CL Hornet

[Barkeep]

Picked this up this afternoon. I had emailed the guy that put up the ad but didn't hear for a few days and gave up. He called today and I gladly paid the 60 dollar asking price. Here are some initial pics and the serial (V83162)
Let me know what you think, and any information you might have while I start my research would be appreciated.

 

[panther boy]

hornet

Great score---you hit the jackpot on this one---there was a member here selling a tank for it.

 

[Barkeep]

Thanks. Thought 60 bucks wasnt bad. Anyone have an idea of the year, missing parts ect. Im thinking sometime april 56, maybe the 14, 15, or 16th but not sure im reading the charts right.

 

[Barkeep]

Well, I'm confused as to the year... Decoding gives me april 56 but the color scheme etc doesn't match up. The bike is black and ivory and is original paint which doesn't seem to be offered on the 56 hornet. It is missing the front light and the 2 rear reflectors. does not appear to ever have had a tank. it has middleweight tires on it leading me to believe it has s7's until i clean them up. the front hub is schwinn scripted and the rear is ND. If anyone is able to help me identify my newest projects year etc i would be grateful.

 

[vintage2wheel]

How much

do you want to sell it let me know

shaun 714-585-6183

 

[Barkeep]

I'm starting to get settled in at my new house so I've been able to start on the hornet. Some interesting things I'd love help with from the schwinn experts. The serial indicates it as a 56 which is a transitional year frame wise if I'm researching correctly. it has s7 wheels but still the straight bar frame. Also interesting is it does not have the built in kick stand but a bolt on stand with "pat app" stamped on it. One more thing to add to the mystery is it is a black and ivory paint scheme which wasn't offered until the canti frame the following year. let me know if I'm just misreading the catalogs or if I'm just totally wrong... oh and she's cleaning up nicely.

 

[Scott Ritchie]

hornet

i have 2 staight bar middlweights with tanks a 54 and 56 but there both tornados.Im not sure if the middleweight hornets had tanks.

 

[Scott Ritchie]

hornet

Both my tonadoes have bolt on kickstands

 

[hatfulofhollow]

Post a new pic so we can see your progress!

 

[greenephantom]

Bolt-on kickstand was standard for the Hornets in the mid-1950s, as well as other budget models. '54 - '57 off the top of my head.

All 1950s Hornets used tanks.

There's some serial number overlap in the 1950s, so double check that your serial number wasn't used in a couple different years.

The Hornets (and other Heavyweight budget bikes) in the mid-1950s used budget Heavyweight fenders that aren't nearly as deep as the ones used on higher end bikes. Your frame and fenders look like Middleweight parts, but it's kind of tough to tell from the pictures. Measure the wrap of the fenders (draping and marking a piece of paper is the easiest way) or get a picture of the rear fender bridge (with rear rack removed) and this will help determine for sure if it's a HW or MW frame.

Your wheels look like S-7s, but wheels are something that sometimes get switched out.

Cheers, Geoff