When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Couple more News Flash BMX and last day of disc Krate production.

-

schwinnbikebobb

I live for the CABE
How Schwinn felt about future BMX at least in 73 and last day of disc Krate production.

003.JPG


004.JPG
 
They were still riding the tail end of the bike boom in 1973-74. Business was pretty strong in the period 1970-74, especially for 10 speeds. The period 1975 and later was a leaner era for bike sales, which might make a company a little hungrier to try new things. One of the dirty "secrets" of the bike boom era was that companies were cutting corners left and right to churn out bikes - shoddy brazing on some of the European and British bikes, and I guess sometimes shoddy welding on some of the Schwinn headtubes, etc.

The post-Nader era also definitely was more liability-conscious than earlier periods had been as well. In fact, the 1970s was the start of the golden age of liability suits, which began back in the Nader era of the late 1960s, through the asbestos suits of the '70s-80s, and finally to the big tobacco suits later on in the '80s-90s.

And finally there is a trend that when companies reach the top, the often begin to "play not to lose" rather than "play to win". If you're on top, why associate yourself with a potential fad that could lead to broken bikes, injuries, and a tarnished reputation? The innovative Schwinn of the 1930s-40s was hungrier and more aggressive, but it's hard to fault them in the 1970s for being more conservative. They were on top by then, and large companies tend to have a more conservative approach. They eventually started producing some pretty nice BMX bikes, but were somewhat late to the table. The bigger mistake was not using more of the bike boom profits to reinvest in plant capital and more forward-looking machinery of production. Instead they contracted out alternative production means to the Japanese and later the Taiwanese and Chinese.
 
Yeah, and the header should’ve read;
NEWS FLASH! If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’re going to get your ass kicked by Taiwan/China.

Something the U.S. could stand to reason with as well.

I guess the moto could be;
As SCHWINN goes, so goes the UNITED STATES of AMERICA.

Sold out by the guy living in the big house.
 
Yeah, and the header should’ve read;
NEWS FLASH! If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’re going to get your ass kicked by Taiwan/China.

Something the U.S. could stand to reason with as well.

I guess the moto could be;
As SCHWINN goes, so goes the UNITED STATES of AMERICA.

Sold out by the guy living in the big house.
Sad but true
 
Back
Top