20” HEAVY DUTY Speedster! Ever see one?

[WillWork4Parts]

I definitely see what you mean. So it begs the question, the dealer must’ve had some sort of jig to do this? Unless they did it by eyeball… Unfortunately I don’t have calipers to measure the gauge of spoke. I’ll have to compare it to my Wasp’s wheels.

A jig for drilling perfectly spaced holes would be pretty large and not practical outside of a factory setting...to me anyways...plus they would have to source a Schwinn rim that wasn't drilled.

I'd love to take a deeper look at them to find inconsistencies in spacing that might suggest something different than factory drill spacing though. At the very least, I think someone at the factory had some extra-curricular activities.

 

[blakekennedy]

Thank you for the information! It is greatly appreciated. Unfortunately all I can do is assume, but possibly this rider was a bit on the larger side and needed the heavy duty parts? It looks like the valve stem hole is also not perfect and maybe even off center, so very interesting for sure. I figure most of the bikes that Shriners used were just regular 20” bikes that had a seat and neck swapped out at the dealer. I’ll try to get some spacing measurements tonight.

 

[Bendix II]

You're definitely right about the 36h drilling being done at the factory, but I don't see an option for 36h S-7 in 59.

View attachment 2331663

I don't see anyone taking the time to accurately drill the spacing at home even if they snuck an undrilled rim out of the factory. The drill burs and rust at the holes are what set off alarms for me though, suggesting that the holes were enlarged, post chrome, like mentioned earlier.
I checked my catalogs from 56-65 and didn't see 36h S-7s offered, so there's not any documentation to back these up. The rims are an oddity, but I would not go as far as to say it was a factory option or special order model...just something that a worker knew how to "make happen." The bike might be very special to a certain Shriner that used to ride it, but not necessarily important enough for a collector to pay that much extra for it.

Was there ever a 36 hole S-7?

 

[WillWork4Parts]

Was there ever a 36 hole S-7?

Not that I have ever seen on a 20"...or even a 24" for that matter.

S-2s in 36h? Yes, you'll find them all day long...but still very hard to find in nice, non-dented/non-pitted condition, and Center Stamped for a Deluxe Ballooner, early Stingray, or Cycle Truck. Collectors of those bikes looking for that condition are what drives those inflated prices though.

 

[rockabillyjay]

Custom Shriner parade bike is my guess. Very cool!

 

[Bendix II]

Not that I have ever seen on a 20"...or even a 24" for that matter.

S-2s in 36h? Yes, you'll find them all day long...but still very hard to find in nice, non-dented/non-pitted condition, and Center Stamped for a Deluxe Ballooner, early Stingray, or Cycle Truck. Collectors of those bikes looking for that condition are what drives those inflated prices though.

I've had and have S-2s, 36 hole. I'd guess if they were available it would have been late 60s through the 70s when beating and jumping sting rays then into the BMX era.

 

[Bendix II]

Would any of the exercise bikes have S-7 rim

 

[coasterbrakejunkie1969]

Would any of the exercise bikes have S-7 rim

Yes but only 28 hole even on the ‘65s

 

[blakekennedy]

So I bought a digital caliper, front spokes are indeed .105 gauge. The caliper I bought was just a cheap one, so not very accurate but it read .10, so I’m just gonna go with it as .105. The front hub also reads 36-10 right on it.


I also took the chance to measure the spacing to see if it was equal. Sure enough, they are all spaced the same. Front and rear. I attached a couple photos in different spots for reference.

 

[Schwinn Sales West]

I cannot explain where the 36 hole drilling came from on an S-7 sized rim. It was not an "original equipment" part on any Schwinn model to my knowledge. Yes, the early Schwinn stationary exercisers did use a S-7 rim with a semi-pneumatic tire (Skipper/Debbie original part), but they were all 28 hole drilling, not 36 hole.

I would not be concerned seeing rusted spoke holes in the rims. This would lead one to believe the "oversized" spoke holes were drilled to the "oversize" after the rims went through the chrome plating process. Dealers tried to save inventory money by simply stocking the normal .080" spoke drilling and then spending three minutes drilling the original .080" nipple holes oversize when they needed a replacement rim with oversize holes. This practice was very common in the early 1970's when dealers were building hundreds of 36 hole Schwinn S-2/Araya/Ukai steel rims into 105 ga heavy duty wheels for the early motocross bikes. The next year it was all alloy 7X rims, and anodized colored alloy rims the following year.

The reason the spokes have exposed threads above the spoke nipples is simply because whomever built these wheels used the wrong length spokes. No matter if the wheels were built with a three or a four cross pattern, the larger diameter (BSD) of the S-7 (1 3/4) rims require spokes 1/8" longer than a S-2 (2.125) rim. For this reason alone, I can safely say, those wheels were not built in a Schwinn factory. It's something that a back yard mechanic assembled. The selection of different lengths in 105 ga spokes was never as great as in the .080 ga. The builder simply used what was available, not necessarily what was the correct spoke length for this odd wheel size application.

The only question that remains is where did the S-7 36 hole drilling rims come from? You would have a tough time re-drilling a 28 hole rim into a 36 hole rim and making it look original. It might be interesting to see the rims inside with the tires and rim strips removed.

Pretty cool the unique stuff that shows up on the Cabe.

John