I'm issuing a challenge!

[frankster41]

Another Opinion

I collect and work on alot of different things. Balloon Tire Bicycles of all kinds, Harley Davidson Motorcycles 1940's &50's, antique chainsaws, John Deere Tractors, and I am a mechanic. The bikes I find best to work on are the Schwinns. I do a fair amount of riding on them as well, I live in an area with some hills and when your cranking an old Ballooner up them you feel all different kinds of flexing from the different makes. The Schwinns seem to be build better, and engineered better. I do like Daytons and Colsons as a second choice. Alot of the others seem like cookie cutter bikes that were just produced to get them out the door and to the retailer. My favorite rider is a 1936 Autocycle with Pogo Seat.
Schwinn is to Bicycles Like:
Harley Davidson is to Motorcycles
John Deere is to Tractors
Cadillac is to Cars

frankster41

 

[37fleetwood]

I'm going to throw it out there again, Huffman had more iconic bikes than anyone else.
Safety Streamline, Super Streamline, Twin-Flex, Champion, Dial-Your-Ride, Customliner, Radio Bike... who else had that many home runs? add to that, that the middle of the line Huffman I posted in the original post is a match for the best of the competition.

 

[cyclingday]

When an American grabs an adjustable spanner wrench, they say,"Hand me the Crecent Wrench."

When they reach for the insulated bottle in their lunch box, they are reaching for their Thermos bottle.

When they light their camping stove, they are lighting the Coleman Stove.

When they go to buy a pair of denim jeans, they are going to get some Levis.

When they are buying a soft drink, they are buying a Coke.

Most of the time, none of these items were actually manufactured by the brand names that they are being referred to, but they have become so iconic, that their name brand is as recognizable as the product itself.

If someone says he had a Schwinn, then you immediately picture a Balloon tire bike with big fenders and a tank. It could actually be a bike made by any manufacturer, but the observer wouldn't know an Elgin ( Which was a brand name for many things sold by Sears.) or a Huffman(Which was also a multi product brand name.) from a clock or a gas can.

The Schwinn was and for the most part still is the most recognizable bicycle brand name ever built.

Part of the reason for the companies demise, was precisely that image of the bike that they always built. People just couldn't shake that image, and except lightweight road racers or multi speed fully suspended mountain bikes.

To say which bicycle brand was best is purely subjective. but to say which bicycle brand is the most iconic, then you would have to say the Schwinn.

As far as overall design, my personal favorite is the post war Schwinn B6 The 57 Chevy of bicycles. super common, but if it were not, and only one were ever built, it would be the most sought after bicycle of all time. Unfortunately, when something becomes common, no matter how beautiful it is, it becomes boring.
But, I like to say, that it's common for a reason.

 

[scrubbinrims]

I'm going to throw it out there again, Huffman had more iconic bikes than anyone else.
Safety Streamline, Super Streamline, Twin-Flex, Champion, Dial-Your-Ride, Customliner, Radio Bike... who else had that many home runs? add to that, that the middle of the line Huffman I posted in the original post is a match for the best of the competition.

Scott,
You cannot have an icon, without recognition buddy (and a gimmick like a radio bike isn't an icon either).
Most folks reading your list don't know what these bicycles are...and I am not being condescending... Huffman produced in such low numbers, they just don't turn up...almost never!
A Twinflex Champion is the next bicycle I would want, money being no object.
Chris

 

[old hotrod]

This is a tough one...my favorite bike is my 39 Columbia Superb and to me, it is built better than any other pre or postwar bike. The geometry is ideal and it rides like no other brand of bike but looks-wise...not particularly unique or outlandish just a high attention to detail and craftsmanship with some of the best (at the time) quality of components. I am not a huge fan of Elgins but after reading the previous posts, I can agree to most if not all of the points concerning style or uniqueness but quality is debatable if that is what we are trying to determine. Even the Westfield built Elgins were built at a lower level than the Columbia line also built by Westfield. The Huffman bikes I have own (or owned) were very unique with beautiful paint schemes but I don't think they were built as well as my prewar Schwinn cantilever. So I guess my answer to Scott's original post is that I feel my Columbia is ahead of pre war Schwinns...but I have rode a few post war Schwinns that are tough to beat...

 

[37fleetwood]

when I was new in the hobby I looked through the Evolution of the bicycle books and stopped dead when I reached the page with the Huffman Champion in red and black on it. I was stunned! never before had I imagined there was a bike so amazing looking! no radio gimick, no knowledge of rarity or availability, I didn't even consider it an issue if the thing was well built or not. it was only later that I realized just how unlikely it was that I'd ever find one, or what it would cost me. this is the reaction I'm looking for from you guys, not "I only collect the best and Schwinn is the best!".
if the postwar B-6 is the 57 Chevy of bikes, then the 1940 Huffman Champion is the Auburn Boat Tail Speedster, it matters little if someone doesn't know what a Boat Tail Speedster looks like, it's better than a '57 Chevy!
one more jab, do you guys know what the most viewed post on the cabe is?
click>

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[sam]

What manufacturer had the best bicycle
I think Mead.I'm not sure if they originally built their own frames or not.Schwinn and others did supply frames at some point.But like Elgin they were assembled to their specs. Often with imported parts.The williams pattern chain ring and the English pat. flutted forks are two examples.And their hardened BB and heatsets are top of the line.
someone once called them high class schwinns.These bikes are not specal in design just a bit extra in quality.

 

[ohdeebee]

Another $0.02, my '39 Dayton Twin-Flex (restored by Dave Stromberger) is one of my faves design-wise. It hangs on my wall and is literally eye candy/art. It is one of the most visually stunning bikes I've ever seen and I'm just fortunate to own it. I'll post pics sometime.

I agree about the Twinflex. In person, the bike is beyond stunning. It's not a bike, it's a Twinflex. It just happens to look like a bike. People come in to my shop see the Flex's and it blows their mind. 99% of people think they are custom built or are far more modern (1980's at the oldest). The simple scale of these bikes is something to behold. Everything is huge on them. The fenders are huge, the frame (suspension, frame itself and fork) are huge, the handlebars are huge. The engineering is beyond compare and the overall look is very tough to beat.


I think this topic is turning into a few different topics. Which bikes are more visually appealing? Which are better built? Which are more iconic? Asking which bike is "best" is in itself, subjective by nature. I already cast my vote for the Elgin brand as most visually appealing. I can agree that Schwinn's are for the most part, better built than other bikes of the time and as far as iconic goes, it is tough to beat a Phantom (even though I personally can't stand them). Everyone knows what they are. If you didn't own one at the time, you wanted one more than anything else and this desire still exists in many non-collector people to this day. You don't have to know a thing about bikes to know what a 1950's Schwinn Black Phantom is. Does this mean they are the "best" bikes? I don't think so.

 

[37fleetwood]

I phrased my challenge in the first post vague intentionally. I wanted to show you guys something, there is no best brand, there is no best bike, there is no best model! no one brand deserves a place any higher than any other brand. we should value our bikes based on how much we like them, and how available they are, ie. supply and demand. it is ludicrous in the extreme that there were recently 2 prewar Schwinns on ebay that suspiciously skyrocketed to over $6,000.00! let's be real, none of the arguments here convince me that the most common of bikes ie a B-6 Schwinn is that much better than the next bike of the same age and scarcity!

more people have collected 57 Chevies than almost anything else but let's consider whether it's really the best car. which would you like to go out to the garage and see sitting there?

This:

or This:

This:

or this:

which would you rather have:?
there are as many answers to this question as there are cars, but, name recognition is not a basis for judging what's best. not many people will have heard of Delahaye, but I'd rather have one than 10 '57 Chevies though everyone knows what one those is. The Chevy is probably better built, gets better mileage, is definitely more recognizable, but better?

 

[scrubbinrims]

I found some documentation as to what is the finest (best) bicycle...Iver Johnson!
If price at the time determined best, they're up there.
Little of any outsourcing and materials were quality construct.