are as authentic and exciting as a wild west rodeo....approved by your pal, Gene Autry" Looks like the only thing missing is the fringed two tone "flying A" saddle blanket. I'm sure these were meant to compete with Rollfasts' Hopalong Cassidy bikes, and probably to a lesser extent, Shelby's Donald Duck bikes.

 

[SherryAnn]

Thank You

Thank you for the info. I've had a few people ask about buying it. I'm not sure what to ask for. I don't want to sell myself short or anyone else. I saw one on bike icons that sold for 2200 but it was a 1950. He said he had never seen another one anywhere but that was about the extent of it.
Sherry