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Learning about my Dad’s “Our Own Hardware” bike

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I’ve been slowly cleaning up my Dad’s boyhood bike. Lots of layers of Iowa rural road’s dirt has been removed from the wheels, hubs, and sprockets.

Is there a way to determine the manufacture date? Looking at old pictures, I’m thinking that my dad was around 10 years old when the bike was new. This makes the manufacture date around 1939-40??

I feel kind of guilty riding his bike, because all the miles on his “still working” Zeppelin speedometer belonged to him (3100 miles). I do, however, enjoy riding his bike around the neighborhood!!!

thank you for helping me learn about his bike

Scott

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great looking bike! will state the same... those white fenders look great
 
Thank you all for sharing your thoughts and insights on my dad’s bike. I never really thought how special it is to be able to ride my Dad’s first and only bicycle. I guess I just figured that most
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everyone had that opportunity. Here are a couple more pictures
 
Fabulous bike!
Congrats on the thrill of that first ride on Dads old bike.
The reverse paint fenders with color matching rims were standard features on the 39 Schwinn DX model.
It was actually an extra charge if you wanted color matching fenders.
That was the only year they did that. Every other year during their manufacture, it was just the opposite, and the reverse painted fenders was the extra fee option.
The headlight would’ve also been color matched, and in that one close up picture, I can see just a hint of blue, so it’s possible, the original paint is hiding underneath that coat of gray, that your dad probably put on there back in the day.
I’d just leave it, since that’s the way your dad had it, but I just wanted to point out, how much thought, Schwinn put into the paint schemes on these wonderful old bikes.
 
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